Recently I have come across a few blog posts about how Pinterest is to blame or at least somewhat to blame for making mothers in our society feel inadequate. Well meaning mamas pin creative sandwich ideas, and elaborate DIY nursery decor, and on the cheap indoor rainy day activities for their little ones... and then, well forget. Run out of time. Run out of energy. And then feel bad. They had every intention on following through with all those ideas they so enthusiastically pinned to their various boards. But then, well... life happened. As it always does. Every. single. day.
Is Pinterest really to blame though? Because before Pinterest, there was Martha Stewart. And Better Homes and Gardens. And now all these celebrity moms putting out books on their creative party planning ideas that should be a cinch. Yeah right... as if tying together little S'mores bundles with twine is easy! Psssshhh!
Maybe there is something else to blame. We could point our fingers at society. They seem to expect the working mothers to still come home and prepare a wholesome dinner for their families, and plan cutesy birthday parties for the weekend. And stay-at-home moms should have crazy clean homes, and awesome craft projects for their kids to do almost every day, and home-baked bread every week. I mean, they should, right? They are just sitting at home anyways. (Please note my sarcasm here.)
But WE are society. WE, as mothers, place these expectations on ourselves and others. WE can choose to not feel inadequate as mothers, wives, and women. And WE can choose to not make other mothers, wives, and women feel inadequate.
I have a rule with my Pinterest- I do not pin anything that I do not realistically think I can accomplish. Have I tried every single recipe, idea, project I have pinned? No, not yet. But I did create a board to document the pins that I have tried- my Pinished ;) Board. Some of the pins I tried were successful, and some were not. If I tried a recipe that was a winner with my family, I pinned it to my Recipes I MUST Make Again... And Again board. I find it satisfying to go to these boards and see the pins that I did follow through on, and not obsess about the ones that I have not quite got around to yet. Pinterest is not intended to be a To-Do list, ladies. Pinterest is a virtual pin board- to corral and categorize those hundreds of ideas that you come across every week as you surf online, catch up on blog posts, and browse the recipe emails that are sent to your inbox every week. It sure beats adding yet another Favorite to your Bookmarks, right? I don't know about about your Bookmarks, but I have a long list of them from before I started Pinterest.
Pinterest has been an inspiration to me, especially in the kitchen. I pull up my Pinterest recipe boards every Friday and plan my menu for the following week. I always make sure to try 1 or 2 new recipes, throw in a Crock Pot recipe, and a few from my Recipes I MUST Make Again... And Again board. It keeps me organized and keeps me creative.
I have successfully attempted homemade gifts (see my Pinished board for the awesome Christmas gifts I made this past year), and that has given me an incredible sense of accomplishment. For most who know me well, it is no secret that I am not a crafty gal. I cook, bake, & scrapbook. But making glass Christmas ornaments filled with sand and shells from the Outer Banks? Not my usual thing. ;)
So ladies, stop obsessing about the fact that you didn't make your kids snacks out of fruit in the likeness of Bert & Ernie. Pin things that inspire you. Pin things that seem within reach. Pin things that interest you. And make a board for those crazy, somewhat out of reach ideas and projects. They are fun to look at, and maybe someday you can pay someone to do them for you. ;)
