The Best Yet

We took the kids to get holiday photos done at the mall today. This is usually a mom-only event, and ever since Patrick turned two and Fiona was born it's been quite the fiasco. Nobody wants to wear their holiday clothes, kids sit still for a milisecond (and the photographers keep waiting for the perfect pose. Take the damn picture), and I'm trying to wrangle everybody to just cooperate for the love of God.

So I was expecting a bit of the same this year but feeling better with Kevin along for the ride. Earlier in the week Patrick chose his Christmas outfit at the store. I was hoping for some willingness to actually wear said outfit. Last year he wore his vest for the 10 minutes it took to get a photo, and that was the end of the vest. Fiona wore the Hanna Anderssen black velvet overalls that my sister-in-law gave Patrick when he was 6 months old! They are a bit short in the leg. So they are Hobbit overalls. Super cute Hobbit overalls. Kevin promised the kids a ride on the mall's Christmas train if they did a good job.

And darn it, they did GREAT! Wore the clothes, cooperated for the photographer, sat/stood still on mark, and just were super cute and charming. Patrick was especially sweet and so proud of himself for doing it "right." While Fiona was a normal 21 month old, she went along with the program enough to get some good shots. It's always hard to choose, but we got some good ones for family presents.





The kids had a great time on a train. Kevin rode with them, and we feel like we got a good deal at $3 a head. Definitely for the younger set, as it was a slow and steady pace. But the ride lasted about 5 minutes and they got a nice loop around the mall.



Oh, and Patrick let Kevin spike his hair!