It has been brought to my attention that I take the first day of school, Halloween, and picture day pretty seriously. Does that make me vain? Maybe, but for some reason I have it in my head that these are not just regular days, but events, and should be treated as such. Come to think of it we had great cotumes when I was a kid, I remember my mom doing smile practice with me on picture day, and the first day of school was the only time the woman ever took a camera out, so I guess I come by it naturally.
I love the outfits that I found for the kids this year so instead of waiting months to see how the school pictures come out, I snapped a few shots. These clothes all come from Gymboree and before you tell me I am a snob for shopping at Gymboree, let me tell you that I have shopping at Gymboree down to an art and I usually pay about a quarter of the original asking price. I am not generally a couponer but I love Gymboree so I have found a system that works so that my kids can have a few outfits from there each year. Luckily I don't have to buy my kids clothes too often because Alex fixates on two items at a time and can't be talked into wearing anything else and Alyssa weighs 45 pounds and still fits into clothes from Kindergarten.
But here I go sidetracking. Let's look at Alex and Alyssa all decked out for picture day this morning.
Alex, who hates to be dressed in anything but jeans and a t-shirt actually kind of liked this outfit.
Head shot since that is all we will get at school
Alyssa is very hestiant to smile right now since she had two teeth yanked on Wednesday.
Chloe's outfit coordinates with Alyssa's but her picture day was yesterday so I don't have a shot of them together. I will get one though since I hope to take some fall pictures in these outfits and they will certainly be wearing them to church regularly as well.
I thought Chloe looked just right...
But she was convinced that she needed to infuse a little Chloe into the outfit.
Yes, that is a toy pot on a ribbon. I had to convince her that dishes were not part of the dress code, although the group picture would have been hilariously confusing to the other parents so maybe I should have allowed it since Chloe told me just the other day...
mommy, I would rather be funny than pretty. Ha,Ha! Lucky for her, she's both.
today's soundtrack:
Fashion by Lady Gaga
9 comments:
Picture day is special and so is Halloween. Gotta love Chloe's style.
I love taking pictures of Emma. These kids grow so fast you have to document stuff before it's too late. My problem with days like first day of school or picture day is that I'm trying to make sure Emma is ready or looks just right or that we haven't forgotten something (like her order forms for pictures) that I'll forget to get my own camera out and capture the moment or the day. So I love that you remember to do that and seem so calm about it! And maybe I don't care quite as much about Emma's school pictures because I always like the ones I take of her more. And it's not because I'm a better photographer or anything, it's because Emma has a weird smile that I only see once a year: school picture day. Last year I made her go get them retaken on retake day because the first picture literally looked like she was saying "arghhh!" like a pirate in it. I like the fun pictures when she wants to be a pirate etc, but I would also like some serious shots or her. So there is definitely a place for both. So I think it's awesome that you took the picture of Chloe with the pot.
I love the clothes from Gymboree. I don't get them very often for Emma because of the cost, but I have found things very rarely on a good sale there that worked. I would love to know what your system is if you ever felt like sharing it. :-) One year (a couple years ago) I saw a little outfit there that I love so much (still one of my favorites Emma's ever had) that I got it for my birthday so I could have it for her. It just wasn't in the budget to get it full price, but I couldn't bare the thought of not having them have her size by the time it might have gone on sale. Now I wish I would have spent my Christmas money on it too and gotten a few bigger sizes of it so she'd never outgrow it! Oh well.
And so what if the clothes you buy your kids are expensive (if they are). You can do what you want to with your money. I wouldn't call you a snob for shopping at Gymboree, I'd call you lucky! Cute clothes by the way!!
The kids all look so beautiful (yes, even Alex). The outfits are adorable. I'm surprised Alyssa is still letting you shop there for her. Annie went there with me this summer, and she turned her nose up to everything saying it was for babies. Whatever, Annie, you are still a baby in my eyes! Now that she knows about Justice she only wants clothes from there, little snob. However, I tend to just get everything at Target these days since that's all we've really got in town.
Ha, love the soundtrack!
Holly, I don't know why I go all out for picture day because my kids break out that wacky smile for the school photographer too. Also, your pictures are really good. I am still waiting for you to tell me what kind of camera you have and how to use it.
As for shopping at Gymboree. I have a rewards card which is free and earns me coupons so that is step one. Then I shop at the outlet when they are doing gymbucks. For every $50 you spend you get $25 to use later. I earn my gymbucks at the outlet where everything is already marked way down and I also go during a sale (back to school for instance). Then I watch online to see what lines are coming out and pick what I like. When it is time to use my gymbucks (only good on specified dates but you can use them early with a Rewards Card and they call to remind you) I go to the non-outlet Gymboree and go straight to the clearance rack and grab the stuff from the past lines that I have been watching online. After clearance prices and gymbucks I spend about 25% of the ticket price. Also, when you use your gymbucks they will give you a 30% off coupon for your next visit, so you wait for more stuff that you want to hit the clearance rack and head back. I also learned a new trick this month. Something I needed for Halloween was on clearance but I wanted to wait until my gymbucks were good to get it even cheaper but while I was waiting it sold out online. When I saw that I went to the store and they only had part of what I needed so they tracked down the other part from a similar line from last year at the outlet and then offered to hold the rest for me until the end of the week so I could use my gymbucks and save even more. It sounds complicated, but it's not and it has helped me get some of my all time favorite outfits for no more than I would have spent at Target where I buy everything else.
Jen, I am a little surprised Alyssa still likes Gymboree too but she picked that outfit out herself. She wanted brown suede boots but I wasn't about to buy anything else. Nothing wrong with Target. They have cute stuff but I end up spending more there than anywhere else because they magically pull me down every aisle and force me to fill my basket.
teeth yankings hurt, i can guess. cedar will tell u, he got 4 pulled!!
apen
I love all the outfits. I wish I were a better shopper. I am AWFUL! I don't like shopping. I don't like looking through racks, or watching for sales. I don't even like looking online. BUT...When I see outfits as adorable as these, I want to hit myself upside my head. ;) I NEED to be a better shopper so I can get my kiddos cute matching Gymboree outfits. I read your Gymboree "How-To" comment, but it's all pretty foreign to me. LOL I need some practice!
Alyssa, is so tiny. Kaden is a solid little tank @ 62 lbs.!
Aspen, those pulled teeth bled for three hours, but at least it got Alyssa out of going to school that day.
Katie, You are kidding, right? I am pretty sure I have never seen better dressed kids than yours. Catherine's kids are right up there too. They all look they are ready for a magazine shoot at all times. If you saw how my kids looked most Sundays for church you would laugh. Last Sunday Chloe wore Packers tights and a Packers t-shirt with a jean skirt and totally wild messy hair.
"Mommy, I would rather be funny than pretty!" Those are definitely words to live by...I love it!! Too bad she is naturally gorgeous, hopefully that won't stop her from being a clown.
I love all those outfits. The girls look so retro...
You know, I have never bought a single school picture. I always hate that I get them looking cute before they leave and then by the time they get their pictures taken they look like they have been at school all day. I always take them to Target or some place like that so I can see exactly what their hair looks like and how they are smiling when the camera flashes.
Your kids sure do look cute for their pictures!
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