Alyssa and John 7: Laura Ingalls, Something, Something...

[SassyPants]

10 minutes ago, OHFL2009 said:

I have a lot of friends with young kids who get professional photos done for Christmas cards every year. Most only do photos that one time per year, but some do professional photos for each kid's birthday too, and some randomly throughout the year. I know some get prints made but I think a lot just share them on social media for friends and family to see. 

How do young families afford the cost? Maybe things have changed over the years, but back in the day, decent, professional photos were expensive.

[OHFL2009]

55 minutes ago, SassyPants said:

How do young families afford the cost? Maybe things have changed over the years, but back in the day, decent, professional photos were expensive.

I don't know, actually. I don't have kids and other than my wedding, I've never hired a professional photographer. I do remember when I was little my parents would take me to a little local studio where I would get photos taken at Christmas (with fancy trees, presents, a sleigh, etc.) and Easter (with live animals, like lambs and chicks) but that was 25 years ago so I don't know what costs were like. I do know my parents still have some of those photos. 

[Jackie3]

18 hours ago, SassyPants said:

And her showing Lexie, who is not even 4 yet, cursive writing. Can she wipe herself, speak clearly, brush her own teeth and tie her shoes? If not, work on more age appropriate skills.

You can't brag about your kid wiping herself! But you can brag that she does cursive-you can put some samples on the frig and wait for your friends to notice. Can't do that with the toilet paper she used to wipe herself!

Well, now Lexi can write some checks or sign some contracts. Considering that three year olds only have a limited attention span, this is a wonderful use of her time.

8 hours ago, Melissa1977 said:

I think people mock them in their church and gossip about what new dress they are wearing every Sunday.

 Instead of weekly identical boring pictures where only Alyssa looks well, why not posting candid pictures (children in the park, in the garden, whatever)? 

 

If you want to show children at their best, looking truly happy with shining eyes, then candid pictures in the park or garden are the way to go. Because then the kids are really happy, having fun, and it shows. Their hair and clothes won't be perfect, but you'll capture those memories of happy times, IMO.

Or you can take your four year old to a photo studio, where she'll be told to smile, and she probably will. But it isn't a real, happy smile. I mean, professional photos have their place, and they can be lovely to put on the wall, but Alyssa really overdoes it. 

It's just another example of her immaturity and lack of sophistication, which is to be expected when you've had a sheltered life and marry at 19. I feel sorry for her. She needs to be out there, spending her paycheck on fashionable clothes, showing off her own youth and beauty (not her daughters), and developing good taste. Her excitement about cheap, shiny fabrics and junky food shows where she comes from and how limited her life has been.  I also think she's frustrated. When you have small children, you spend a heck of a lot of time at home, and I think she'd rather be out experiencing life.

[KeepingChrysanthemum]

I get a professional shoot once a year for Christmas photos. I use the same photographer and she does a "mini-session" day where you get 20 minutes of shots and 6 pictures for $120. Then I design the cards myself and get them printed online for around $45 (varies based on coupon). I spend about $20 in stamp. So all in all I spend less than $200, get to participate in Christmas Cards (which I really enjoy) and get to see us every year and how we've grown and changed. I know it's not in every family's budget, but for me it's a relatively affordable way to bring myself joy and feel like the holidays are finally here. 

I bring it up because there are more affordable ways to do it, you just have to look for promotions and coupons. That being said - I do think that once a year or for special occasions is about the most I can imagine. If I was shelling out professional photo money more than that I'd clearly be a pod person because normal me would never

[SorenaJ]

Cursive sounds like the least useful skill ever. What good is that gonna do? For a three-year old, even! Every time I think Alyssa's stupidity has reached a limit, she pushes it a bit further. 

Everyone has the right to education. I'm just not sure that's what the Webster girls are getting or will ever get. 

[LillyP]

3 hours ago, SassyPants said:

How do young families afford the cost? Maybe things have changed over the years, but back in the day, decent, professional photos were expensive.

They still are expensive, but everyone has different priorities in life. Some people feel updated professional photos are worth the investment. Also, most photographers offer "mini sessions" in the late fall specifically for families wanting updated family photos and holiday cards. I'm a wedding & family photographer, and while my regular full family sessions start at $450 - my mini sessions are $175...15 minutes / 15 digital images. I only offer them in late fall, and 99% of the people who book them do so for holidays cards. Most of the photographers in my area do the same thing. My main cliental are vacationers (family beach portraits) but mostly the locals book my mini sessions. 

[AussieKrissy]

6 hours ago, OHFL2009 said:

I have a lot of friends with young kids who get professional photos done for Christmas cards every year. Most only do photos that one time per year, but some do professional photos for each kid's birthday too, and some randomly throughout the year. I know some get prints made but I think a lot just share them on social media for friends and family to see. 

I have quite a few professional shots of my daughter at least one or two a year. I keep an eye on when local photographers have specials and grab those. I don't know what to do with them except to share them to social media. But by gosh do I love them. 

She actually has more photos on Saturday, sunset sunflower field. She only had some photos in August (a special I got after COVID lock down finished to get business going again) but I mean who can resist sunset sunflowers?????????????? 

[Maggie Mae]

6 hours ago, SassyPants said:

How do young families afford the cost? Maybe things have changed over the years, but back in the day, decent, professional photos were expensive.

I have a friend who gets a photographer several times a year - Christmas, Halloween, Thanksgiving, name a holiday and she's got an outfit and pictures. Various "firsts" for her kid, etc. It's not that expensive, (but it is excessive!) there are a ton of photographers who need work, usually they advertise on Facebook. 

23 hours ago, SassyPants said:

And her showing Lexie, who is not even 4 yet, cursive writing. Can she wipe herself, speak clearly, brush her own teeth and tie her shoes? If not, work on more age appropriate skills.

where is this posted? I don't see it. 

[Fundielandobserver]

I dont think the dresses are cheap , well if Alyssa had to buy them herself they would be but they are gifted from her crazy rich freind and some of them are expensive as I have seen in Macys or other websites. Also some of them are sponsered from the website she advertizes for ! I agree Alyssa just wants to show off her pretty girls.

[Maggie Mae]

4 hours ago, Fundielandobserver said:

I dont think the dresses are cheap , well if Alyssa had to buy them herself they would be but they are gifted from her crazy rich freind and some of them are expensive as I have seen in Macys or other websites. Also some of them are sponsered from the website she advertizes for ! I agree Alyssa just wants to show off her pretty girls.

Some are pretty cheap. She says where she gets them, plus you can look at them and they look cheap. Shiny fabric, weird bulges, bad stitching, etc.

[Melissa1977]

8 hours ago, Fundielandobserver said:

I dont think the dresses are cheap , well if Alyssa had to buy them herself they would be but they are gifted from her crazy rich freind and some of them are expensive as I have seen in Macys or other websites. Also some of them are sponsered from the website she advertizes for ! I agree Alyssa just wants to show off her pretty girls.

Some are really cheap (I don't know the price, but the fabric and sewing is very low quality), others are better. Some don't even fit the girls, but Alyssa must show them in IG, in order to please her "fan" and get more stuff.

When Alyssa bought her daughters clothes, they had less outfits for sure, but if I remember right, they were better looking (and always fitted them). Many times they look better in their t-shirts and shorts and ponytails than in their Sunday dresses (despite I love smart dresses!)

Disclaimer: Speaking about outfits could be BEC, and even snob, if it wasn't because the grifting and the materialistic side of that. It is the problem for me: Alyssa is teaching her girls that brand new clothes are the big point of going to church! She may claim she's so Christian but she only shows new dresses, never talks about Christian actions, helping others, etc.

Also the grifting is a terrible lesson for the girls. People giving them things because they are cute? Not what I would like my daughters to learn. 

[Sheltie]

I recall one time on Instagram she had a post about her family being blessed and they said they wanted to help people. They asked people to send them messages of their need and they would be sending money to a certain number of people to help them.

Edited December 10, 2020 by Sheltie

[Jackie3]

4 hours ago, Sheltie said:

I recall one time on Instagram she had a post about her family being blessed and they said they wanted to help people. They asked people to send them messages of their need and they would be sending money to a certain number of people to help them.

That is virtue signaling at it's best. How about helping others WITHOUT posting about it on IG?

