Pinterest Inadequacy
I have recently discovered Pinterest. This is both a Good Thing and a Bad Thing.
It is a Good Thing because the whole place is absolutely chock full of truly brilliant ideas for kids. Blog after blog of lists of things to do with your kids on rainy days, snowy days, sunny days . . . any type of day you can think of! And some of them are actually good ideas that look as though they might be worth doing.
It is a Bad Thing because it has given me a severe case of Pinterest inadequacy. Oh yes, at first you go on there, enthusiastically re-pinning those wonderful craft ideas and awesome educational materials, but after a while, you realise that the chances of ever actually doing any of them youself are minimal and instead, they just sit there on your boards . . . mocking you!
And it gets worse.
After a while comes the realisation that people that posted these things not only thought of them (a feat in itself in my opinion) but actually went ahead and DID them. I know they did them because, as if it's not enough that these women (and they usually are women) are complete domestic superwomen, it turns out they also have the time to photograph their children doing the activities and then spend their evenings posting all the instructions and photographs in blog form.
So let's get this right. These women, many of whom have several children, plan activities in advance, collect all the materials in preparation, complete the activities with their children (pausing several times to take photos along the way), clear up after it all and then sit down at their computers to write an informative blog.
I'm exhausted just thinking about it!
Seriously, we are not at all in that kind of league. I feel like I should get a pat on the back if I get the paints out once in a while, and even then I usually end up deciding that the effort expended in clearing up the mess didn't really justify the benefits of the activity!
And I feel as though we don't have the time. And by 'we', I mean the children, not me. If I'm honest, I do have time some evenings to plan exciting activities, but the children are not so fortunate.
NB, for instance, spends 3 mornings each week at Playgroup. Twice a week he has contact with his family. Every afternoon he has a decent-length nap and he goes off to bed at 7.30pm. Add to this the time spent eating and the seemingly endless trips to the toilet, and the poor kid doesn't have much time to pursue his own interests. I tend to think that in his few precious minutes of free time he probably ought to be allowed to have some self-directed play, rather than being chased around the house by an over-eager woman with a glue stick and some autumn leaves! I already ruin most of his playtime anyway by constantly 'narrating' it as instructed by the speech therapist!
Ah well, I shall no doubt continue to collect pins, and they will no doubt continue to mock me mercilessly until I actually do something about them. So, I have decided to just pick one, do it, and hopefully put an end to their scornful voices for a while. Watch this space for pictures (oh yes!) of a forthcoming Christmas tree activity!
It is a Good Thing because the whole place is absolutely chock full of truly brilliant ideas for kids. Blog after blog of lists of things to do with your kids on rainy days, snowy days, sunny days . . . any type of day you can think of! And some of them are actually good ideas that look as though they might be worth doing.
It is a Bad Thing because it has given me a severe case of Pinterest inadequacy. Oh yes, at first you go on there, enthusiastically re-pinning those wonderful craft ideas and awesome educational materials, but after a while, you realise that the chances of ever actually doing any of them youself are minimal and instead, they just sit there on your boards . . . mocking you!
And it gets worse.
After a while comes the realisation that people that posted these things not only thought of them (a feat in itself in my opinion) but actually went ahead and DID them. I know they did them because, as if it's not enough that these women (and they usually are women) are complete domestic superwomen, it turns out they also have the time to photograph their children doing the activities and then spend their evenings posting all the instructions and photographs in blog form.
So let's get this right. These women, many of whom have several children, plan activities in advance, collect all the materials in preparation, complete the activities with their children (pausing several times to take photos along the way), clear up after it all and then sit down at their computers to write an informative blog.
I'm exhausted just thinking about it!
Seriously, we are not at all in that kind of league. I feel like I should get a pat on the back if I get the paints out once in a while, and even then I usually end up deciding that the effort expended in clearing up the mess didn't really justify the benefits of the activity!
And I feel as though we don't have the time. And by 'we', I mean the children, not me. If I'm honest, I do have time some evenings to plan exciting activities, but the children are not so fortunate.
NB, for instance, spends 3 mornings each week at Playgroup. Twice a week he has contact with his family. Every afternoon he has a decent-length nap and he goes off to bed at 7.30pm. Add to this the time spent eating and the seemingly endless trips to the toilet, and the poor kid doesn't have much time to pursue his own interests. I tend to think that in his few precious minutes of free time he probably ought to be allowed to have some self-directed play, rather than being chased around the house by an over-eager woman with a glue stick and some autumn leaves! I already ruin most of his playtime anyway by constantly 'narrating' it as instructed by the speech therapist!
Ah well, I shall no doubt continue to collect pins, and they will no doubt continue to mock me mercilessly until I actually do something about them. So, I have decided to just pick one, do it, and hopefully put an end to their scornful voices for a while. Watch this space for pictures (oh yes!) of a forthcoming Christmas tree activity!
Pinterest can be addictive, even though I confess to feeling rather out of place there as a guy sometimes! :)
ReplyDeleteYou're absolutely right on both counts! It seems to be full of weddings, nurseries, things to do with kids and attractive views!
DeleteBecky, you do not see child-rearing as a competitive sport. This is a Good Thing. It only becomes a Bad Thing when you compare yourself with those who do.
ReplyDeleteYes indeed! It's hard to stay out of the fray sometimes though!
Delete