T Rex Family

T Rex Family

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Where I've Been...

Why so long since I last posted?


Well, the kids and I have been diligently working on T Rex Dad's Fathers Day gift. 


I've been sneaking in a few other things like scrubbing and sealing the shower, organizing closets, and rotating clothes - our little Bebe Sister must be going through a growth spurt. And working out a lot to balance all the homemade ice cream we've been making.

And there was that small incident of acquiring malware on my laptop while searching for playhouse photos. We're hoping to build one for the kids before the summer is over. Thankfully, T Rex Dad rebuilt my machine and I'm back reading and surfing. Beware of Google images - that's all I will say.


But, back to T Rex Dad's gift. Bet your thinking it's going to be something crafty? Well, not really. He has been asking for a nice photo of the kids to put up at work. I thought that was a perfect idea. After all, I take hundreds of photos of the kids all the time. However, this time, I wanted to do a nice posed one with a lovely setting. Well, after three separate attempts in two different locations, this pretty much sums it up:




Yes, we all shed multiple tears. I cannot even imagine what my "good neighbor" thought or the folks on the path below. One of them glared at me when T Rex started whining that he wanted to hold a flower, too, and I replied, "Pleeeeease...can you just sit down." Probably thought I was performing some weird torture on the kids as well as myself. There was also the incident of Bebe Sister biting her brother because she was tired of holding his hand.


Photographing toddlers...not easy.


So what did we decide to do for him? Well, I had a great back up idea. Alas, another thing I am learning about toddlers - they cannot keep secrets. At our Fathers Day celebration for my father-in-law last night, T Rex asked his dad when he would get to give him "his coin". Upon minimal further questioning, T Rex spilled the beans about how we had all shopped for his gift and that it was a lovely silver coin for his collection. Nice...


Ah, well. At least we can sit around and tell stories about this in about 30 years. As opposed to the picture perfect posed photo that would have been replaced by another someday. And I do have a few cute photos. I will post more in the future.


Instead of smiling, they are giving their "goofy faces".


I am just a few posts away from my 400th posting. I am excited about it because I have a couple of wonderful Etsy shops that have generously offered to sponsor a giveaway in honor of this event. Stay tuned. In the mean time, back to chores and toddler chasing.


How do you get those "picture perfect" photos of your kids? Any tips or secrets you'd like to share?

8 comments:

Camie said...

I find that if I'm the one giving all of the funny faces (combined with lots of funny sounds) then I tend to get a decent shot. On average I get 1 great shot out of every 100 that I take :)

p.s. we're doing an Andee Lew Clothing giveaway at Cookie Nut Creations. The winners will be receiving 2 free shirts for kids. I have a few for my girls and they are the best. You should go check it out and enter to win. The giveaway closes tomorrow night.

Camie said...

p.p.s I forgot to mention that I love the new photo you have for your header! Absolutely adorable.

April said...

So cute! If you live near a Walgreen's, they are doing free photo collages right now - You could give him several shots of his great kids! The code is on my blog if you need it : )

I'm fortunate in that my daughter is a total camera ham!

Tat said...

That last photo is lovely and kids (and adults) look so much better in photos when they are not posing. 400 posts! Wow, that's impressive.

Jenners said...

I remember that, as kids, we always spilled the beans on gifts! And I think you actually got a few wonderful shots ... the last one is particularly good. Two gifts for T-Rex Dad!

Kim said...

I prefer the candid shots but I know what you mean about toddlers and posing. Lately I've been saying"Deaglan, don't smile, I don't want to see even one smile cross your face, do you hear me?" And it works like a charm every time. His scowl turnes into a toothy grin. Reverse psychology is highly under-used.

Rey said...

I agree with Kim, some of the best toddler shots are the candids. I quite like the one for your header! It's very cute!
Sounds like a cool gift for dad! And I have a daughter named True, who I've cursed with her name. She thinks secrets are the same as lies...
Hope you have a great day with your hubby tomorrow!

septembermom said...

I LOVE the last photo!! Adorable :) I'm still trying to get those picture perfect moments around here. LOL