This is one of my favorite photos of Malcolm and Hugh, taken a few years ago. They were dressed up for their grandmother’s 80th birthday party, and the only reason they were smiling so nicely for my camera, I later learned, was because they were goosing each other. Why was I not surprised?

Here’s a related, handy tip for those of you with very young children. If you want them to smile for an important photo, the surest way to achieve your goal is to say naughty words. The thrill of hearing mom or dad say a mildly forbidden word is far more successful than imploring your young subjects to say “cheese.” That’s just not funny at all.

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