The Quest for a Perfect Family Photo

I'd venture to guess that a significant number of you started laughing before you read past the subject line of this post. Most of you have children, several of them, and may have recently attempted this impossible feat. I'm still recovering from the experience. Let me add a disclaimer: This was late on a Sunday night, at the end of a week-long family reunion that went well into the nighttime hours EVERY night. My kids fall right in the middle in age relative to their cousins. There are 5 older, 5 same age or younger, and our 5 in the middle of the mayhem. We were all exhausted, it was hot and humid, and I forced them to wear coordinating outfits that included "church clothes." Oh yes, I did. I was the mean Mom, and their cousins were not persecuted similarly because their Moms are nicer. I did it for Noni, and they still love her. This is not a recipe for success, is it? But there IS a decent picture among the hundreds that were taken with 5 different cameras. I don't have the file yet but I promise to share when I get it. Exhausting work, this quest of mine. Someday I will have it, the Holy Grail of photography, where each member of my family smiles naturally at the camera, willingly sits near siblings without pinching them, and cooperatively dresses themselves in clean and reasonably pressed outfits, brushing hair and teeth without prompting. The shoes will match, be clean, and come with socks. There will be no food residue on hands, face or hair. For now, here is reality, and they're still mighty cute in all of their craziness: