Thanksgiving Week for Extended Family Sessions

Legacy Family Experiences

As a young child, a favorite activity was to pore over old family photo albums, and hearing stories from my mom about each person.  I loved the smell of the albums, the way the pages sounded when turned, and the feel of the photo corners that had been carefully licked and placed for each photograph.

 It’s because of similar experiences, that the oldest generations in your family hate to get photographs done.  Other complaints are that everyone looks stiff.  The thing I hear the most is “I hate myself in photos; I never look natural!” from these generations.  It’s because they were standing there, waiting for the person to take the photo, with the sun in their eyes, and not being quite sure when the photo was being taken, so they had their photo smile pasted on.

I’m here to tell you that it isn’t painful, these days, at all!

How much sentimental value do you place on the photos in your grandma’s photo album?  With the years gone by, specific details in your memories fade, but photographs always help you to relive the good times.  Those old photographs become valuable with each passing year, because let’s face it, the cycle of life does end, and when that happens, photographs of loved ones are often all we have left.

I consider Legacy Family Artwork to be an essential gift.  I have a photograph, done at Olan Mills, of my sister, my mother, and my grandmother.  It’s beautiful.    Because of unusual circumstances, I was not able to be a part of this photograph.  I truly wish I had.  It would be a gift to see the four of us together like that. 

When I think of 3 or 4-generations of a family that are alive, or even 5, I think of how amazing that must be to have all of that love, wisdom, all of those shared experiences, in one room.  

How marvelous is the opportunity that when your grandchildren have children, they will have these pieces to hand down to them, share with them special stories to make the people in the photos come alive! 

Consider this young boy, Ethan.  At the tender age of 6, he knows of his grandfathers on his dad’s side, simply because he loves boxing.  This boy is the youngest of generations of boxers, who have left a great legacy for him.  These photographs help him to remember who he is, where he comes from, and to where he’s going.

That’s the kind of artwork that we produce here at Honey Bee Photography.  

Photography that creates an impact every time you walk past, even on the hard days, because you relive those feelings every time you see them. 

If a family can walk past a collection like this every day at home, and feel that love, imagine what a collection will do for a family with three or more generations, together…  It’s an amazing addition to your photographs that you already display, and will complete the story of who you all are.

We know that Thanksgiving week is a time for families to gather, and it’s never long enough.  That’s why we’re offering a special opportunity, the week of Thanksgiving, to help families with multiple generations to be photographed together.  We can do in-studio, or on-location for these families.

The premium experience that we provide includes the following for only $99:

• §      A $400 gift certificate
• §      A series of phone calls to help you, and yours, to reconnect and rediscover what is loved the most about your family, and planning of the entire session, down to clothing, colors, and location of the session.
• §      The session itself, which will take approximately 2 hours.
• §      A cinematic presentation of your photographs, for all of you to enjoy, right after your session, where we’ll sit together to create the collections each family within the main unit wants to purchase. 
• §      Each family unit will save $200 with the purchase of a collection starting at $600 or more, or 10% off, whichever is more.  We offer 3 pricing platforms in Good, Better, and Best.  All artwork is created with premium products.

§      Local members of the family will have their delivery and installation done by me.  Families out of town will receive their artwork directly from my vendor via UPS, with instructions on how to install.  Our 2 largest collections, in the best category, come with installation by a professional, who will be vetted by me, through a vast networking community to which I belong, at the family’s convenience, whether in the area, or out of state.

Slots are available on the following dates and times:

Nov 26 at 10 am

Nov 27 at 10 am
Nov 29 at 8:30 am and 3:00 pm
Nov 30 at 8:30 am and 3:00 pm

Expect that the session, starting on time, to each family unit ordering, will take about 5 hours.  Please make time for that, so that we can serve everyone there.

How do you style your brand, anyway?

Studies show that prospective clients respond more positively to actual photos on websites of local businesses, as opposed to stock photos.  The photographs and videos that you use on your website, blog, and social media contribute strongly to your brand, and help to tell your story.  Stock photos make your brand impersonal and cold.

According to Catherine M White, Business Development Strategist and author of Overcoming Roadblocks to Success, the parts of a brand are defined as follows:  a connection and relevance to your audience; to know your mission, and have a mission statement; having a vision statement; know your why; who your perfect customer is; and a lasting impression.

“When you style your website, keeping in mind the ultimate outcome is important.  I believe decisions are made with emotion, and so to stimulate that, your content must evoke emotion, and be clear, concise, and descriptive.”  Staying true to your story only makes your brand stronger, and therefore, more apt to make an impression on your audience.