In any event, 99% of her posts are "look at my kid in THIS dress. . . and THIS dress. . ." It's rarely a pic of Allie learning to swim, or Lexi and Zoey learning to cut with scissors. I remember once when Allie prepping to go on a  daddy/daughter date (ick!). Alyssa said something like, "I know you like pink, so I've laid out of your pink dresses to choose from." There were nine of them. Nine pink dresses. I can't imagine how many Allie has in total. 

5 hours ago, Melissa1977 said:

Also the grifting is a terrible lesson for the girls. People giving them things because they are cute? Not what I would like my daughters to learn. 

I had a photographer friend who said that little kids (under 8 or so) really can't take a bad picture. I wonder what will happen when her kids hit the awkward stage--will the crazy stalker keep sending them dresses?

[Fundielandobserver]

13 hours ago, Maggie Mae said:

Some are pretty cheap. She says where she gets them, plus you can look at them and they look cheap. Shiny fabric, weird bulges, bad stitching, etc.

The ones gifted by the rich friend are not cheap. From what I make out that the ones which she adveritises for (Ivy  and some other companies ) look shiny and cheap. But what I thnk she is making money too as a influncer besides the clothes  .She gets paid to post pics so she's using her chidren as child model's ... she mentions the company or tags them. I dont think she makes them wear them regularly then. Those clothes are like costumes for pics. free for her ..she gets money and cute pics too. Not a right thing to do but a lot of influencers on instagram are doing this. 

 

[SassyPants]

On 12/9/2020 at 2:51 PM, Maggie Mae said:

I have a friend who gets a photographer several times a year - Christmas, Halloween, Thanksgiving, name a holiday and she's got an outfit and pictures. Various "firsts" for her kid, etc. It's not that expensive, (but it is excessive!) there are a ton of photographers who need work, usually they advertise on Facebook. 

where is this posted? I don't see it. 

It was posted on IG. Maybe it was in stories? 

[freethemall]

On 12/9/2020 at 10:16 PM, Fundielandobserver said:

I dont think the dresses are cheap , well if Alyssa had to buy them herself they would be but they are gifted from her crazy rich freind and some of them are expensive as I have seen in Macys or other websites. Also some of them are sponsered from the website she advertizes for ! I agree Alyssa just wants to show off her pretty girls.

I think the difference here is not in the price but the quality - for sure the friend is spending big bucks on poly-blend crap made in China that is way overpriced for the quality. Maybe not the individual dresses are expensive on their own, but buying a set of 3 adds up. The quality looks cheap and awful.

Edited December 11, 2020 by freethemall

[The butcher's wife]

21 hours ago, Jackie3 said:

I had a photographer friend who said that little kids (under 8 or so) really can't take a bad picture. I wonder what will happen when her kids hit the awkward stage--will the crazy stalker keep sending them dresses?

My parents took us to only one professional photo shoot in our entire childhood. It was in the summer in some kind of super well maintained, beautiful garden. I was five or six and bored out of my damn mind. And you better believe it shows in those pictures. There's one where they placed my little sister on my lap on a bench. I rest my  head on hers and I wear the silly straw hat my parents bought for this session. My sister, who usually had (still has) a much less sweet temperament than me, looks delightful. But everything from my posture to my barely noticeable, forced smile says "meh". We did get a professional photo taken each year from Kindergarten (starting aged 3) to graduation at school though. Picture with classmates and a few solo ones, and the pre-teen/early teen stage is especially awkward indeed.

[Vivi_music]

2 hours ago, The butcher's wife said:

My parents took us to only one professional photo shoot in our entire childhood. It was in the summer in some kind of super well maintained, beautiful garden. I was five or six and bored out of my damn mind. And you better believe it shows in those pictures. There's one where they placed my little sister on my lap on a bench. I rest my  head on hers and I wear the silly straw hat my parents bought for this session. My sister, who usually had (still has) a much less sweet temperament than me, looks delightful. But everything from my posture to my barely noticeable, forced smile says "meh". We did get a professional photo taken each year from Kindergarten (starting aged 3) to graduation at school though. Picture with classmates and a few solo ones, and the pre-teen/early teen stage is especially awkward indeed.

