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Christmas with the Cousins
January 7, 2011
This may take some time to load, there's like a gazillion photos in this post.
I know I closed Christmas but now that all the photos are downloaded to my computer I'm going to revisit it. Join me as I open the photo album, look back and remember all the great parts (and forget the difficult moments of sharing extending days with lots of family).
"The Grinch that Stole Christmas" on the big screen, sweet
What I failed to mention in my last discussion of Christmas was how wonderful it was for my kids to be with aunties, uncles, cousins and grandparents for long, uninterrupted periods of time.
that tooth hanging by a thread fell out during our visit
"All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth!"
We're talking hard core playin' here. Cousin clubs and foosball games, hide and seek and big screen PS3. My kids have never experienced something quite like that before and enjoyed their brief exposure.
We're talking aunties that do your hair and nails and grandparents that take you to hockey games and lunch dates. This last one was for Celine to escape the chaos of young cousins - my sweet girl who prefers sewing, quiet corners and books.
You see now why I had to open up the "Christmas album" and share these photos. These are beautiful memories of time together, building relationship with family we don't often see.
this one was kind of staged but "apples" were used by adults on a daily basis for escape and enjoyment!
someone's gotta scrub the toilets
that's my mom, the busy bee
And I want to sincerely thank our brothers and their wives for hosting us, so graciously, in their homes. Giving up bedrooms, sharing kitchen counters and fridge spaces. Thinking of things to make us comfortable. Your families rock! We love and appreciate you so much and just wish we could see you all more often.
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Debbie on Jan. 7, 2011, 8:49 p.m.
What lovely memories, Renee. I'm so glad you shared them. Can I ask what kind of lens(es) you use? Beautiful shots. :)
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renee on Jan. 8, 2011, 12:27 a.m.
Debbie,
Hey friend-with-a-new-camera-for-christmas! (wink). I'd love to talk shop.
You can find the answer to your question here at FAQ. In these photos, except a couple outdoor shots (girl in doorway, and kids on the street) I used my 50mm 1.4 prime lens. I love this lens so much and it's pretty much the lens I use for all indoor photography, portrait type shots and other intimate, close up stuff (and when I want delicious blurry backgrounds).
Can I offer a tip? For better indoor photos in low light (especially when the subject is still or nearly still) I recommend a tripod. Damien bought me a largish one years ago for some birthday or Christmas and I admit to using it once or twice (it's in the sell/swap/give pile currently) But my GorillaPod is my best friend. I use it outdoors - hiking, backpacking, camping - and indoors, like in the photo of the presents under the tree in this post. Highly recommend.
In some of the photos above, of the christmas tree and other stills, I used a kitchen counter or the gorillapod resting against my chest. I've learned what shutter speed I can get good handheld shots with and when I need to use tripod.
Have fun! Photography is the best thing to happen to me since marriage and my babies.
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Jen on Jan. 7, 2011, 9:06 p.m.
What beautiful photos! Being an Apple user myself, I love the pic of the 3 Apple laptops!
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Adventure-Some Matthew on Jan. 7, 2011, 9:24 p.m.
Beautiful family, and wonderful photos to record the memories being made! Thank you so much for sharing!
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Hillary on Jan. 8, 2011, 1:42 a.m.
Oh I'm so glad you shared. Those photos are gorgeous and I loved seeing the resemblance of the cousins. It looks a lot like our family visit. Lots of out of the ordinary things for the kids and the amazing qualities of life with extended family.
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renee on Jan. 8, 2011, 3:40 a.m.
Isn't it fun to see people's extended families? To pick out who's related to who. Like in the photo of the men on the couch with computers I think it's fairly clear that Damien is the odd man out. That's my dad and bro. Yet if you saw damien with his bro you'd definitely see the resemblance.
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nicola@which name? on Jan. 8, 2011, 4:02 a.m.
What amazing amazing family time and what a beautiful family you have!
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Naomi on Jan. 8, 2011, 4:07 a.m.
What a beautiful family! I love all the pictures of the kids. They are CLEARLY enjoying their time together. And it must be so hard to think you'll be without your camara for a while, but I suppose you will have other things to keep your mind and hands busy for now :0)
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Heather @ Significantly Simple on Jan. 8, 2011, 5:26 a.m.
Thank you for sharing. :) Your family is incredibly lucky to have such amazing photographs for the albums.
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tara on Jan. 8, 2011, 1:40 p.m.
What beautiful pictures! Some seriously cute kids. We were also singing the "tow front teeth" song as my oldest lost his second front tooth on Boxing Day. He didn't find it (the song) quite as amusing as we did.
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Francesca on Jan. 8, 2011, 4:18 p.m.
I'm so glad you revisited your Christmas for us here! It's really nice to get a sense of what it was like, and how you spent your time. Also, thanks for sharing your tips on taking photos in low light. It's driving me insane that on most days I can't take any photos indoors, but I see now that it's a matter of proper equipment (that gorilla pod looks totally crazy, but so effective!) and more technical (shutter speed) know how.
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kyndale on Jan. 8, 2011, 4:47 p.m.
I wish I had a family like yours. Having divorced parents just doesn't cut it!
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Lesley on Jan. 9, 2011, 4:58 p.m.
I just found your blog through a comment you left at Simple Homeschool.
I'm so glad I did! Your family is so beautiful and you take amazing photos of them! I've been trying to take more shots like these...not the typical " Ok, everyone stand in front of the tree and smile! " ones.
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Penny on Jan. 7, 2011, 7:57 p.m.
That is one lovely family, and such CUTE kids, seriously. Nice gene pool ya got there!
Thanks for sharing the happy moments :)