In this month’s issue of Real Simple Family, there is a feature where various writers talk about their favorite photo of their children.  Senator Barack Obama is featured as well (only in magazine, not online) and his comments about his chosen photo are worth reading.   The other writer’s stories are both touching and funny (three are featured here).

Monkey at Tree Farm

There are many photos of Monkey that I love.  The one I love the most, though, so far, is the one featured at the top of this blog (full version to the left).  This photo was taken last December at a Christmas Tree farm nearby.  It was one of those places where you can go pick and saw down your own tree.  Very much like the one my family used to visit every year when I was young (until about high school when my parents switched to fake).  It was important for me to continue this tradition with my child, and since our town recycles old Christmas trees, I thought we’d give it a try for a few years.

The photo was taken while DH prepped our SUV for the potential tree we were about to purchase.  I bundled Monkey up in his hat and gloves and since it was REALLY cold that day, I put that white blanket around him as well.  He was about 6 months old at the time and apparently really fascinated by his surroundings — a ton of evergreen trees and people clad just like him in winter wear.

The reason I love this photo so much is because you can tell he’s smiling even though you can’t see his mouth.  His eyes are squinted just right and his little red cheeks are raised.  And he’s smiling at me.  Maybe that’s a little selfish, but it makes me happy to know I was doing something that made him happy.

If you have a favorite photo you would like to feature, feel free to put a link in the comments to the page or post featuring that photo and its description.

P.S.  I realized last night as I was falling asleep that I advocate not posting full pictures of your children open to the public, so asking everyone to do so now is a little hypocritical.  Sorry I was being thoughtless.  If you still wish to do so, feel free!  Otherwise, I completely understand!