Last year, my husband and I sent this card to our friends and family. I chose it because I loved the design, a modern take on snowflakes. The colors also worked since, procrastinator that I am, I didn’t finish writing our letter until after Christmas, and it became a Happy New Year card. Must have been busy picking baby names or something…

Our designer, Jen, adjusted the colors for us when these were ordered last year. But now, nearly every product on the website can be altered by you, the customer. Not just colors, but fonts and type size too. Within minutes, you’ll have a preview of your beautiful holiday card!

In my pre-baby days, with what I now realize was lots of free time, I hand-wrote the addresses on envelopes (with an aqua fine-tip Sharpie, just because it’s fun), but you could easily put them through your home printer and do a mail merge too. With the matching return address labels and seals, the envelopes looked great! I felt like each one was a little present for our friends and family, a personal touch in the midst of the catalogs and junk mail that fill up mailboxes this time of year.

I’m hoping that this year, the extra motivation of showing off a baby photo will be enough that we can send an on-time, true-blue Christmas card, in red and green! Maybe one of these…

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All the stores are blaring the news…it’s out with the pumpkins, in with the presents! (or prezzies as my Canadian friend says) Poor little Thanksgiving gets mostly passed over in retail-land, for the big dog that’s now less than 45 days away. And it’s not just presents, but decorations, baking and yes, Christmas cards!

If you’ve got a new little one in your family, you’re probably excited to send out photo cards this year. Okay, let’s be honest, if you have any kids in your family, you love to send an updated photo each year. And your friends and family love to receive them!

Most people I know fill their fridge door (or sometimes that metal door to the garage) with holiday cards. Wouldn’t it be fun if they received your card and it was already a magnet? That’s right- our magnet cards are all designed and ready for your best family photo from 2008. View the complete gallery at MagnetStreet Baby… There’s a lot to do before the holidays arrive; check the cards off your list early!

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I’ve taken hundreds (thousands?) of pictures of Tate during his short life (see I Love My Digital Camera), but the need for a professional portrait has always loomed in the back of my mind. It seems an important rite of passage, with specific pages in the baby book just waiting to be filled. Oh, wait, I haven’t bought a baby book yet either. But anyway…

Several photographers in our area offer specials for 3, 6, 9 and 12- month shots, and you select one from each sitting to be matted and framed. It seems that most families get pictures taken at one if not all of those milestones. I’ve hesitated, though, because the whole concept seems stressful…I never know exactly when he’ll be napping, so how can I set up an appointment time? He spits up food somewhat frequently, so how are we going to make sure that special outfit isn’t ruined before the picture is taken? And his face always seems to have some sort of scratch because I’m really bad at keeping his nails trimmed.

I remind myself that there’s a magic thing called airbrushing for facial mishaps, and we can change him into his outfit right before the shoot to avoid messes. So I aimed for a six-month photo and by the time I pulled the details together he’s past seven months, but we have an appointment for today! Best of all, my photographer is very understanding (she has 2 kids of her own) and let me move the time of the shoot since Tate slept in a bit this morning, making a normally awake-time into either a crabby or just-started-a-nap-time. So here goes…

…We’re back from photo-taking and it was great! Tate was a total ham, working the camera like a professional model (has he been paying attention while we watch Project Runway?!) In just one hour we got photos in 3 outfits (or lack thereof). Gina, our photographer was great, right down on the floor with him. I loved how she just captured him doing his thing naturally, instead of trying to set up specific poses.

Obviously he started to melt down a bit at the end, but overall I would call it a great success! Now it’s just deciding which ones to put in that baby book I need to buy…

Tip: Get photographer referrals from friends or family members with kids. Based on what I’ve heard from others, a great photographer isn’t necessarily a great kids’ photographer. With all the variables involved in getting your little one photo-ready, you want to be assured that the photographer is going to be ready for anything. At the same time, do be conscious of meal and naptimes when scheduling your appointment.

Photo Courtesy:
Gina Lang Photography

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New parents and grandparents are known for being camera-happy, and I’m certainly no exception. Especially in the first few weeks, every expression, every new outfit, every visitor holding the new babe created a must-have photo opportunity. I started carrying the camera with me wherever I went in the house, in fear of missing something amazing. I’ve scaled back on that a bit, but we certainly never leave the house without the camera in the diaper bag. Usually I remember extra diapers and a change of clothes, but I always have the camera!

Even before our son’s arrival, my husband often mentioned that he’s glad I’m on top of the family memory-keeping. Now, he comments how thankful he is that we live in the age of digital cameras, rather than an era in which the cost of film and developing would deplete Tate’s college fund before he’s a year old! (okay, truthfully, my husband doesn’t think we should pay for college anyway, but that’s a topic for a different day’s blog).

I got to share some of those first-week shots on our birth announcements from MagnetStreet. Being a former employee there, I was able to have a designer tweak the design for me. I’m excited to see the new Design Online functions launching soon, which will allow any customer to do their own tweaking!

We ordered matching return address labels and seals, and thank you notes (an opportunity to show off another photo!). I loved how the same look was coordinated through all the pieces. If someone had already sent a gift, I just put the thank you note and the announcement in the same envelope.

Tip: Those first few weeks and months were so busy, and writing thank you notes was not often at the top of my to-do list. As presents came in the mail, or were dropped off by friends, it was really helpful to keep a written record. I just jotted them down in my pregnancy journal, but many baby books have a page just for this, or any small book would work. Before putting the gift away, I simply listed what it was and who it was from. Then after I sent a thank you note, I checked it off in the list…no worries about forgetting to thank someone!

Birth announcements - did you make them or order them?

• Made them from scratch
• Assembled from a kit
• Ordered them ready-made

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