Last night my mom gave me a box of photos and an album filled with photos of me as a child. When I got home from her house I stood in the kitchen, the glow of the light above our sink casting a circle of light around me as bittersweet tears rolled down my cheeks, smiling as I flipped through a whole pile of photos simply of my brother and I.
Wow. This year, Christmas is really bringing up a lot of old memories for me. Memories of a traditional family, when I was one of two kids and mom and dad were married and we all lived together under one roof. Matt and I were pals, a little kid team. Santa came every year. I’m so grateful that my mom and dad captured so many of these Christmases in photographs. These photos are so precious to me. I think I have some emotional work to do when it comes to handling my childhood and the way my family has evolved.
There are plenty of pictures of Christmases gone by, and I’ll probably share some more of them with you over the coming weeks. Maybe someday I’ll have photos like this of my own child to share (you didn’t read that!), but today I’ll just share some cute, funny ones of me with Santa.
First up, the inevitable OHMYGODSANTAISGOINGTOKILLME shot:
Poor Santa. He looks like he needs a beer. Fortunately the old dude grew on me.
Note the matching barrette and little Santa pin on my dress. And finally, here I am actually looking at the camera and smiling while visiting with Mr. Claus. This one was taken at my dad’s company’s Christmas party, where each of the kids got a gift. And a candy cane. Also prominently featured is my ever-present cowlick. Ho ho ho.
The photos are great. I do not have a single photo of me as a child because my mom won’t let any out of her sight. She is going to make me pry them out of her cold dead hands. I have even asked her if I could scan them and give them back and she flatly refuses. Go figure.
btw – I have tagged you for a meme. Check it out if you get a chance and play along if you’d like!
My parents have the same photos. My mother likes to have them prominently posted each Holiday season. So every year, I get to relive something worse than childhood pictures of me screaming in Santa’s lap. I get to relive purple spandex and glittery sweatshirts. HOTT.
Anyway, I figure that when I have children they’ll be able to relive those moments with me. By the way, you look very adorable even with a cowlick.
Nice progression.
I LOVE meltdown shots!
I have never taken my kids to see Santa (too lazy/busy) but now I want to in the hopes of getting one like that
These are just fabulous.
Hee hee, in that first shot, Santa looks like he’s already had a few beers!
And in the last one, his beard looks like it’s made from cotton balls!
I don’t know if I have any pictures like that; I’ll have to investigate. Every year my mother in law takes all 14 of her grandkids to the mall for the Santa shot. The oldest one is 28.