Family Affair

I emailed my Dad a while ago telling him that I was in danger of running out of Throwback Thursday photos. Dad has been into photography for years, so I figured he'd have tons of pictures I could share - and many I'd rather not share.  I thought it would take him ages to sift through his collection. I was stunned when, 8 minutes after I sent the email, I had 18 photos in my inbox.  

This is the first:

Photo courtesy of Mom and Dad

That's me, on the left. I'm 3-ish and my sister is 1-ish.  Our matching dresses were made by Mom. 

Dad didn't actually take this picture.  My parents hired a photographer to come to the house for professional portraits.  They must have been talented to catch us both smiling at the same time.  Particularly since my sister remembers bumping her head on the coffee table just before the photographer arrived.  She's sure Mom had to apply makeup to cover the bump for the photos.  Mom doesn't remember this, though we both agree this sounds exactly like something that would happen to my sister.

My sister was quite enthusiastic about her appearance.  "I love this  photo, always have. I'm so cute."

She was less enthusiastic about mine. "What's wrong with your hair? And I know you never liked picture taking but why are you trying to give the photographer the finger?" 

I admit, I didn't notice my almost-extended middle finger until she pointed it out.  And I thought the hair comment was rather funny considering she looks like she shares the same stylist as Eddie Munster, 

or perhaps Squiggy.

Still, as she said, she's cute - right down to the elbow dimples.  As am I, though on closer inspection I see what she means about my hair.  The bangs are strangely wispy.  Probably because my stylist - Mom - had cut them with her sewing scissors just before the photo.  She would use scotch tape as a guide when cutting so that they'd end up straight.  That they aren't quite also supports the idea that she had to drop everything and apply emergency make-up for my sister.