Tissue Paper...Embarrassing Question

I feel like such a dork. This is probably as obvious as the nose on my face but I guess I'm looking cross-eyed today. I have never put together a scrap book, in fact I haven't even used a photo album in 20 years. My pictures are all crammed into a giant tote (and I swear after this project I'm going to organize every last one of them!)

I'm putting together a Christmas gift of a memory album for my best friend. I spent a week sorting through that giant tote finding all the pictures of she and I in our Most Excellent Adventures and now that I'm ready to lay them out I'm puzzled about how the actual album works. The last time I put a photo in an album it was one of those static cling jobbies, and I have no idea how these new-fangled books work.

OK here's the embarrassing part: What's up with the tissue paper glued to the fronts of the pages? My guess is that it's supposed to act as a buffer to protect the photos, but it's such a big hindrance while working on the page that I'm wondering if it's supposed to be removed. Or is it supposed to be attached to the backs of the pages and my album was put together cock-eyed? Before I go any further maybe I should ask if you even know what I'm talking about. I'm guessing this tissue paper is standard on the newer scrapbooks and you pros can tell me how it works....

and the sooner the better. I'm running out of time. Thanks for ANY help.