I think it's similar for my family. Outside of school pictures, I've been to one professional photoshoot as a kid. I guess it's simply not something we ''did''. My mom was SO busy when I was small. 4 kids, single parent. I think professional pictures flew 40000 feet over her head in terms of priority. (I really don't mean this in a judgemental way. If you love taking family pictures yearly, I actually think it can be a nice way to remember time passing by and kids growing up. I don't have kids yet but I don't exclude doing it once I have a family)

 

I remember going to a professional studio as a teen, for my grandparents 60's wedding anniversary. The gift was a picture of all the grandkids together. I was 14. Can you imagine? I had braces, pimples and felt like the most awkward teen in the world. I'm almost 30 now and since then my grandparents have passed. My aunt kept the picture and hung it in her home. I guess it's cute. It's her kids and her nephews and nieces. But I'm almost 30 now and I still shudder when I see the pic. My smile is so awkward. I feel kind of bad for the teen I was then. Don't worry, the gawky feeling of everything being wrong in your body does go away.

[Jackie3]

3 hours ago, The butcher's wife said:

My parents took us to only one professional photo shoot in our entire childhood. It was in the summer in some kind of super well maintained, beautiful garden. I was five or six and bored out of my damn mind. And you better believe it shows in those pictures. 

That's the problem I see with such pictures, particularly if you do them constantly. The kids don't care, and it shows in their eyes. Once a year, it's a bit of a novelty for kids and you can coax a smile out of them. But when it's once a month (like it really seems to be with Alyssa) it's a boring exercise. I'll bet even John is bored.

My daughter went to a school where a fancy photographer came and took their pictures once a year. The photographer fussed and fussed over my five year old, insisting on taking out the colorful barrette my kid had put in her hair. The resulting photo is lovely in terms of lighting and background, and the photographer had made sure my daughter's hair was perfect. But it's not a great picture because of the uneasiness in my kid's eyes. She wasn't used to being fussed over and she wanted that barrette!

We left for public school the next year, and I vastly prefer the no fuss, assembly line school pictures we got after that. Messy braids, gap-toothed smile, rumpled shirts from children just off the playground. It shows the sweetness of the kids as they are at that age.

Edited December 11, 2020 by Jackie3

[irish_dancing_canadian]

I have two sisters and growing up we mainly did “photo shoots” near Christmas time to send to close friends and family. We did one special photo shoot when I was 10 as my sisters and I were all in ballet and we had really nice costumes. My mom always wanted to do ballet but grew up poor so I think she was living a bit through us. Nothing extreme plus her friend was the photographer. I don’t think our Christmas photo shoots were that expensive as it was just my dad who worked and it’s seems like we were able to afford it. We weren’t super rich but had some small extras here and there. 

[Lgirlrocks]

We always went to Sears for family photos. One year our church brought in a photographer to do family portraits for a church directory. We would always have a family photo taken at a wedding or bat/bar mitzva. 

[freethemall]

This thread is a bit dead so I'm refreshing it. Alyssa posted on midnight following Christmas Day that she spent the whole evening getting rid of every single Christmas decoration. She blamed it on pregnancy nesting and asked if others do this, to which about 95% said no. I find this really strange, I've never heard of putting away decor until after New Year's.

[clueliss]

I pulled my decorations down last Saturday, finished up Sunday and it's all stored away until next year.  If I don't get stuff down early it stresses me out because as an accountant I have to deal with year end closing and auditors.  So no, not everyone leaves things up until new year's. 

I did find the yank it all down at midnight thing weird.  But then to each their own on that one. 

[lumpentheologie]

In our town they took down all the public Christmas decorations on Monday, and that made me sad.  I think of Christmas and New Year's as basically one big merged holiday, so I'd have liked things to stay up.  

For me personally Christmas is mostly a winter solstice celebration, so I leave most of my decorations up until February, when I notice the days getting longer.  I need the extra cheer till then. 

[justmy2cents]

Growing up in the Ukraine during the cold war we had a New Years tree which we kept up till the end of January. Didn’t even know about Christmas until we moved to the US.  I was bummed that we could no longer have a tree since we weren’t Christian. My daughter gets to enjoy a small Hanukkah tree now. Where else could I leave her gifts?