Wherein the Curmudgeon advises whether we got a Christmas picture done this year

Shelby inquired in a recent comment whether we would be able to do our annual Curmudgeon Family Christmas picture this year.

Well, almost annual: We didn't get one last year. Last year the problem at Thanksgiving (when we had traditionally taken the picture) was the comings and goings of our older children: Older Daughter didn't make it up from Indianapolis until after midnight, by which point Oldest Son had gone out for the evening. And Oldest Son left at 6:00 a.m. next morning (with eight friends, who'd stayed at our house overnight) on a flight to California. And then, at Christmas, when the family was entirely assembled, we discovered (too late) that Younger Daughter had lost the camera case to our digital camera... along with the spare battery and recharger. Which, presumably, was why she hadn't recharged the battery in the camera. (Follow the links if you're interested.)

This year, however, the entire family was scheduled to be under my roof all at the same time on Thanksgiving Day itself. We even had a photographer, since Older Daughter's Boyfriend was in attendance this year. (No, nothing to report yet on that front.) And, to increase our odds even more, Abuela had given Younger Daughter her very own digital camera for her recent birthday.

Long Suffering Spouse and I got up early and, since we had company, got dressed before coming downstairs, she to dress the turkey, me in search of coffee. I put on my festive Grinch tie. What a Curmudgeon should wear for a Christmas picture, of course.

Other people began moving within a few short hours. Oldest Son arrived (he has his own accommodations these days, you may remember), noticed that no football was on TV, and immediately changed the channel.

"I thought you were ready to take the picture," he told me.

"I am," I said. But Middle Son was not yet out of bed and Older and Younger Daughters had not yet gotten dressed. That got Oldest Son upset: It seems that somewhere around 10:30 or so Older Daughter, at Younger Daughter's urging, had texted Oldest Son, inquiring as to his whereabouts. He was asleep at the time. But, figuring that he was the only reason the picture was not yet taken, he rushed through his morning ablutions and drove out to our house.

Abuela called in the midst of this: She did not ask Long Suffering Spouse what time she should come by or when the turkey would be done. No, she only wanted to know if the picture had been taken. No? "I'll call back later," she said, and hung up.

Older Daughter and Younger Daughter then undertook to ready themselves. Older Daughter required only four or five outfit changes before she pronounced herself ready.

It was, however, still Thursday.

With Older Daughter's announcement, Middle Son roused himself and joined the family. But Long Suffering Spouse had to be pried from the kitchen. I decided that, this year, as in most years, I would sit in the middle of the couch. So I got out of my chair in the den and sat on the couch in the living room. It had been pulled forward from the wall in anticipation of a number of people standing behind.

And soon thereafter, it was all over. Younger Daughter did her best to ruin every picture by laughing too hard or looking the wrong way but -- I'm told -- we have one which may be acceptable. Neither Long Suffering Spouse nor I have had the heart to look at it yet. But it's on Younger Daughter's Facebook page, of course.