Your business’s photographs are immediately apparent to your audience.  You can think of photographs as a “psychological primer” on your website, influencing your audience to imagine what it would be like to use your product or service.

Stock photos, with humans in them, are very staged and impersonal. The generic styling of them can be helpful, but unnecessary.  Therefore, staying away from stock photos will help your brand’s consistency and keep your viewers on your site longer.

On the other hand, having professionally done photographs for your site will tell a story of who you are, show what your company’s mission is, and create a connection with your prospective client.  Using photographs of your employees or team, in the area in which you work, provides a sense of pride in what you all do together. 

Adding photographs of your products, of delivery of your products to your clients, or even your products on display in your client’s environment, on  your blog and social media, will entice your audience to imagine what it would be like for them to have your product in their lives.

At Honey Bee Photography, we take personal branding very seriously.  We coach our clients to help them create a portion of their brand with photographs.  We take into consideration the type of business you have, your logo, your colors, and the ultimate goal you have for your clients.  All of this, and more, will help your photographs convey who you are, what your business is, and what your WHY is..

Contacting us for a consultation is easy.  You can call us at 240-766-8966 or email megan@honeybeephotography.com.

Easing back into a routine AFTER school begins!

     There are all kinds of Getting Back to School Lists.  No matter how many times you get to go through it, those first couple of weeks are just rough; getting used to a new morning routine, hoping the bus driver remembers to pick up your child, after school snacks and activities, dinner, homework, and bed.  There are also the weekends.

What’s a mom to do?  You have to navigate through all of this WHILST maintaining your personal routine, and pray that your children sync with you, and not the other way around.

     

     1.Start off the morning with easy, fun breakfasts.  Here are 35 delicious dishes that you and your kids can pre-make for the week.  Some are even awesome for after school snacks.

     2. Pick simple clothes to wear.  I know you did back to school shopping, following the rules that the school sets, and you know you love those first back to school outfits.  Hopefully you set these out the night before with your children’s help.

     3. Bus, walk, or carpool?  If you’ve never put your kids on the bus, it can be a little bit anxiety-inducing, especially if you experience the bus completely forgetting about your kids.  Make sure you know where the bus stop is, and the best walking route.  If you carpool, make sure you know where the drop off area is, and make sure that your kids are ready to jump out as soon as you stop. 

4.  After School Snacks can be easy to make, delicious, and full of nutrition.  Here are 16 awesome snacks you can make with your kids, and so much better than snack cakes and chips.

5.  After-school schedules depend on your work schedule, and the personalities of your kids.  Some kids do well by coming home, getting a snack, and getting right to homework, so they have the rest of the evening to relax.  Other kids need to run and play hard right after school; all of that sitting and learning has made brains ready to explode because they need to move.  A snack, a physical activity, dinner, and then homework is a schedule that might make more sense. You’ll figure out pretty quickly what works for you.

6.  School night dinners can be pretty daunting.  I found that meal planning helped so much… Thinking about dinner 5 minutes after work is too much.  However, I know that not everyone plans their menus.  Here is a website full of possibilities, and I don’t think one needs to have kids in school to make these.  So many look sooooo delicious!

7. Evening routines can be so crazy.  Scouts, church night, sports, music lessons, and so much more can run havoc on those evenings.  Those are the nights you want to make your schedule as easy as possible.  Leftovers for dinner, clothes set out for tomorrow, and quick showers will help the next morning be easier, because your chores after dinner will be less.

8.  School lunches.  Crazy time, amirite?  So on the nights that look like the described ones in tip #7, plan for your kids to get school lunches.  Did you know that making lunch for your kids is a silent reminder of your love for them?  If you’re looking for something beyond the #basiclunches of #PBJ, this website is something you want to check out.  Easy to put together the night before, and so much fun to eat.  A simple love note on a post-it makes an extra touch.

9.  Homework is everyone’s favorite thing to do!  What do you mean, you’d rather be hung by your toes and have your leg hairs plucked individually from a scary buffalo-head-wearing salsa dancer?  LOL.  Having a distraction free area helps, but giving a 45 minute time period of working, and then 15 minutes of fun time, like a dance party.  Playing music with binaural beats can help focus; there is plenty from which to choose on YouTube.

10.  Time management is not an easily achieved skill for many people.  Helping your child put a schedule together is helpful in a kid version planner.  It may help the arguments as well, when you work with them to set up their schedule.

