.family photos.

I am a big fan of Pinterest. I think it is an amazing resource when used correctly.

As someone who's dietary restrictions change on almost a weekly basis, I love being able to search for pretty much any recipe I could want. The resources available at our fingertips are almost impossible to quantify.

Like anything in life, though, it can be abused and used improperly. Aside from the questionable ethical and moral content of quite a few pins, Pinteredt had the tendency to cultivate feelings of jealousy. It is SO easy to look at that "Pinterest-worthy" living room, or that perfect outfit that only looks good in size 0 and costs $5000. I know, I've done it.

The big one for me is the family photos. You know, where the family is perfectly posed, with the perfect background light, the perfect backdrop, the coordinating clothes, and the smiling faces. Yeah, the smiling faces is the big one for me. How do you get your toddlers to sit? Let alone smile on command?

Don't get me wrong, my kids laugh and smile all the time. As I'm writing, their giggles are echoing through the house. But they are running around - not sitting in a super-cute field of flowers.

Every once in a while (and by that I mean at least once a month), I think to myself, maybe this is the week! This might be the week where they will sit together and smile for just one shot. We'll finally be one of those families. It usually ends up in tears from the kids and groans from my husband.

Oh yeah, the last time this happened? Last night. Yep, that was me out in the freezing cold (okay, it was in the 50s) trying to get just one good picture. Even one okay picture would have been good.

But the truth is, my family isn't a "posey" family. The best photos I have of them are "action" photos. They'll probably never go viral as the cutest family pose of all time. In fact, I know they won't. But they'll be my family. When I look back, I'll see who my kids were at that moment in time.

I know, though, that I'll still keep trying to get that perfect photo. But I am going to work more on accepting my kiddos for the action heroes that they are.