My son is a collector. When he was younger, we would find piles – and I mean piles – of acorns stashed under his bed, in his dresser drawers and his pockets. Those eventually led to piles of mulch, then teeny tiny pebbles. In time, we explained to him that hey, some things just belong outside.
After a bit he started gaining an interest in types of rocks and gems. I tried to fight it at first, but ended up embracing it; and let’s be honest, his love for stones eventually rubbed off on me. So instead of piling his rock collection somewhere in the midst of his bedroom, I provided a spot to display those rocks.
I bought this curio shelf nearly a year ago with the intentions of it holding his rock collection. We had left it empty with the idea of painting the outer edges white but I was hesitant to make that painting commitment. I’m glad I never did because the shelf goes pretty well with Elijah’s first thrift store find – that woodsy, mountain painting (which, in other news, it’s completely off center).
So although it took a while to pile this little shelf up with our son’s beloved rocks, it was worth the wait. His collection has already grown since these pictures were taken and I am sure it will continue even more.
Did you have collections as a kid? Or are your kids collectors? If so, do you embrace their collections or try to hide them? Once, as a kid, I saved my eleven removed stitches from a cut on my foot – after all, I had gotten so close with them after all that time sutured together. My mother had friends over so I pridefully showed the bottled stitches to them all. Some time after, those stitches disappeared and now, I understand how (and why). But hey mom, if I was in your shoes – I’d get rid of them too!
