For five years now I have wanted to do the required Texas Bluebonnets photo shoot. That is, it's required if you have children, and live in Texas. Year after year I have ooh-ed and ahh-ed over everyone else's photos. They are all so beautiful...the children and the flowers.
The grow everywhere, on the sides of the highways, in the cow pastures, in the oil fields. The only trick is getting to them safely. I spotted a field between here and Ellie's school that had a piece of the barbed wire missing, and I knew that was our spot. As I was talking this up to the kids, here's what was really going through my mind....this is a Texas field...poisonous snakes, poisonous spiders, scorpions. This was worth it, right? The pictures were going to be great!!!
I had them both by the hand, I tried to push the long grasses down ahead of me and have them walk behind me. Well...the very first thing Ellie did was step in a patch of stinging nettle....and shriek and scream uncontrollably. And what did I think? "....this is a Texas field...poisonous snakes, poisonous spiders, scorpions." Fortunately it was just nettle. Yes, it did hurt, but she calmed down enough to get some slightly red eyed pictures. Poor thing. Oh, but I wanted those pictures.
