I can't keep everything!

Cameron comes home with lots of papers...math worksheets, reading logs, art projects, social studies magazines, permission slips, spelling lists, district and school announcements, etc. I can't possibly keep all of them. Each night (or morning) I go through his folder, deciding what's important, what to display, what to send back with a check, and what to trash, etc. If it's some artwork, I might hang it up, or I often keep it in a pile, wait a couple days to see if he asks for it, and if it's never mentioned again, I trash it.

Today I get an e-mail from Cameron's teacher, stating that the art teacher wanted him to bring back his project because she was going to set up the art winners at the District center tomorrow afternoon.

"Umm, what art project?" was my response.

I finally figured out that it was the one he brought home a couple weeks ago, rolled up, with some line art pieces in a baggie. I had no idea it was in some contest. I hung up the art piece, because I thought it looked pretty cool. Cameron told me that he brought it home to finish. Later that day, with Sara as my witness, I told him that he needed to complete his piece. He told me that he didn't HAVE to finish it...only if he wanted to. At that moment, he chose not to.

I kept the pieces in the baggie around for a couple days, but like all the clutter, since it was never asked for, I tossed it in the trash.

I still have the main piece, but the smaller pieces (a football player, a dinosaur and a finger paint creature) are gone.

Today, when I told him this, he was literally on the ground screaming and crying.

After a really long time of enduring this tantrum, and trying several different tactics, I finally convinced him to settle down. Later he added some pictures to his piece, but I don't think it's what the art teacher really wants, as it now looks very cluttered and messy.

That Mom of the Year Award is slipping farther and farther away!