Friday night at the movies

It's Friday night, and early on the evening has all of the usual elements: Daddy working later than we want, hungry boys, no dinner plan, Gavin craziness, whining, and general mayhem. I'm almost ready to string kids up by their toenails and fly to Switzerland.

I employ numerous tactics to distract ornery boys while I prepare dinner. First they sort all the dirty laundry in the house to prepare it for washing. Then they shower. Then they set the table and empty the dishwasher. Finally the tacos are ready (yes, it takes that long with a sad baby on my hip), Daddy comes home, and at 7:00 we eat.

At one point three out of four kids are crying at the table. In a very scattered and disjointed way, Garry and I attempt conversation. Just as we are finishing dinner, I mention that I have repaired Russell the bear. Gavin runs to collect his beloved friend. I get the camera for an important "after" shot...and keep snapping.

Tyler is sporting moussed and sprayed hair after his shower. Zach shows off the elf ears he collected today while playing hooky from school and visiting Santa Claus at the mall. Lexi demonstrates her sweet sitting skills. Garry is being a good sport on the cold, hard floor.

Then the tide turns and somehow we are all laughing. I capture some delightful video, which is the perfect snapshot of our family life: loud and crazy and mostly revolving around Gavin. (Did I say that out loud? Oh wait; everyone knows that already.)

I also snap several dad-and-kids photos. The series makes me laugh. Gavin isn't the only kid that does wacky things as we attempt a nice group shot.


The pictures are mostly silly, but I love them.

And the kids.

And their dad.

Really, a lot.

Life is good.