Drawings

Get a box and store them away. In a couple of years pull the ones you really want and give the rest to her to go through. I would let her be the final decider of most.

I keep the ones that are important...then when she is in bed I put them in a walmart bag and have my husband put them in the garage trash. She so far seems not to have a clue. Good luck!

Redirection? Can you ask her to start drawing for the troops overseas who don't have little girls to send them pictures? Then you can drop them off at a USO and they'll take care of them.

it's a phase that will end soon, she's 5, it wont be long and you'll have to beg her to draw you something. Keep saving them like you are. It's a cute and funny story. Make sure you note it in her baby book.

I have very "artistic" children, as well, and I had to laugh a little reading your question. I've been caught putting drawings in the garbage, as well. What I decided to do is-- I collect all of the artwork in a big folder throughout the year. I let my girls put the pictures in the folder and at the end of the year, we take them all out and cut bits and pieces of each picture and then make a collage of the many different pictures. We then frame them, noting on the front of the picture the year it was made and who drew them....

Just a thought... It's fun, and the children get to help in the creativity...

I scan them into my computer. Then I throw them away! Last year I made a "coffee table book" of my 8 yr olds artwork off of Kodak Gallery and it came out really nice! You could also send them away - "Ohhh, Grandma would love these drawing you made of flowers!" Or arrange them on the floor with her sitting in the middle of all of them, then take a picture, then throw them away.

I put them away for a year and then recycle them. Try having FOUR kids doing this to you every day for years lol! I have heard of other moms photographing artwork, and I think that's a GREAT idea. But my kids got less sensitive about it as they got older, so me seeing it once is enough. We have some framed art they made in school that I put on the walls.

Hello, We have four grown kids and when they were young, I tried to save so many things. I finally had to give in to the fact that I couldn't save everything. Maybe you could go through the art that you have now and have her help you to pick the "best" ones. Then from there on go through each week and choose the "best" one of the week, then each month you could do this again. That way, she isn't shocked by the fact that you can't keep everything. Maybe she could "donate" the leftovers to family, friends and even a nursing home. They might enjoy some of them.
Good luck with your precious family.
K. K.

Bind them together and keep your own book. Put new pictures on the fridge and older pictures in the book. I save everything.

Every Artist needs a portfolio. Go to your local craft store and buy her one of those large black hard card portfolios....they are not very expensive. Then at the end of each day, ask her to pick one or two that she feels are her best work - favorites to save in her portfolio. Then ask her to recycle the rest of the paper. Gentle criticism is not harmful - she needs to know that not every effort will pay off. I think the worst thing I did was to over praise my daughter's talents. She was/is an amazing artist, but cannot see the beauty of her own work

The landofnod.com has this great wallpaper that has all different size frames so kids can "draw" pictures in them. If you have a spare wall in the house, it would be really cute!

I scrapbook a lot of them for her. I scan everything in, if it's to big or bulky to scan I take snapshots of them then I use the scans and photos to create digital scrapbooks for her. Try snapfish.com and shutterfly.com. Both of these sites periodically send members coupon codes for free books, you pay the $4 or $5 for shipping. My four year old LOVES to see her artwork in these books and it doesn't cost me very much to do it for her. I don't know about you but I would love to have these treasures from my childhood. Of course I was born in the 70's before all this fancy smancy technology :D

I saved some, and threw some away, but I would bury them good in the trash so she would never see them, or go out to the recycle bin and bury them in there. I have boxes out in the garage with my kids' artwork, some of their old schoolwork, etc. But I threw most away because there was so much.

I was that kid who loved to draw and am blessed with a dd who was banned from the drawing table in her Montessori School (She was told that she had to give other kids a chance. So much for free roam LOL). What I do is get a binder and and fill them with those plastic sheet protectors and file them by year. I also get the cheap frames from Ikea - I line four of them on her wall and rotate her artwork.

Both of my daughters are "artists", have been since they were little (they are now 15 and 11). THANK GOD for digital cameras. Not only do they get to keep all their work. They get to put it in a book, powerpoint, story, whatever they want. We take a picture of their art and put it into a folder for them and we schedule time once a month for them to go through and "design" their art project. It is a lot of fun, they learn new computer skills (yes a 5 year old can do this) AND they get to choose what pictures are "worth it".
We also have our "art gallery" in our laundry room. They choose what goes up there. They both have half the room. If they want a new picture to go up, they must choose which one comes down. It is a great way to teach them about making decision, planning, there is SO much learning going on.
Good luck.

B.
Family Success Coach

I would accept them with a smile. Then, send the old ones with Daddy to work to dispose of! You can't keep them all, just keep a few. When she's in school she'll bring home plenty of keepsakes.

I was also going to say take a picture of them and put it into a scrapbook or photo album.

But instead of throwing them away. Maybe she could donate them to the patients of a children's hospital, assisted living facility, or send them to military overseas with a note saying that someone is thinking about them/praying for them, etc. That way you don't have to throw them out and she can have the satisfaction of knowing that her drawings are bringing a smile to someone who needs it.

Don't think anyone has made this suggestion. We have 4 kids and tons of artwork. We take pictures of everything and bought a digital frame that is used specifically to "showcase" their artwork (no family pics are on this frame). Makes them feel special, but don't have to keep everything!

I am a minimalist, but I want to honor my kids and their creations, so I scan everything.....drawings, birthday cards from friends, etc. I also take pictures of the macaroni art, etc and put all of of it on my computer and then put it in a "scrapbook" on the computer. I start at their birthday and then end the day before their birthday. I throw nearly everything away, but I have everything on the computer and then at the end of the year, I have the company www.mixbook.com send me a hard cover. I don't put everything in the book full size, so it takes care of keeping everything, yet....not. :)

My first son was upset that I was throwing things in the recycle bin, but I explained to him that I can't keep everything, so this is the way he can keep everything in one tidy area. He thought about it and was fine with it, especially once he saw the finished creation.

I have 3 kids, pregnant with #4 and we homeschool, so I "scrap" everything, including homework samples, fieldtrips, art work. The pictures I love are the ones where he is creating, rather than the final work.

My almost 3 year old screams at me, if she finds anything in the trash as well. I think it's a girl thing....as my boys are TOTALLY different. So, I just make sure I take things out to the large bin on the side of the house. :)

Good luck!

As the mum who is the proud owner of several hundred maps my son made (7 continents) I feel your pain. Hole punch and binder for everyday creations.

Art class helped a lot as well. And since they were of higher "quality" (you know what I mean) they went on the wall and then in an artist portfolio. But everyday stuff... hole punch and 4" thick binder.

You can also get a little crafty with them. Make a cardboard trace to trace and cut and glue onto red hearts as valentines (have your daughter do it). Ditto ANY other holiday/bday.

I like the idea of sending them to the troops. If she has other relatives she can send them to that might work too. You can also scan them and put them in a slide show (Windows Movie Maker which is free on most computers)
My daughters preschool teacher recommended wrapping gifts with them. She was very adamant about parents not getting caught tossing them (I'm one of the bad Moms that has before :-(. Finally I just put them in a file box and after a few years I got really lucky. Oprah had an organization show and offered a free snapfish book and they showed scanning the pictures and putting them in a book. I did just that and we love her book! I also included pics of other things she's made that couldn't be scanned. At that point my daughter was okay with throwing away the originals that were decaying at that point. I do have a handprint Turkey that she made I scanned printed and framed. I bring it out around Thanksgiving every year because it's the BEST handprint turkey ever made as I'm sure your daughter's is or will be. ;-).

I keep them until my kids are at school or asleep, then I pick my favorites and put the others in the trash or recycling bin, hidden under other stuff so they can't see them. I know it's hard, but you can't keep them all.

My daughter was just like yours! I loved her artwork, but felt like I'd be buiried by the time she was halfway through elementary school!

I started taking photos of the work I had to throw out. I could get 6 or 8 pictures in one photo. I only physically saved the very special things.

As she got older, I did the same thing with artwork it would be too difficult and bulky to keep, like the "log cabin" made of pretzels.