Picture Perfect!!

Fall means many things and besides the falling of leaves, stormy weather, winter time, sniffy noses and sour throats in our home it is also cleaning out many stuff and updating our picture frames. Some faces have moved out of our lives and others demand a spot in our house. So we faced some tough decisions. We got out our recent shots and then opened up the first frames.

Taking them out was like ripping out pages of one of your favourite books. Most of these faces we have not seen in ages. We tried but life takes you in many directions and these friends have decided to go to unknown places where we don't seem to fit in. But no hard feelings. One day we might bump into eachother and then we invite you back in.

I also faced the truth that we all grow older and that wrinkles are more visible! Our nephews and niece have grown and so the baby grins make now room for tom-boy giggles!!! Li and Lo (P his brother and Spanish sister in law) don't wear glasses anymore in this picture but wedding rings. A, our lovely niece, looks us straight in our eyes with very dreamy look! G and H are joined by L with in the background the lovely landscape of the Leie. The Japenese temple is now out of the picture but still linked to your backgrounds!

To make sure that we can face the dark winter nights we decided for a breathtaking sunset in Lithuania. P and I selected the background of Barcelona and the Sacra Familia as our personal shot. A is almost hugged to death by his two cousins in one frame. One of our favourite newcomers is the oldest family member uncle J. He looks like he just walked out of 'A few good men' in his marine uniform of the Brittish Royal Navy! I even look prettier in pink with him next to me!

We also have a few frames that will never change. My dad is still standing out there is his brown frame. He is looking rather dreamy with a cigarate in his hands. Ready to face the enemy that will take him away of us. It is one of the very last pictures taken of him. Not a very flattering one but very realistic. Looking at that picture is like travelling through time. Resting at the bottom of that sight is a golden pen. My personal keepsake I have chosen when my mother made the three of us take something personal of him. When I have a writer's block it can give me the inspiration that I desperately seek after!

Picture 2 that will never change is the flower inspired frame filled up with a full body shot of my grandmother. She died two years ago at the blessed age of 94. But I decided for one of those brown, grey and black pics out of the old box that was hidden in the attic. She looks very smart and focused at the same time. That is the way I want to remember her! There are people that have their modern pics changed into old fashioned looking ones and paying a fortune for that. Well, I have the real thing standing out there and she makes me feel very proud of my background. My granny never gave up and so she keeps me going strong as well!

But there are still some empty ones. We know who fits in them. A his godmother N who has travelled last year and now moved in with her beloved P. B and I who we still admire that they try to keep up the spirit while waiting for their adoption child. A and J who have done so many things for us small or big but always with a grand smile! N and G and many children, L and her boyfriend, D and N who now raise two children in the most fruity corner of our nation, R and N who make us feel so connected with the other part of our country that speaks French, I and W who still have music in their hearts, H and J in wedding outfits (we were invited for the Texan wedding but sadly had to recline!), auntie Lily with A and D in Parc Asterix, M and C and their first born son J (who we want to visit in Boston one day), I who gave me a wonderful vacation, and many more have made it to the shortlist.

Have I mentioned the many skylines that we have faced the last years and now cherish? NYC at xmastime, the wonderful restored roof of Beaune Hospice, the champagne bottles of Epernay and the pink holiday house of Santenay are just a few of the places that we want out there to add some color to our lives.

Our personal favourite is a picture taken by my sister L of A, his nephew D and their grandmother. It looks like it is taken for an art magazine. Two four year olds on a sunny and hot summer day. D with dreamy eyes looking straight to the camera, his hair still wet of a dive in the kid's pool and behind him A leaning back at his grandmother who has her hair pulled back in a bun. Her numerous wrinkles are shown very cleary and seem to colide with the youth of her two grandchildren. It is picture full of poetry. Don't be surprised if that will be end up in a the biggest frame of all!

So when I ask the next few weeks for a recent shot then don't let me wait too long because empty frames might seem arty farty but we need color to survive the grey and rainy winter days. Picture perfect is this home means that we have a very colorful life that we share with some special people. Perhaps keep in mind the next time when a picture is taken of you that you might end up here! Ready, steady, smile!!!