Well it was that time of year again yesterday, the Christmas card photo shoot. Despite the carols that filled the air of the house and the hot milk laced with chocolate powder and minimarshmallows-- Alee summed it up perfectly "our annual dysfunctional Christmas card photo shoot".

I don't know what it is about asking the girls to humor me with a snapping of about 45 photos in long sleeves t-shirts and hats/scarves/ear muffs on an ice covered lawn (for a truly inspired holiday card) with temperatures in the teens and gusting winds but, it was an argument before we let the chilled air sting our faces.

M:"I don't have a t-shirt like that and I am not wearing the one with a fur trim at the neck"

J: "Maddi it is sure to add pizazz to the picture. Oh and babe no Violet Incredible hair, I want to see both your eyes, none of that bang draped across the face hiding the right eye "

M: I'm not wearing that, I want to look like everyone else and... I AM NOT VIOLET INCREDIBLE Stoppppppp!

frustration just setting in

J: Demi let's curl your hair, just the front pieces as no one will see the back of your head in the photo

D: I told you I wanted my hair cut before we took Christmas card pictures

J: Demi I tried there was no available appointments, just work with me babe, please...


in her usual state of the last 12 years of Christmas card pictures she is preparing to aggravate and be difficult

J: flailing the curling iron in air Demi knock it off GET OVER HERE NOW! We are curling the hair!! (forget I asked her to apply chapstick to her carpet fur lips)

A: hurry guys my hair looks really good, oh I'm not wearing a hat it will ruin my hair

now you know I am at the whatever point

J: Demi come on let's curl the hair (in the meantime Maddi is still carrying on about the solid color t-shirt she says doesn't own and her hair)

M: I'm gonna wear my burglar black stocking cap

J: NO! NO-NO-NO!!!!

Then it happened, I lost it! I picked up a box of Kleenex and I chucked against the wall. I had a temper tamtrum, a grown woman breaking down over assembling her off spring in coordinating fashion and styled hair for a stinking picture that 90% of the receivers will chuck in the trash can come January 1 never to appreciate the full intensity it took to captures that one great shot.

Since it was a dysfunctional experience I figured, as long as we are at it lets add the puppy to the picture (to heighten the frustration). Then to really cap things off Maddi decided she needed to be Audrey Hepburn in her black pointed toe kitten heal pumps adorning her bare feet--forget that she'll be walking on a sheet of ice and no one will see (most likely) her feet in the picture.

















It took three rounds (breaks taken warming by the fire to thaw while Kevin and I viewed the taken photos) to capture what we think is the perfect picture worthy of the Avery Family 2006 Christmas card.

Round three Alee had this "brilliant" idea that they all climb the fence of our neighbor and sit atop his fallen tree (that came crashing at our fence line in the storm nearly missing the power lines). So there the girls were scaling the fence and popping up on the [half] large tree trunk, that is until Maddi tried. Let's just say trying to be Audrey Hepburn in the feet and fence hopping don't mix. Nor did it work to well climbing the tree. Maddi gave herself a chain link enema~ouch! It wasn't until the end of my tyring like hell to be "Anne Leibovitz" that Maddi began to cry, a nearly 14 year old chilled to the bone girl dying at how she was going to get off the tree now and back over the fence in those dam shoes.

And there have it what we think could be the picture perfect Christmas 2006 photo for our card! Which one? Watch for the results in your mailbox.