Kids and talent and parental obsession

Ever since I was little, I wanted to be really good at something. Not that I suck at everything now, but I find that I do not really excel at anything either. I always felt that if I had found my talent or passion, it would had made my life a bit easier, at least made finding a career that I can stick with easier.

So now, I find myself overcompensating with my daughter. I know you are not suppose to re-live your own life via your children, but it is hard to resist that temptation. No one wants their kids to live through their mistakes; and everyone wants their own children's dreams to come true.

I can now easily see how people end up with musical instruments that no one plays in every room, loads of half finished painted canvases, smelly old sports equipment in a pile somewhere in the basement, and incomplete science experiments growing in the fridge. We already started our musical instrument collection with a lovely pink guitar that has not been touched since the day it was opened at Christmas, and a small violin that is sitting on a dining room chair at this very moment.

I am sure there is a fine line between allowing your child to explore their potential talents, and dragging your child kicking and screaming down a certain path, or even going down the slippery slope that will lead to remortgaging the house to afford skating lessons. Wish someone will tell me where that line is.

Anyway, my daughter's newest obsession is photography. We let her use one of our old digital cameras to take pictures of anything she finds interesting. I think some of her pictures turned out really good.

So as a proud mama bear, here is a small gallery of my daughter's pictures:

Now if you will excuse me, I have to go out and buy her a new camera.

Does your child have a talent? What do you do to encourage it without going overboard?

All pictures are the property of my little monkey

A letter to the paparazzi

I think my daughter is cute (okay, I am sure most parents think their children are cute). Occasionally, complete strangers will come up to me and tell me what a cute, or beautiful little girl I have. I admit, my vanity enjoys these compliments, and hers does too, though it would be nice if they say I am cute as well (perhaps if I dressed nicer... but that is a completely different topic for another day).

Now, I know I should de-emphasize the importance of physical appearance; it is what is inside that counts, right? But this too is a topic for another time.

What I would like to write about today is: people, and by that I mean strangers, taking pictures of my kid...

Dear Random Photographers,

Please stop taking pictures of my child, UNLESS you ask first.

Since becoming a mother, I have become more aware of what is happening around my child (though not so much around me...), also I personally hate having my picture taken, so now I have a sixth sense when it comes to people pointing cameras in my, or my child's, direction. So yep, most of the time, I know what you are doing, and sorry if I ruined your shot by stepping between your camera and MY child.

And, no I do not think all photographers are child molesters. I just find it RUDE to take pictures of people without asking their permission first, even if it is in a public place. Would you like it if I do it to you? And, I understand sometimes we get caught in general crowd shots, which is fine, but when you crouch down to the height of my daughter, I am pretty sure you are taking a picture of her, unless you are looking for some interesting art shot of people's knees.

I also get it that you want capture the spontaneity of the moment, so it is not always practical to ask first (trust me, I know my daughter is not always the most cooperative when it comes to posing for the camera). However, you can always ask after, or send some sort of signal when we make eye contact, like point to the camera, point to her... something to let me know what you plan to do, and remember, I see you. Looking sneaky, will not help your cause, and frankly, make you look creepy.

And really, I have yet to say no to anyone that asked to take a picture of the kid. I cannot guarantee she will cooperate, but I will offer to help you try to get your shot.

So please, let us try to avoid me getting all mama bear on you, and just ask.

Thank you and I really do hope that you will get some wonderful pictures.

The kid's mom

picture courtesy of ilco http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1118246