I have to confess something.
When K brings home an art project from school, I talk with him about it. I keep it on the table. Then after he goes to bed I throw it away (or recycle it, if it's not covered with glitter or cereal or something).
Maybe I would feel differently if he expressed himself more through arts and crafts, but he's never been the least bit interested and doesn't even like drawing with crayons like a normal kid. So the stuff he brings home is generally part of a school activity and is indistinguishable from art any child this age would do, except sometimes it has his finger or hand prints.
I've kept a few things I like. I also kept a writing assignment where, after months of resisting writing at all, it was obvious he had worked hard and made real progress. That one is on the fridge. Sometimes I send it to the grandparents and great-grandparents. But mostly, it goes in the trash.
Do you think I'll regret it later? What do you do with little kid art?
I think Liam and I have decided we will keep art/projects for 6 months to a year in a files and then go through it at the end of that time period and keep maybe 5. This way we'll know what's "special" and what looks like just about everything else. That's our plan anyway, we'll see.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that you'll regret it at all. You can't keep everything, and I think having a few pieces to remember is plenty. Also, if you send one or two the grandparents, they'll have some, and that will be enough. I'm pretty sure that K is going to value his childhood writing samples, journals, photos, etc. as much as any art project, when he's an adult.
ReplyDeleteI do the same. Admire it, talk about it, recycle it. I keep a few of the holiday pieces (the hand print turkey at Thanksgiving, the wreath at Christmas, etc.) and/or a few each year that involve a footprint or hand print (which usually are the holiday ones) and the occasional self-portrait (it's fun to see how they evolve from the circle with legs, to adding arms, adding a separate head, etc.). All in all probably 10-12 pieces a year. I bought a small filing box for each kid at Target and have a file for each year up to age 10. It works out really well for the art and whatever else I throw in - a copy of the kid's birthday invitation from that year, a copy of our family Christmas card from that year, his little end-of-year progress report from his daycare teachers, and one or two other cards that seemed worth saving (Landon's first postcard he received in the mail, a drawing his best friend at daycare made for him)- all in all I probably end up with 20-25 items for the year in a file. It's compact and out of the way and I know that one day we'll have fun going through it.
ReplyDeleteBut to answer your question, no, I totally don't think you'll regret admiring-then-recycling 95% of the art that comes your way. :)
If good/share-worthy, I scan it and keep only the truly amazing pieces (a few a year) in a scrapbook.
ReplyDeleteI can't blame you. I was surprised at how much my mom kept (mostly awards and report cards) and she had 15 kids - that starts to add up fast!
ReplyDeleteOn a sillier note, I went to a going-away party for someone who used to be an investigator for an office that did capital defense and he was joking that he told his mother never to throw any of his childhood things away just in case he ever needed it as mitigation evidence. So there's that to think about...
My son has totally pulled some of his artwork out of the trash and asked me what it was doing in there. Mother of the Year over here. I keep anything that is particularly cute or from a holiday (the Mother's Day cards are always awesome!). Otherwise life is just too cluttered.
ReplyDeleteI have a little "gallery" on the wall, and then I take stuff down and trash or recycle it whenver something new goes up. I take pictures of the pieces I like and have them all saved in an "album" on my computer. I have kept maybe 4-5 things and he is 4?
ReplyDelete