Breaking the Rules

By now it is no secret that I am more than a little embarrassed about how my appearance has changed over the years, and that is something I struggle with every single day.  It took weeks for me to carefully choose something to wear to my niece's wedding that would offer at least a little camouflage but if you cover a tank with camouflage you still know it's a tank.  I ended up wearing an all black, flowing ensemble with pretty jewelry, hoping I could blend in the crowd, and if I was noticed the focus would be on the jewelry.  I figured if the glow of the candlelight caught a prism in the beads I was wearing it would cast a blinding flash long enough for me to escape to the shadows.

The wedding was a beautiful affair, and the mood of the evening was light and joyful. In the spirit of making merry I broke all of my own rules, threw vanity to the wind and jumped in head-shot first and allowed myself to be photographed in some group photos.  Then something strange happened.  It's true you can be high on happiness.  Without the aid of alcohol or drug of any kind whatsoever I allowed the excitement of the evening to overcome my good senses and I fell victim to the selfie trend.  But not just any selfie.  I added someone to each picture, collecting memories like baseball cards.  And they went something like this....

The first one was with my husband.  He cares for pictures of himself about as much as I do, probably the reason why we do not have any family portraits or even couple's pictures that are less than 12 years old.  I thought we needed at least one current picture together.  He must have been in a good mood too, because he agreed without any fuss.  Adding to the family theme I caught my two sons.  The oldest didn't mind, but the youngest one is too much like me.  He fussed.

Husband, Oldest, Youngest

Next I caught up with my sisters.  The Middle Child and honorable Mother of the Bride is on the left, the Pesky One is on the right.  Also in that photo is a cousin who is like a sister to me.  She was a regular fixture in our household when I was growing up, so the lines between cousin and older sister are blurred with her.

Middle (MoftheB), P.O, and Jo the Jo

Two of my brothers were there, too.  The one on the far right is actually my nephew but we're only ten years apart.  He was also a fixture in our house growing up so the lines between brother and nephew are blurred to me when it comes to him.

My Twin, the Musical One, the Nephew of the Evening

 Then comes the nieces.  I seem to have missed one somehow, but no worries I'll catch her at the next wedding in exactly nine weeks.  Each of these girls have touched my heart in their own special way. 

The Bride to Be, The Bride, Godchild 1, Looked Like Me (when she was a baby), Godchild 2, The Intern

The cousins showed their support for the family.  Each one of these women are the daughters of my mother's siblings.  I've never had many women friends, so my growing friendship with each of them is precious to me.  The time spent with my Sister Cousins is never without laughter.  I live for laughter.

The One from Massachusetts, the Writer, the Photographer,

 The Mother, the Artist, the Free Spirit, the Fit One

There was one more I couldn't resist.  This is the youngest member of the family, my great nephew.  I love him and he doesn't even know it.

Too much of me, too little of him

Happy Husband

And lastly, because I could I got my husband to pose once more, and because he was so happy at the servers giving him all of the shrimp, oysters, and pecan crusted chicken he could eat he did not oppose.  Now we have two current pictures.  We should frame them.