Last updated on January 9th, 2024
If you can’t relate to the thought of the dreaded school pictures, either you never went to school or you don’t have a child in school yet.
School Pictures
If you scroll down to the bottom of this post, you’ll see a collage of school pictures of yours truly.
No, I’m not proud of them.
Actually the first one of me in the blue dress is cute.
That’s me in kindergarten.
You can’t really tell by looking at it, but I’m scared to death in that picture.
See, I’m an identical twin.
When you’re a small child who is an identical twin, you are literally a part of your twin.
When you start school and they tell you that you and your twin sister have to be separated into two separate classes, it can be very scary, as it was for me.
For Terri?
Not so much.
See, she got the ‘sociable’ gene out of the two of us.
Me? I didn’t get that gene.
I got the shy one.
Hence, the look of fear in the first picture.
Faking Good School Pictures
As the years went by, when it was time to take school pictures, I got good at smiling and looking relaxed, like I didn’t have a care in the world.
But in reality, I despised school pictures with a passion.
I never felt like my hair looked right or that I was wearing a ‘cool’ enough outfit, or that my glasses could stay on straight, or that I couldn’t hide that snaggle tooth.
OR my mom had the clever idea to get my hair cut into that shag style that was so popular in the ’70s.
Really? Who even looked good with a shag hairstyle.
I don’t care who you are – it’s not cute.
Because of the thickness of my hair, my shag style always had a point on the top of my head.
Yeah, not good for picture posterity.
In the third picture of the above collage, I look like I’m wearing a shag helmet.
Not my best look by far.
The above picture is somewhat more bearable as my adult teeth are growing in and I have to say, I was stylin’ in that shirt.
But the shag haircut is still there with the pointy head.
I would’ve done anything to be like this kid, who’s school picture went viral because of how carefree and happy he was!
Now, that’s one happy kid!
School Pictures Will Be Saved Forever
As I got older, the feeling of dread when I knew school pictures were happening never really went away.
Think about it, it really isn’t ‘just a picture’.
These are school pictures that you know you will save through the years.
You most likely put them into one of those frames or photo albums that have a space in them for every school year.
Then when you grow up and start a family of your own, you’ll get them out and share them with your kids.
You’ll have a good laugh and put them back in that dusty old box.
BUT, the dread comes back when your own child starts school and you get the form in your kids’ backpack saying ‘Don’t forget, Monday is school picture day!’
And it starts. ALL. OVER. AGAIN.
- 2024 Holiday Gift Guide: Shop Local in Frederick, MD! - November 1, 2024
- Luna Aesthetics: Botox, Filler, & Weight Loss Services - October 8, 2024
- Haunted Houses Near Frederick, MD - September 10, 2024
These photos are adorable! At least you can relate to your own kids when it comes to picture day. No matter how prepared I might be, and even now when I go in for yearly headshots as an actor, I still remember school picture day and feel posing and smiling for your yearly photo is so weird!
Picture day was and IS terrible. My kids dread it as much as I did. And the awesome thing is our grandchildren will giggle at their parent’s school pictures as much as our kids laughed at ours!
So funny! I guess it’s a rite of passage 🙂
Oh how right you are! Every one of my school photos is horrid! For my first grade shot I had conjunctivitis and llooked like a 6 year old junkie. They only got worse from there! My daughter’s 1st grade photo from just last year highlights a hairdo that she redid on her own in the girl’s room right before the shot. Priceless.
Aw!! Isn’t it weird how things like that happen right before picture day? I cut my son’s hair about a week ago and I accidentally cut it WAY too short! Thank God picture day isn’t until October 1rst!
So true!!! You two were real cutie-pies, even though you didn’t think so!!!
Aw, thank you! We were kinda cute! 😉
Oh my gosh, I think the photos are so cute. I can relate though because I always dreaded taking school photos. I still don’t like my photo made but I do it to humor the kids/grandkids.
Thank you 🙂 Yes, I do the same thing 🙂