In case your Facebook feed isn’t filled with little kids’ photos framed in the most offensive beige rectangle I’ve ever seen, I’m here to tell you that it’s Gerber Generation Photo Contest time, when hopeful parents submit images of their little ones in exchange for said offensive beige photo frame and a minute shot at winning a college scholarship or a life insurance plan (or something similarly valuable). And it made me realize…
…I refuse to do that to my future child–and my Facebook friends. It’s not that I don’t love seeing my (real) pals’ kids. Au contraire: They’re freaking adorable. It’s just that my fingers would fall off if I voted every day for each of those cuties. And I’m morally opposed to supporting ugly virtual photo frames.
Beyond that, I don’t think what Paul and I produce will be all that photo contest-worthy (photographic evidence of baby me above). Sure, he or she will likely be gorgeous to me, but winning when the odds are already slim to none? I’m not counting on it. And just in case others find my child repulsive, I don’t want to clog their feeds with pictures and pleas that they cast their vote for my average-looking offspring to win a baby beauty contest.
I don’t blame parents for trying, though–who wouldn’t want a costly expense covered just for showing off your munchkin’s mug? And I’d be the first to celebrate if someone I knew and liked actually won. But I’m hoping our progeny can make up for missing out on beauty-based college scholarships with hard work combined with (fingers crossed) some natural intelligence. Though if anyone wants to see photo after photo of our baby, I can guarantee they’ll be available for perusal by request.
Will you/do you enter your child in photo contests? Do you love it or loathe it when your Facebook friends ask you to vote for their child to win something?More About Having Babies
The Best Before-a-Baby Advice I Never Got
Maybe to Baby: Lauren Realized She Was Less Not Ready for a Family
Maybe to Baby: How Cynthia Decided She Was Ready for Motherhood
Like Merital Bliss?
Become a fan on Facebook!
Follow Meredith on Twitter
Subscribe to Merital Bliss’s RSS feed
Get posts delivered straight to your inbox!
Like Meredith’s author page on Huffington Post