I recently read about a study that found nearly half of all moms suffer from Pinterest stress. Apparently, 42 percent of mothers worry that they are not crafty or creative enough for their growing families.  They worry about keeping up with what others are doing, and the self-induced pressure for perfection keeps many moms up at night. What a bummer.

Personally, I mostly enjoy Pinterest for the endless supply of new recipes.  But, I also don’t take it too seriously. I know that behind every Pin-worthy photo lies a frazzled mom who wants to make fun memories for her family (while possibly making others wonder just how she does it all).

I recently saw a pin demonstrating a simple art project that promised to educate and entertain.  A cherubic two year old sat obediently with a little paint brush in her little hand.  She ever-so-carefully traced over letters with paint.  I thought it could be the perfect activity to while away an hour on a chilly Friday.

Well, sort of.

To no surprise at all, Evie was thrilled with this project.  She carefully traced numbers with a q-tip dipped in paint.  She loved it.

On the other hand, Mack’s participation wasn’t quite Pin-worthy.  He just couldn’t get with the program.

He smeared paint on Evie’s paper, infuriating her and igniting her angry response.  His paint also ended up in between several window blinds, all over the table and on the wall, which he reminded me was “no big deal because its just an accident, Mom.”

It was a mess.  But, in the end, WHO CARES?!  Both kids loved painting.  Both kids were busy.  The paint was easily washable.  I strive to feel secure in my choices and my family; life’s too short to worry about what other people are doing!