We take the kids pictures in front of the 'How Tall This Fall' sign---it's fun to look back over them and see how much they've grown and changed over the year. I was kinda surprised that the boys were still 'all in' for taking their pics with the sign. I half-way expected to hear the usual, "We're not three, mom.", "This is so lame.", "Seriously, mom? This is about 'tarded.", comments, but they didn't come. That made me happy. It probably was made more bearable by the fact that they turned it into a competition to see who was the tallest. Dad came in and crushed them on that one. At 6'3", it's going to be a while before they overtake the old man. One day, I finally stood them back to back and flat-footed, and put a 3' level across both of their heads to settle it once and for all. Dead even. I don't think Aaron was too happy about the fact that Little Brother had caught up to him.
Then it came time to snap the 'Littles'. Let's just say that they were none too happy about this 'Tradition' being thrust upon them. They're such seasoned models at this point that they were probably thinking, "This harsh, direct mid-day lighting is not going to be very flattering and it's going to cause uneven, dark shadows all over my face--not a good look, Mom. This will not be an asset in my portfolio." O.K., I get it, but sometimes we just have to make do with what we've got.
It was a bit sad, though. Sky Top used to be a small, quiet place to pic-nick with the kids, pick some apples and let them play on the playground. It has really grown--there were probably 200 cars or more parked all throughout the orchard, and people everywhere. Although I'm sure it's good for business and the 'bottom-line', it's lost a lot of it's charm. I'm glad their business is experiencing success, but I'm a bit sad that Madelyn and Carlyn aren't going to be able to enjoy the Sky Top tradition in the same way that the 'Bigs' did.
Oh, blah de, oh blah dah, life goes on...wo, oh, oh, life goes on....
Notably missing are Megan and Lauren. They were both off at school this weekend. I'm sure they were in the library. All weekend. Studying.
Yeah, that's it. Studying.
I missed them. Things just aren't the same when everyone isn't there. It doesn't matter how many children you have, when any one is missing from the mix, there's a hole. An empty spot that can't be filled by anyone but them. It's a sad, but necessary part of life, I'm afraid, as they become adults and create lives of their own.
A few more snaps from the day, while I go wax nostalgic.....
No comments:
Post a Comment