My Moment to Shine! Or not...

Pixie and I were swinging at the park today soaking up some of the heat when a guy with a camera jumped in front of us and started taking photos. I ignored him at first but he showed no signs of slowing so I politely informed him that I charged per photo. He just laughed and kept snapping. So I asked him if he was a professional and he assured me he worked for the Pasadena Star News. That's all I needed to hear. Pixie and I went back to swinging and he circled for about 10 minutes taking shots in rapid succession.

I tried to play it cool and act like I always had strange men jumping out at me shooting photos. The other moms were watching enviously as it was conclusively proven that I had the cutest baby on the playground. When you are a stay-at-home mom like me, this is the only thing that matters in life. The photographer finally finished and came up to me with a pad and pencil. He was getting shots for a blurb about the hot weather. What was my name. Where was I from. How often did I come to this park. Then he paused and looked at me expectantly. This was the moment when I was supposed to say something for a newspaper tagline. Clever, but not cutting, wise, but not wearying, and most importantly, memorable. I spaced it. The only thing I could think to say was "we like to come here after lunch." Brilliant, Hollywood. Absolutely earth-shaking. Words to live by.

What can I say? When the best news to be had is a mom swinging with her baby at the park, you should forgive her for not being able to delve into the deeper philosophical reasons for heat and playground equipment. The photographer was merciful and didn't give a quote. Here's the photo blurb:

Hollywood and daughter Pixie ride a swing during one of their regular trips to the park in a sunny Wednesday. The National Weather Service is predicting warm weather, with highs in the 80s to low 90s, through the weekend.

So much for my moment. But at least we got a huge front page spread on the Pasadena Star News. I'll take beauty over brains any day if it means I'm famous.