Miss Moody

Whenever something doesn't go according to the way she thinks/expects/wants it to go, AC (AKA Miss Moody) pouts. Inevitably, her pouting shows in an otherwise fun family photo. Last Christmas, while everyone else was excitedly and happily anticipating a fun Christmas morning, Miss Moody slouched with her chin in her hands in our traditional Christmas morning on the stairway. You might ask, what did she have to pout about on Christmas morning!? It was because I told her that she needed to get dressed before coming downstairs. I know, some families do Christmas morning in PJ's, but I have always required clothing. It wasn't something new or unexpected. That's just the way it is. I encourage them to put on something fun, in red or green, but anything is fine. We take a family photo on the stairs and then they run to open their stockings.

So, this past summer we drove to Mesa Verde, Colorado for our family reunion. We planned our route to stop on the way, at Four Corners, where four states meet on (approximately) a single point. When we arrived there, we discovered that there was a substantial fee to enter the place where the monument or slab of cement stands. It wasn't even a per car charge; it was per person, and we have a family of seven! We decided to forego the fee and simply take our pictures near the entrance, where there was a large sign posted. The kids expressed a little disappointment at not being able to go all the way in, but they were all happy to get out of the car for a picture, except Miss Moody. She folded her arms across her chest, put a frown on her face, and hung back, mumbling and grumbling under her breath. It took several prompts just to get her near enough to the other kids to snap a couple of pictures. Her moodiness can be quite exasperating!