Anyone who has spent time at the lake will know there are always multiple activities going on at any one time. It is hard to get everyone in one place at one time looking in the same direction.
We managed to capture this shot at the beach the day after a storm. The dock had become stuck up on the shore -- too stuck for Leo, me and shovel to get out on our own.
So up to the house to get all the kids to come help us. After successfully dislodging the dock, we had the perfect chance to take a quick picture with the best backdrop in the world.
I'd be lying if I said we got this perfect shot on the first try. Many shot had one or two people with their eyes shut from the sun, or someone making a funny face, scratching their nose. One of the subjects was having a hard time sitting still as you will see from the following shots.
I was laughing very hard by the time I got to the last photo. Oh, that subject is so sweet. Over the summer I have tried to sit down for a short or extended period of time each day with each of Betty's brothers and sisters for a little bit of school. For her, I sit down with a little bit of "pre-kindergarten". She is going to Miss Dwyer's class, Miss Dwyer who is going to get a whole post later in this blog. But until then, I say that Betty is now ready for Miss Dwyer, at least as ready as I could give Betty ideas about how to be a good pupil in kindergarten. The teacher is going to love the number of clapping games that girl can do, as well as rounds, singing folk tunes and knowing an extra-ordinary amount of skipping game rhymes. One of them could go with this blog. My father is a butcher, my mother cuts the meat, and I'm a little hot dog that runs around the street.
ReplyDeleteYou got to see her "I am a little hot dog" characteristic in this seet of pics. Thanks for capturing in pictures what I cannot in words.
I love BBJ (Betty Blanche Johnson) as she likes to call herself. She put her name on some work she was doing for me. She wrote BBJ. On the next piece of work all of the letters were in jiggles. I asked her why. She said she was getting ready for Halloween!
Oh my gosh, what a sweet story. Getting ready for halloween. I am cracking up.
ReplyDeleteLove the skipping rhyme. Ones I remember from my childhood - I eat my peas with honey, I've done it all my life. It makes the peas taste funny, but it keeps them on the knife. And- Fishy fishy in the brook, Daddy caught him with a hook, Mommy fried him in a pan, baby ate him like a man. Ria
ReplyDeleteRia, I was helping Betty learn "Not last night / but the night before / 24 robbers came to my door / And this is what they said to me ....
ReplyDeleteBetty reminded me that the year before robbers had come to my door, rummaged through closets, up-ended drawers, pulled down vents, thrown things out of my deep-freeze, looking for money. Finding none, they had taken nothing, except 3 faux gold decorative spoons.
Just saying those skipping rhymes teach us how to eat peas and how to deal with theft.
One more thing about that cousins picture, thanks for reminding me that patience is all. By the time Betty had acted up for the 9th time I might have been saying, "Out Betty. This will have to be a cousins picture minus one." As well, I don't know how the other cousins let her have her day without shaming her into photo compliance.
ReplyDeleteSo much is a mystery to me these days.
Just point the camera (or phone as it goes these day) and start taking photos. Just keep clicking that button. Don't try to give any instructions -- just hope you get enough photos that one works out. We used to have to try to get everyone together and just take one or two shots -- developing film and photos cost money. Now, we can take as many as we want and view them right away.
DeleteTwo days ago Marla Bjornson asked Bonnie Johnson if she knew any skipping rhymes. Bonnie was able to quote "Not last night / but the night before ..." as easily as if she had known the rhyme for a lifetime! "I knew you would know one," Marla said.
ReplyDeleteLittle did she know how full of skipping and clapping games our house has been for the last few months.
Thanks for the good tip on using my camera. Absolutely that would work! I miss having the children here and being able to take pictures of them during play. It is just not the same to take a picture of the game I used to play with them. The importance of humanity in the game is lost without them in the picture.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful photos and such lovely memories!
ReplyDeleteRe the photo, five years from now I will be looking at this photo and remembering when all of the kids "were so young".
ReplyDelete