It has become a tradition now to take a family picture once a year in November for the Christmas card release in December. As our family expands (or at least I do), it becomes more and more challenging to get us all in one clump for the click. Never mind looking at the camera, and forget smiling.
The first year we became a family of four, and our budget shrank too small to do a "studio portrait," we had my father-in-love meet us at the greenbelt by our house. The only problem was my dear father-in-love just can't bear to take a picture unless all persons within his sight are frozen to perfection. With zesty little critters hippity-hopping every which way, there just wasn't a practical way to "wait" for the perfect shot! In the end, we got some lovely photos that year, it just took quite a long time!
Last year, my best friend's husband took about 200 photos in about 30 minutes. His strategy: just follow us a round in our "natural habitat." Even with his fabulous camera work and editing capabilities, there were just a few that were up for release to the public. (This, of course, really means that mama looked good . . .just kidding). All we needed; just one or two keepers for the family archives. And how those three or four pictures were complimented by the masses!
So this year, I somehow managed to coerce him into doing it again. This time, though, there were five of us to clump and click. Forget posing, forget looking at the camera, just get us altogether in one shot without too much torture. And miraculously, he did!
My sister has this thing about receiving Christmas cards with just the kids. She prefers to have the whole family. So even though I had a clear favorite which included only the kids (which I will post here), I went ahead and picked a lesser-of-evils family favorite to appease my sister and humble myself (mama don't look so good in this one!) . Though this one goes in the family Christmas card (what is a family Christmas card without a family photo?), my favorite, the one that goes in the memory books, is the one of just the kids. So tender, so sweet. A between-brawls moment in time that was captured just so perfectly. And just to give you a bit more perspective on my Dr. Jackle-Mr. Hyde children, I'll post the moment immediately following . . .
Will he do it again next year, when there is six of us?? I think I'll have to start paying him!
Thanks, 'Albert'!
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