Picture Day

The picture day that stands out most in my mind was my 10th grade yearbook picture. Keep in mind that this was 1989. I had BIG hair. Did I say BIG?? Lots of Aqua Net and hair dryer work. So, I go to get my picture made, and the photographer frames the shot. Then, he says to me, “I’m sorry, I can’t fit all your hair in the picture.” What a proud moment for me!!! Can you say redneck?? Then, my senior year, my hair was much longer, so in turn, it was much bigger. My hair had a life of its own. I don’t know how the ozone has survived with me and my hair spray. The bangs stuck straight up, and the sides were unreal. It was like a lion’s mane. Ah… the days. These were also the days when I had the same boyfriend throughout high school. We had our pictures made at all the normal events – homecoming, prom, etc. Another great picture experience was my Glamour Shots. Those were awesome. I looked like some pin-up girl! Not that I really want to look like one, but I was shocked at how sexy I looked. These pictures were taken 15 years ago, so I was obviously a lot different, but I had gorgeous hair. I still look back at those pictures and wish I had all that hair. Now, I feel as if I need to keep all those pictures put away because they don’t represent my current life. My daughter saw one of those pictures at my grandmother’s house and said, “Mommy, that picture looks funny.” What was so funny about it??? I was sexy! Think of all the money wasted!! I also have pictures of me and my ex-husband that have to stay hidden too. Why do I keep them hidden, I’m not sure. I had some really good one too! My grandmother was so sad when she had to go through and take all the pictures up. She loves pictures and uses her old console TV as a display area for pictures. Again, can you say redneck?? Pictures are such a permanent reminder of successes and failures. In the past, I had a lot of failures, but now, all the pictures remind me of my blessings.

Picture days for my kids are so stressful, for me of course, not them. We go to a photographer that has us on a “plan,” so it seems like we are always going to get pictures made. No one has any clue how stressful this is. I’ve left the studio with my clothes drenched in sweat and a suffering from a headache because of trying to get my kids to be perfect for the shoot. Abby-Kate isn’t so bad now, but at first she was awful. We even had to take pictures of me with her to get her to stay. Jeremiah is another case. He is so funny when we get pictures made. He could care less about posing. He RUNS out of the shot as soon as I put him down. I know Renee just loves to see us coming. Before we even get to the shoot, I’m always stressed about getting the perfect outfits for them. I’ve already got Abby-Kate’s clothes for her 5 year shoot, and it isn’t until the end of next month. Jeff doesn’t understand why it is important to have the perfect outfit, but he doesn’t realize that these pictures last FOREVER. How much pressure is that?? I know I spend way too much money on picture clothes, but at least I don’t do that all the time. The cutest pictures are the ones of my two babies together. Those are the ones that I treasure.

Last month, I finally had the chance to get my picture made. Jeff and I attended the Flight School Graduation Ball, and we had our picture made. That was the only time EVER we have had our picture taken by a real photographer, and the Wal-Mart lady doesn’t count. I was glad to have one of us, but I’m always stressed about how I will look. Will I be turned the right way? Will my arms look fat? Will my neck look weird? Silly stuff. Why do I get so caught up in things like that? Oh well, I could have worse flaws than vanity.

When the students at school have their pictures taken, I’m always surprised at how many refuse to smile, and most don’t even dress up. Back in the day, picture day was a big deal, and everyone wanted to look his/her best. Why has all of that changed? I’m not saying appearances need to be the most important thing, but why don’t these kids want to look nice? Also, why don’t kids trade pictures anymore? When I was in school, kids always got wallet photo of their friends. Why isn’t that popular anymore? I remember back in 6th grade, I started a new school. I hadn’t really made many friends, but there was one girl that I thought was my friend. After we got our pictures back, I asked her if I could have one of hers. She said she didn’t have anymore left. I understood. A couple of days later, she left her purse at school, so I picked it up to give to her the next day. Being in 6th grade, curiosity got the better of me, so I rummaged through it. I found a stack of school pictures in her purse. I always wondered why she lied about that. I never mentioned anything to her about it.

My mom is so funny about having her picture taken. She is trying to improve her social life, so she uses Match.com. She makes me come to her house and do a photo shoot of her in all kinds of outfits and poses. Some of this is disturbing. I have the knowledge that I am trying to take pictures so that men will be interested in my mom. Weird! She has all these rules about the angle of the shot, what body parts show, how her hair looks, etc. She gets so mad at me when I don’t get the perfect shot. Hello… I’m not a photographer. Although, I do want a new camera. I have a huge Nikon that I bought myself last year for my birthday. I love it because it takes awesome pictures. However, with the Disney trip coming up, I don’t want to have to lug that thing around. If my husband will ever get paid, I think I know which one I want. I hope I can buy it. My husband thinks I’m hilarious because I love to buy new phones and new cameras. I can’t help it, I have changing tastes. I also want a new cell phone, but that can wait.

Every day is picture day at my house. Since I have the best camera ever, I take pictures all the time. I know people get sick of all the ones I post on Facebook, but I love my family and the funny things they do. I haven’t taken as many this month because I’ve been a little overwhelmed, but usually, I try to take a few pictures every week. My favorite ones are the ones of the kids just being themselves, not posing. If you’ve looked at my Facebook page, you know that they can be quite humorous all by themselves. As soon as Jeremiah sees me with the camera, he starts saying, “Cheese.” He knows the deal. I thought about sending their pictures in to a modeling agency because they are so beautiful, but I don’t want their lives to be determined by their looks. I want them to make life out of the things that really matter – faith, hope, and love. Isn’t that a song? Anyway, I used to feel a little guilty that I don’t try to actually get them into a career. I have a friend whose daughter has made so much money (and she is only four) in modeling and acting. I’m just so scared of the lifelong implications of all that. I want my babies to be babies as long as they can, so if all they get is a picture in the backyard, playing with the dog, so be it. That picture will definitely represent their lives and happiness.