We celebrated a seriously delightful Christmas with Kick Ass Wife’s family at a house we rented for a week in Driggs, Idaho. It was awesome.
On the last day, we took some pictures.
Perpetual Motion decided to do some photo bombing.
I’ll give P Motion the benefit of the doubt in this one. He’s got his usual Kermit-the-Frog picture smile as KAW and I refer to it, but the eye-closing could be a coincidence. Plus, Tax Credit #4 has kind of chosen his own focal point somewhere off in the distance, and his cousin is gazing down toward the bottom of the staircase. Also, my hair just isn’t laying right.
Okay, take two.
Noooooo!! This is the perfect family picture! For God’s sake, even the 2-year-old and 18-month-old are looking at the camera with their eyes open! Hellcat with her hand in her chin like she’s rocked the adorable child shot a 1000 times? And the missing front teeth? Hello? Sing along: All I want for Christmas are my…
This is frickin’ Hallmark gold, people! Gold I tell ya!
Except for the 5-year-old who is very clearly — and very purposefully now — scrunching up his face into a look that could probably best be described as “small boy stepping in fresh reindeer crap.”
But, alas, P Motion saved his best for last.
I give you The Nutty Professor.
At least his eyes are open.
I laugh so hard every time I look at this shot.
So maybe this is the perfect family picture.
*****
ECKO UPDATE: He’s still alive. Six days and counting, y’all!
Ahh.. the classic “have the camera look up everyone’s nose” shots. Always a winner.
We had similar issues with The Tackler for our family photo. If everyone was perfect, his eyes were closed. Or he purposefully made a sad face. Or the “look like I need to take a dump” face.
And when he was smiling, Lil Diva was like TC#4 – looking everywhere but the camera…
I agree with you though. If one photo makes you laugh each time, it’s probably the perfect (true to life) photo.
And you are always read, even if I read the entire month all at once because Lil Diva tackles my legs every time I try to read at the computer.
I’ve heard rumors of family photos with all eyes open and no taking-a-dump looks, but I think it’s an urban legend.
I like No. 2. You’re gut reation now is that he’s acting up, but in a few years, that’ll be the picture you think really captures his personality.
Oh, it captures his personality alright.
Ha! I love the pictures! Kids are so much the same. My 3 year old looks off into random space when ever you tell him to “smile for the camera”. It’s as if he’s afraid it will steal his soul if he looks into the flash. And my 6-yr-old is Mr. Cheeseball, master of extreme smiling.
Extreme smiling. That’s a good way to put it. It’ll be the next event on the Dew Action Sports Tour.
Forget the Nutty Professor. I’m getting “Alfred E. Newman.”
But just in the face.
His hair is much better. Like yours.
p.s. I’m full of stitches here. (And not just episiotomy.)
Hair. They’re too young to realize it now, but there’s going to come a point where the three boys look at me, then look at each other, and think, “Is it going to be me?”
Glad Ecko is still alive! Do you have the powdered mixed vitamins to put on the crickets? They really need it.
Powdered what? Seriously? I know nothing of that. But I suppose I’d better find out.
Omigosh! I laughed out loud before I read that you laugh out loud when you look at P Motion as The Nutty Professor. That is winning, I’ll tell you. I hope that your Christmas was as wonderful as your pictures. You have been mighty prolific, dude. I’m so happy for you. You want to throw some of that wit my way. I think I’ve been seeing through the glass a little darkly of late.
It just struck me that a reference to The Nutty Professor probably means nothing to a certain demographic (younger). What would be a more modern cross-eyed reference?
And Chase – you are crazy consistent in those photos! Seriously, that’s talent.
That’s the type of steely focus that can only be achieved after one has spent several years of his life at a monestary.
What’s funniest to me is how many of the adults (author in particular and KAW) don’t seem to have moved… a single… bit. The adults are fairly immobilized while the kids are the cue that things shift. Nice job. My kids will only allow (and rarely) photos of their backs on any of my posts! God forbid they be recognized! Nice job.
That gem needs to be enlarged and displayed above the mantel. I am fairly certain there are similar photos of you as a young lad…like father, like son.
Love the family photos, Chase! As I found in doing ours, there’s always one person who’s not doing what he/she is supposed to be doing! Glad you got a shot you’re happy with!
Wendy
The chances of at least one person blinking just seems to increase over the years as the family gets larger. This is why we do everyone the favor of no longer attending family reunions.