Pinterest Delusion Disorder

* This post may contain affiliate links or sponsored content. *

Pinterest Delusion Disorder (PDD) – A serious disease in which moms start thinking they are failures for not (1) arranging their kids’ food in cool shapes for every meal, (2) not DIYing every piece of furniture and art in their homes, and (3) not spending hours designing homemade printables for their children.

Sound familiar?

Pinterest has become the newest source for mommy disillusionment. In between the carefully crafted meals that correspond with whatever book you are reading to your kids and the mom-designed printables that look like they came from a Kumon book, it is easy to start thinking you need to start saving for a therapy fund for your kids. How can they possibly turn into high functioning adults without you teaching them how to make a headboard from recycled toilet paper rolls?

I love Pinterest. Please do not misunderstand me. I have pinned plenty of stuff that I have both done and admittedly will never ever do {along with some super cute clothes…sue me…I can be superficial too.}. It is a place to gather inspiration while simultaneously making me wonder if there are some moms who live some place that has more than 24 hours in a day, and if there is how does one buy a ticket to said place.

It is both a homeschooler’s best friend and worst nightmare. It is so easy to see all of these cool crafts and worksheets and book lists and immediately think “who has time for this?” as you check Pinterest from your phone while your daughter is in her piano lesson and before you start paying bills from an app on your phone.

Supermoms exist. Let’s not pretend they don’t. They are fueled by coffee, cleaning ladies, and midsized SUVs. I’m not one of them. There are toys all over my house, dishes in my sink, and a full laundry hamper. Our art room looks like Crayola exploded in there with crayons and chalk on the floor and half colored coloring books sitting on a table.

I’m okay with that.

Pinterest gives us the means to compare. Instead of just reading a few blogs and wishing we had those women’s creativity, we are now bombarded with images from thousands of people who have different talents than us. They thrive at making things that I couldn’t make on my very craftiest of days. I pin their stuff all the while thinking “I wonder if there is some place I could buy this…”

That’s okay.

Your kids probably aren’t going to define their childhood by how many times you arranged their lunch like the Chicka Chicka Boom Boom tree. Or how many printables you designed. Or whether or not their party looked like something Amy Atlas put together.

Sure. They would probably remember cool things, but those aren’t the only ways to create cool memories. You know what else kids think is cool? Bodily functions. So let’s not pretend they are masters of refined taste here.

I don’t remember much about the crafts we did as kids, and I know we did a lot of them. My mom is super crafty, and we had a whole closet completely dedicated to making stuff. I remember conversations we had about school, friends, and boys. I remember the first time she helped me get ready for a dance recital. I remember holding my little brother for the first time. I remember playing American Girl dolls with my sister. I can’t tell you a single thing we ever made. We did sew, but what we made? I have no idea.

I love to do arts and crafts with my son {my daughter is just 3 months}. Absolutely love it, and I have taken more than one idea from Pinterest. We sit and laugh and talk about the colors and shapes, and I eventually take the scissors away from him when he pretends to cut his hair.

However, 10 years from now I doubt he and I will remember the crafts. Instead we will remember the laughter and the stories. I’ll tell him about the first time I realized he had memorized a book, and he will tell me about his first clear memory of us on the floor coloring together. He won’t remember if it was a blank sheet of paper or a fancy coloring book.

Don’t suffer from PDD. Parenting is so much more than fancy crafts and the top 100 ways to get a flat stomach {advice often given by someone who has never had kids thankyouverymuch}. Parenting is smiles and laughter and the intangible memories. Remember that, and you will be PDD free.

Stephanie and her family live in Roswell, Georgia. Originally from the Northeast, Stephanie still hasn’t gotten used to Southern bugs and the word y’all. She loves summer dresses, the kitchen, her husband, her Catholic faith, and a good book. She is active in Junior League of Atlanta and in efforts to stop child trafficking in Georgia. Armed with an English degree and a MBA, Stephanie homeschools her son and has a baby girl. She blogs at The Brunette Foodie.