Our New Family Tradition

Ever since I first visited my in-laws home, I was excited and entertained by their Olde Time photographs of their family. So last year, we began our own series of old-fashioned photos. This photo was from 2007 and we tried to tell the children about how the process was actually performed historically and why nobody was ever smiling. So, this is the children's honest attempt at not smilig. Cedrich's smile merely came as a mischievous glint from his eye and Aislinn has a sort of pucker. Liam was too busy flirting with the camera girl. And Bowen. being inherently serious, performed a well-practiced scowl that he reserves for Mommy during long school days.

We were very entertained when the photographer asked if we wanted to be cowboys or soldiers. Both boys replied "SOLDIERS!" with great vigor. She then asked with a great air of routine, "Union or Confederate?" Bowen spoke up immediately, "Union, I really don't like losing." This bit of humor was only accentuated by the teenage photographer's blank stare of incomprehension.

Wilson Family 2007

This year, when asked if they wanted to be cowboys or soldiers, the emphatically insisted "COWBOYS, so we can have guns!" Again the mischief that generally oozes from Cedrich's smile is escaping through his glare. Again, Aislinn is puckering to keep from smiling and Liam is still flirting with the camera girl and thinking to himself, "Suckers, they gave me a gun." But, my favorite portion of the photograph is the cute little baby toes peeking from under the money bag.

The Wilson Family 2008

A More Accurate Depiction