Behind The Scenes: Changing the Mood

Have you ever hoped for those perfect family moments where everyone smiled, hugged, and posed for the camera? Me too!! Thankfully my children are photogenic and love having their picture taken (maybe a little too much).

This weekend we were at the pool and since the hubby was with us I wanted to get some shots of the kids playing with him. Below is my favorite photo of the day:

Isn't this a great family shot?! The sun is shining, there are big smiles happening, and the water looks so inviting. But minutes before this picture was taken the hubby and I were in the middle of three meltdowns.

Shelby was hysterically screaming because Daddy had her up on his shoulders and she was sure he was going to drop her. She wanted to cling to his side, not his shoulders!!

At the same time our youngest was pitching a royal fit (my mom's favorite description of ridiculous behavior) because the little boy next to him on the steps was using one of our squirt guns.

Our oldest was upset that Dad was not following the rules of the pool by playing with him every moment while in the water. Can you tell my kids spend all week with me and need fun Dad time??

 The hubby calmed Shelby down off of his shoulders and I soothed Jonah by reminding him we all need to share. Then Daddy talked to Gabe about having to spend time with everyone and he was just going to have to be patient. Suddenly I remembered my goal of picture taking and jumped at the opportunity to change the current mood in the air.

So everyone joined together and hugged tightly. I made a silly face to get them to really laugh and SNAP!  As I look at the photo I can tell Gabe was still thinking about how unfair life is and he was not as excited as I was about the photo op. Yet he posed anyways and got it over with.

This reminds me of my attitude about life sometimes. I don't want to give in or do what someone else wants but life isn't always fair. Often we have to be selfless and sacrifice the big things and the small things in order to connect with others. I too often look for ways others can appease me instead of the other way around.

One of my goals as a parent is to cultivate selflessness in my children by using everyday teachable moments. After all, we can't really plan when someone is going to throw a *royal fit* but we can be ready for them with soothing words and a tender nudge in the right direction!



This post is participating in Crystal Stine's Behind the Scenes link-up Tuesdays. Stop on by and read other stories from behind the pictures!