Eliza 18 Months and Our Picture Fiasco

So recently it has been very hard to get pictures of Eliza. She won't stop moving and she is very tempermental. If she is hungry, tired, overexcited, or {insert any random thing here} she may have a melt down.

But alas, I chose to ignore these things and try to get her picture taken for her 18 month mark/Christmas. Let's just say it was not a pleasant experience.

It was suppose to be a just Eliza photo shoot but she wouldn't let us put her down at first so we had to take a family shot. This is what we got: Not terrible but not great either. Then we were able to bribe her to get on the floor without one of us holding her. BUT she wouldn't be still. So the best shot we got was her running around. This is the best one from the whole session I think:

Did I mention that our photographer was not great with kids? She kept trying to get Eliza to smile but was just making Eliza mad. I told her to just take photos. Even if she is upset, it could still turn out to be a funny picture. That's the joy of digital pictures. You don't run out of film! But the photographer would only take them if she thought Eliza was smiling. Also, the camera's battery died TWICE during the couple of times she was happy. So the photographer had to have another person come in to try and get Eliza to smile. He actually did a great job getting her to smile, but he did not do a great job of staying out of the shot. This is the result: It would have been a great picture if she had a soccer uniform on. I am just saying.

Next up? More running around. Cute baby:And finally a smile. Although the camera is a bit out of focus. Really I think I just need their lighting and their camera and I could take better pictures. Grumble grumble. Then came the straw that broke the camera's back. They have this super cute prop where you put on a santa's sleeve and glove, and hold a fake plate with plastic cookies and plastic milk glass. so it looks like the kid is handing santa the cookies/milk. It's a cool idea except to a 1 year old. Eliza thought she was getting milk and cookies. She was determined to get those cookies off of that plate. It was very frustrating to her that she couldn't get them. Then when they took the props away she was done. She had a giant melt down. I felt kind of bad because from her perspective it was like we were offering her some cookies, and then took them away. Oh and did I mention that they had blocked the lighting lamp so the picture is really dark? Awesome.

So we were able to bribe Eliza with a few snacks and got one more half-a-smile out of her.

They had to crop out the snacks held tightly in her hands. She is still cute.

At 18 Months, Eliza:

- Sings a lot. Her current favorites are "Jingle Bells," "Ring Around the Rosey," "Patty Cake," "ABCs" and "I love to see the temple." She came home from daycare yesterday singing "Baa Baa Black Sheep." The words were a little confusing but she had the tune right.

- If she wants you to come with her she will wave you towards her and say "Mon, Mon" for Come On.

- She eats pretty good but still won't eat meat.

- She sleeps like a champ. She has me rock her a little bit while we sing. She will snuggle with me on most nights, and then she'll sit up and say "bed." Then it is time for me to put her in bed.

- First word in the morning is Daddy or Kase. Yes, she calls him Kase sometimes. She thinks the shower in our bathroom is Daddy's Bath because he is usually in there when I get her up in the mornings.

- She gives sweet kisses. Sometimes she will randomly come and kiss me and I melt.

- She loves to find things. Like if she looses her sippy cup she'll say "Cuuup, Where are you cuuup" with her hands turned palm side up.

- She loves her baby dolls or her "Babies" as she calls them.

- She also loves to read her books.

- She loves other kids. She is not good at sharing yet but she will often ask for other kids from daycare or church by their names.

- She weighs 26 lbs 1.5 oz and is 32 inches tall.

She is a very feisty, loving, and sweet girl. She makes our lives better. We so enjoy watching her learn and grow. She is such a blessing and we are so glad we have her.