7 Quick Takes - Back to School Photos

The other day I was having one of those mornings.  What kind of mother am I?  We're two weeks into the school year and  I haven't even taken any back to school photos of the children?!?  So, we dropped everything and headed outside to snap some pictures.

Let me set the scene for you.  It was an absolutely, perfectly beautiful morning. I thought that the apple trees would make a nice backdrop for the photos.  However....there were hornets swarming in our little orchard.  And I don't mean like one or two friendly little pollen seeking fellows.  Nope!  There were dozens of angry hornets.  But, that was my chosen location.  I had my mind set on it, so I told the kids to suck it up.  After all, there aren't any bee allergies in our family, so there's nothing to worry about, right? This, I found, was not exactly reassuring or consoling to the children.  I should also add that in order to get a nice, bright, colorful picture, they each had to look directly into the sun....ooops!  Perhaps I should have waited until the sun was at a little different angle.  But, being a mom of seven kiddos, I knew that if we didn't do this now it may never get done.

So, with that back-story in mind....here are the 2013 Back to School Kraft Family Photos! (there should really be a drum roll or something, don't you think?!)

(1) Peter ~ Pre-pre-school

This little turkey keeps us laughing all day long.  He doesn't really do any "official" school work, but is underfoot every step of the way.  I'm sure he's gleaning some valuable lessons throughout the day.

(2) Esther ~ Pre-school

She's our accessory gal.  Notice the wristlets, bracelet, headband and all the other stuff in her hair that you can't see.  She carries at least one backpack with her everywhere she goes and really likes her "stuff".  Primarily, we're working on self control issues with this little angel and learning to play nice with her baby brother.

Look, Ma!  I totally photo-bombed Esther's picture!

(3) Eleanor ~ Kindergarten

This cutie-patootie started reading over the summer!  Not really from anything that I've done, just that she wants to keep up with her big siblings.  She is a very motivated learner and truly enjoys having her own official school work to complete!

(4) Lillian ~ 3rd Grade

She is our nonfiction girl.  The amount of knowledge in this young mind astounds me on a daily basis! She is a bookworm who enjoys re-reading her favorite biographies and various nonfiction pieces to make sure that she didn't miss anything the first time.

(5) Joseph ~ 4th Grade

Origami....Legos.....Origami.....Legos....I'm pretty sure these two topics occupy most of his waking hours.  He has a great mind for math and solves most of his problems mentally before I do.  He enjoys playing chess and even beat his dad once...don't tell anyone about that though, okay? (heee, heee)

(6) Haley ~ 7th Grade

Haley is my go-to gal.  She has a huge heart and loves to help anyone in need.  She says that she wants to be a teacher when she grows up and I think that she'd do a wonderful job.  She's working on learning guitar and is beginning to play some beautiful music.  If I can't find her anywhere else, she's usually hiding in her bed with a book.

(7) Madeline ~ 8th Grade

Madeline is also an avid reader. She began crocheting a few years back with some books that she checked out from the library.  She has become quite accomplished and will be selling items in my etsy shop soon (more to come on that later!). She's still enjoying ballet and is just about ready to dance with the advanced classes.  The whole dancing on one's toes looks so painful, yet beautiful at the same time.

That's the Kraft clan....from pre-pre-school through grade 8.  We tried a couple different group photos and none of them really turned out great.  So, I'll just leave you with this very real one!

I hope that your school year is off to a great start.  Ours is off to a start at least...the great is still in the works!

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God Bless!

Heather :-)