Favorite June Photo

My kid is constantly in motion.  Even when I was pregnant with him, Zane seemed to always be moving around, running in place, dancing, kicking field goals, etc.  Now that there's nothing between him and the world, he's all up in everything, asking questions, making observations or comments as he chooses. He may have that ADHD thing, but it's more probably that Zane may just be a real boy.  Stranger things have happened. 

But the tricky thing about a perpetual motion machine is that they are difficult to photograph in their natural habitat.  Most of my early photos consisted of blurs, so we bought a camera that we just keep on the "sport" setting all the time.  We also take many pictures of us holding Zane, trying to contain that energy for the seconds it takes to snap the shutter.
 
Occasionally, however, we get lucky.  We were at a restaurant called Good Time Charlie's one cloudy day in June.  I don't know about Larry and Zane, but I was there for the chicken fried steak. Because if you're going to go to a place called Good Time Charlie's, you do not order a salad.  We brought in the trusty tablet, so Zane would actually remain seated for the entire meal.  While he was sitting there, I snapped a few pictures with my phone.

Most of the pictures looked something like this:  

Would you just STOP?

 I had to keep interrupting a rousing game of Plants vs. Zombies 2 in order to get Zane to actually look in the direction of the phone.  After the fourth or fifth time, I started to hear the familiar refrain: "Moooommm!"   I kept on pressing the button, however.  That's my secret to photographing children:  keep bugging them, and eventually they'll start smiling. Or stop smiling.  Which also makes for some dramatically spectacular photos.  Also, good blackmail photos, for those awkward teen years. 

And finally, you end up with a decent picture. A keeper.  One to frame...except for the old lady photobomber. I am pretty sure that she kept looking over at our table because she was experiencing Lunch Envy.  She did not order the chicken fried steak. I wasn't about to tell her to stop ruining my photo opp; she looked mean enough to bite.

A perfectly good excuse to learn Photo Shop, I suppose. 





4.) Share your top favorite photo you took in June. Give us the back story.

To-Do List

Mamakat's Prompt:  1.) Ten To-Dos in June. (inspired by Denise)  These are my personal To-Dos. 

1.  Breathe.  I sometimes get overwhelmed with everything around me.  I start taking everything personally.  The economy down?  Regime overthrown?  Idiots winning recall elections?   The very best basketball team to ever exist, loses a game to a ridiculously inexperienced team with the help of horrible refs?  That one, at least, is not on me--I think these games are fixed by the owners.   Anyway, I get all wrapped up in the negative, and that is not the way I want to be.  So in June, I am making time to breathe and just be, let go of those problems that don't belong to me.  Maybe try some yoga breathing, some people swear by it.  

2.  Clear out the old stuff from the school year.  As part of the horrible that is my job, I have a ton of paperwork.  If I make a mistake and correct it, I have to print out another copy of the document. I can't throw the paper out, it has to be shredded to preserve confidentiality.  Over the course of the school year, a large pile of papers that need to be shredded rises up next to my desk. I could let someone else do the shredding, but I take a perverse pleasure in shredding things that annoy me. 

3.  Give away old school clothes.  Zane is growing fast.  By the time August rolls around, all of his pants will be too short, and half of his shirts will be too small.  My child has more clothes, and takes up more closet space, than me, thanks to well-meaning relatives.   I plan to go through all of his drawers and the closet and clear out these items so his grandmother, who is a bargain-shopping fool, can start buying him more clothes.   

4.  Eat more fruit.  I like fruit.  I enjoy the colors of blueberries, love the tang of a peach.   During the school year, I don't always remember to grab a banana to take to work.  I do not enjoy fruit sitting on my counter rotting because I am the only one who eats it.   All that fruit ends up in the backyard for the birds and some very healthy squirrels to snack on. I will be home more, and therefore, more fruit will be save from a life of rot, only to end up in my belly.


5.  Make gazpacho.  I love gazpacho.  I could eat gazpacho morning, noon, and night.  There is a restaurant near where I work that sells gazpacho, and every Thursday I order 32oz.  I don't even use a spoon, I just tip the big cup back and suck all that crunchy goodness down.  It's that good.  So I plan on trying a recipe for gazpacho on my own, to see if I can make it myself.  Things might end up messy, and there's an inherent risk of letting me use knives, but I am an adventurer. 

6.  Be a Soccer Mom.  Zane's soccer seasons have ended, but now we have soccer camps.  Specifically, my son will be attending British soccer camp.  That means there will be actual British people. Probably not soccer hooligans, but you never know.  Zane is excited, and he loves to run all over the place.  It will be fun, and I will be there for at least two days, to see him play and learn.   No minivan, however. 

7.  Work.  Yes, while all you slackers with your summers off are lazing by the pool, I will still be doing the 7:30-4:30 grind.  Day after impossibly long Day, Monday through Thursday.  It's is extremely difficult to work when you know that your slacker friends are sucking back drinks, getting tanned legs, and giggling at cabana boys.  It's nigh impossible.  I find myself pulled over to the window more days than not, and if there is an excuse to go outside, I am there!

8.  Plan some vacation.  With the little extra money that we are getting from me working an extra ten days, we will have enough for two mini vacations.  I would like to hit Dinosaur Valley State Park over in Glen Rose, Texas, and then I'd like us to head for the beach for a couple of days.  Rockport is the likely destination, since they have a bay.  It's easier to keep track of a four-year-old who wants to swim with the sharks when you're in a bay. 

9.  Remember summer birthdays  My birthday is in June.  Nobody ever remembers birthdays in June.  School has just let out, and people are just too busy having a great time to remember any birthdays.  My own family frequently forgot that I had a birthday, often singing the birthday cake song at some random date in July.  It bothers me, so I try to find people who have a June birthday and make sure at least one person remembers. 

10.  Play  I will have to plan for play.  Days of fishing.  Swimming, and trips to Fiesta Texas, and SeaWorld.  The Kiddie Park.  The Zoo.  Teaching Zane the correct way to slip and slide.  Play Lego Batman with Zane.  Also, I have plans for a good massage and a pedicure, as well as a couple of nights out with the girls to drink and maybe dance and possibly bad karaoke.  I don't play enough, and now it's my turn. 

What are somethings that are on your 'to-do' list for June?