The other morning, our 2 1/2 year old son discovered the camera just sitting there on the table waiting, nay, begging to be picked up and used. He obliged said camera and came running to me saying, “Cheeeese Mommy, Say Cheese!” while pointing the lens portion at himself. My first reaction, of course, was “Please be careful, that is delicate, we don’t want to break it” and I reached to take it…but then stopped myself. How can he learn to be careful with something if I just take it from him, I thought?
So, we sat down on the sofa together while I tried (ever so hard) to show a 2 1/2 year old the proper ins and outs of working a camera – ‘no point it this way’, ‘oops, you can’t put your finger over the lens’ (as he looks at me quizzically – Lens Mommy?), “um right yes, uh, you can’t cover up the little window right here”, “here is the button you push”…As I started to feel slightly frustred at my 2 1/2 year old not paying attention to me teaching him the proper way to use a camera, I again had to stop and check myself – helloooo 2 1/2 years old you crazy loon. Kieran was having a great time just doing what we were doing – spending time together learning something new – together. As far as he was concerned, he was a professional photographer and this is how it is done.
Then came the actual picture taking – I call it ‘A Study In Self-Portraiture’. While there were some pretty good shots (as in no heads cut-off) of both Mommy and Daddy, alas they are not posted here – it was morning and we were all still in our PJ’s.
When deciding that I wanted to post these pics, I knew I had to figure out a way to tie it into my blog somehow – but HOW? How do you tie a bunch of silly pics of your son taking his own picture with your camera to ‘celebrating your life’s events’. Well, for one – our kids are always a celebration of life are they not? So, there, check-mark.
But, to go one step further, I thought about those little cameras that are often placed on wedding reception tables. Wouldn’t it be cool to place those out for a kid’s birthday party? They know it’s a fun adult toy, they’ve seen you using one with glee since they day they were born. Imagine the funny shots those kids would take? And, there’s always at least one set of parents who forgets their camera…it’s usually us;)
lifevents
