Picture Hoarders

About 10 years or so ago, my grandmother started to give me my pictures, and it actually hurt a little. She has 11 grandchildren, and she's been getting her stuff in order for when she does die, and maybe she has too many things. She had made a baby book when I was little, I'm 2nd born of grandchildren, not sure if the later ones got a book or not. Anyway, she gave me it, means a lot, but I wasn't quite ready for it. I live in Texas now, and her and my grandpa live in Illinois, however, every time I see them, they are giving me more and more pictures.

If my mom has a picture and I want it, I ask then take it. My mom has tons of pictures. I love looking through them, and she doesn't mind if I take them. Sometimes I will, but I tell her I'm taking them.

I guess when my kiddos do leave the nest, if they want any, I'll give it, but I'll keep some too, they are my babies, and my memories too.

Usually when people start to give away pictures, it is when they feel they are coming to the end of life on this end. So to me, it really carries some sadness. No, my parents nor grandparents gave me pictures; I just had to get them in the house when they died. I open this thread, because I have "Picture Hoarders" (love the name BTW) in my family too. I actually feel in today's age, it is crazy to keep pictures. I think eveyone should "borrow/loan" them out and everyone make copies. You can even scan them these days to memory cards and dics. I do not understand why the "Hoarders" do not get that. The other BIG problem I found was when my mom and even more so, grandma died, I found pictures and have "NO CLUE" who is who. So now, when I give away pictures of my kids, I write their name and the relations they have with the person on the back. So you are not alone, we all have those "Hoarders" in the family. I think for your own kids, go and make copies. The kids these days like digital media better anyway.

I think it's good to have them all in one place with copies out to anyone who wants to borrow the pics and then scan or print them (or develop a negative if those can be found). My brother and I put together picture collages and a slide show of pics for my other brother's wake last week and it was nice to know that I only had to go to my parents' house, go to the closet and that all the photos to go through are there in boxes and bags. There were a particular few that I had in mind that I really wanted to include and they were right there where they should have been.

If you daughter wants her own copies of some pictures, let her know that she's free to do the work of scanning them and making copies. It takes forever to do this but if she wants them, let it be on her time and not yours and you keep the originals.

I admit to stealing pictures as well. My mom keeps all her pictures in this huge box under her bed where no one can see them. One day I stole the entire box, looked through ALL of them, took the ones I wanted, and put the rest back in the box under her bed. I literally went through around 2,000 pictures and only took around 200... She'll never know... Unless she looks through my photo album ;)

She is mad at me though because I lost one of her favorite photographs. She used to work at the metro dome, and she has a great photo of her jumping on the top of it like a trampoline. She gave it to me years ago to take to school for show and tell. I never gave it back. I kept it in my bedroom, never moved it unless it was to show it to some one and then I put it right back. It was there for years. Then last year when I moved to a bigger bedroom so that there would be room for both me and the baby, I lost it during the move. It is hidden somewhere in the 10 ft between my old bedroom and my new bedroom, and no one can find it! Maybe that's why she hides all her pictures under her bed? Lol

Sites like "snapfish" and "shutterfly" are THE BEST for this. You have a digital account with all of your photos, and family members can choose what they want, have them printed and mailed to themselves. You can decide which ones to give access to as well.

I suggest you look into it! ;o)

Oh...and for the family portraits? The scanner is your friend. Scan them in and give everyone a digital copy. Problem solved!

ETA: Also, while scrapbooks are cute, be sure that cherished photos get scanned BEFORE they get cut up. Just in case.

My mom will NOT let us touch 'her' pictures. It's been really hard as my parents are in the process of downsizing and moving...finding all those pics has been a blast...but she gets downright nasty if she finds that we've taken some.

As soon as she gets everything organized (which likely will be never...6 kids/53 years in their current house) we are hoping she'll allow us to make copies for the rest of us. With 6 of us, we'll need to make copies regardless. Thankfully, technology allows that to be done quite easily these days. We'll see.

Good luck...be well, D.

My mom has BOXES of pictures that I want... she says that I can have them... WHEN SHE DIES!! Thanks mom...

well the leaving nest thing does not apply to me for various reasons, but while my kids are 7 only they both have their albums (photo books) already made for when they leave the nest. I think it is important for them to remember their childhood and their memories through pictures. I have all those same albums for myself as well. For this Christmas I asked my husband to make me DVDs with their videos and photos. A few nights ago he informed me that I have taken over 16,000 photos since the girls were born (7 years ago). :)

share digital copies :)

My MIL is actually good for something. .She is creating scrap books for my kids and filling out those milestone books for them. I did not get pictures when I moved out, however when I got older my mom hired somone to make a scrap book for my brother and me. I cherish it..
I do not see why they need the pictures.. a few maybe, but a ton? not so much.

I have copies of a few, but in general most of my pictures are still with my mom.

It is easy these days to scan pictures and print them out at home so others can share them.

My mom has most of the p;hotos of me, my sisters, and our family as we grew up. And a great deal of extended photos.
To me it means something to have a photo history. To others it isn't important. I borrowed my mom's photo albums to scan them and make copies for my kids. And I haven't finished the project started over 2 years ago. Distractions. But putting together photos for each of my kids, even tho many are duplicates, is a legacy. One of these days I'll get back to it.

I see no reason why they can't be shared among family. We're not around forever, so then what???? I'd just explain why and maybe they'll share.

These days its so easy to just make copies, send out digital images, scan old pictures etc... There is no reason EVERYONE can't have a copy of a favorite picture, or the families albums. Take them to Kinko's or Office Depot where they have large scale scanners and go to town, ask people to reimburse you for the cost, and then everyone can have all the family childhood pictures and no one has to steal them. :)

No, but have had family leave them to me when they passed on.

I have organized all of our pictures into photo boxes. Each member of the family has a photo box with pics of them. If there is a group shot like Christmas photos, I make a copy or scan and print a copy for each box.

I did not get any photos when I moved on my own. My grandma was the photo queen in our family; she had thousands of photos of the whole family going way back. When she died, her photos were handed to my uncle who stored them in a shed in the Texas heat. No one in the family cared. When I found out, I said I'd take the photos and get them distributed around the family. Mmm hmmm....we had a massive water leak at my house and those poor photos never did make it....out of my closet and into less appreciative hands. If you think each of your children will want photos, then I suggest making copies. Photos are the only thing I am possessive and protective of. Nothing bothers me more than going into a vintage store and seeing family photos by the box fulls.

I left the nest 14 years ago, and last year my mom gave me all my school pictures except my senor ones that she still has framed and said I can have when she is dead. They are her pictures, if I want one I will make a copy of it.