my family didn’t really do the “everyone get together for a family picture!” thing. i am not even sure if a full-immediate-family posed photo even exists. there are quite a few cousin group pictures, though.

today i dug up two gems.

from left to right, me, cousin tammy and cousin mark:

my favorite thing about this picture is the lamp. it is so carefully taken into consideration in the composition of the photo. clearly someone decided it would be great to have the kids gather with their cousins near the snazzy nautical lamp!

and then there is this one, a few years later, with my sister added to the mix:

from left to right, cousin tammy, cousin mark, me, and my sister kelly.
as this photo documents, i went through a brief phase of wearing ties when it was time to dress-up for events, such as family parties.

I like that in the bottom left of the second photo someone wouldn’t let the fact that there was a family portrait going on stop them from eating.

Secondly, I take it you went hungry at most family functions judging from the amount of styrofoam dinnerware at the table… skreeek-a-skreeek.

that is so funny that you noticed the styrofoam plates. i sat here for a bit
trying to decide whether or not to talk about them!
*shudder*

and yeah, my family members weren’t going to let that “family stuff” get in the way of good chow on squeaky plates.

I believe that lamp was still around my dad’s until a few years ago. I seemed to be in a flannel shirt phase for a few years. Almost all of my pictures from 6-8 years old i am wearing one. And Tammy and those glasses… She would not be to happy about posting this picture!