Inner Beast

Nothing brings out my inner beast like a scheduled family photo session. My director's hat goes on, and I have in mind the exact image and impression we are going for. I'm bound and determined to fit my family into it, and know they will put up no obstacle too great for me. The outfits have been picked out, the hair made the best of - yet somehow the kids must sense my tension, because the harder I work on their hair, posture and smiles, the more they resist. After straddling his wiggling brother and sister and being told " one more " or "last one" seven or eight times, our eldest had "had it" and dissolved into tears. There we were, making a family memory, falling apart in the photo studio.
And outdoor pictures present even greater challenges. Looking through my photo files at our multiple attempts at a group family shot where no one's pannies were showing, no one was scowling or making rabbit ears, I had to smile. I stopped myself before clicking delete on the above pictures(from 12-07), because as time goes on, I think I'll grow to prefer these wild family shots to the picture perfect studio ones.