I hope that these different ideas help.Let us know!

10 Tips to Help Moms of High School Freshman

So often, we look on line for guides and checklists on things like, “5 Tips on Choosing a Martial Arts for Your Child”, or “17 Must Have Items for the First Time your Tween Attends Overnight Camp”, or “101 Ideas for your Boy Scout”.

Have you ever noticed that there are virtually no lists on how to prep yourself as your child gets older?  There are tips on prepping for the hospital stay, and what to expect the first year, but those really don’t cover what to expect for yourself. AmIRite?

I was actually going to write a blog article about how to help your new high school student adjust to going to a new school, and as I thought about it, I looked back 6 years ago when my son started high school, and realized, what do I wish I’d known then, with what I know now?  What could I share that can help other moms in that position?

So here you have it, Mom!  10 Tips to Help YOU Help Your New Freshman.

1.     COLLEGE:  Don’t talk about it yet.

It’s super tempting to talk about that… I get it.  But it’s hard enough for your child adjusting to navigating their school hallways, all of the new rules each teacher has, not to mention getting to the bus stop so early in the morning.  Do reminisce with your child a little bit about your first days of Freshman year, so that you can relate, but also find out what they might be expecting and work through that.

2.        IT’S COMPLETELY NEW.  Help your child with this.

Helping your child figuring out time management is vital.  I mean, *I* still need help with my time management.  Purchasing a planner and using it helps them, and you, to see how busy they are going to be with their new schedule is easier than putting everything on their phone.  Back it all up on your phones by sharing schedules, too.  And of course, sleep.  Sleep is so important, so allow those occasional weekend mornings for extra sleep.

3.        CURFEWS.

So here’s an interesting idea I found a few years ago:  Discuss together what you both think is reasonable for a high school senior’s curfew would be, and then subtract every year by 30 minutes.  So for instance, if as a senior that midnight is a good curfew, then as a junior, 11:30, a sophomore at 11:00, and a freshman at 10:30.  This is just an example.  YMMV.

4.        DISCUSSING RULES AND EXPECTATIONS. You know, the hard stuff.

Oh my gosh… this is the really hard stuff that you might be procrastinating on.  Now, we did talk about these things, but I would get eye rolls that were so loud they sounded like bowling balls, accompanied by, “Mom, I knowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww”.

Every family has its own values and beliefs, and by 9^th grade, your child is familiar with those things.  Be assured that all of the conversations and the contents of them will be tested.  The hardest conversations will be about alcohol, drugs, sex, consent, birth control… and so much more.  Approaching this conversation will be different for each child, and if you haven’t started these yet, now is the best time to do so. 

Now, I lectured about these things.  That was wrongo-bongo.  Having a conversation would have made this so much more successful.  If I could do it over again, I would start by asking questions about what he’s loving about the summer break, segue it to getting ready for freshman year, and finally ask what he knows about one of these subjects.  I would do it over eating pizza or ice cream. 

And like I said, there will probably be a time that one or more of these rules and expectations will be tested.  Before that happens, deciding what the consequences would be ahead of time will make it easier at the time, instead of reacting with anger or major disappointment.  Being realistic about this will save your relationship.

5.        EXTRA-CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES.  Keep her busy.

I really think that what children really want to do as an extra-curricular activity starts at around the age of 9.  By the time she’s in 9^th grade, she’ll know what she really wants to do.  Interests change, and so it’s OK to switch it up.  Freshman year is really a great time to explore that and discover what she loves doing.   Also, be prepared for her to change her mind; even if she does, explain that she made a commitment and sticking it out would be beneficial to her.

6.        CH-CH-CH-CHANGES IN FRIENDSHIPS.
Your teen is about to embark upon one of the most life-changing adventures of life:  meeting new friends that will help shape the rest of high school.  The ups and downs of this will happen, just be there for your child, and support him or her by offering casual get-togethers on the weekend.

7.        STICK WITH THEIR OWN KIND.

As awesome as it is for a freshman to be accepted by junior and senior friends, it’s important to remember that the life of a 17-year old is vastly different than a 14 year old.  Unless they are involved in a club activity that mixes the grades, freshman should stick together.

8.        SURREAL FOR MOM AND DAD.

Mom, this is a great opportunity to help your freshman learn to speak up.  In other words, teachers appreciate a little bit of input from you, but keep it to a minimum.  However, experts agree that if there is background information, then that should be supplied to the teacher it affects.

9.        WHAT TO TAKE?

You know your child pretty well, and what his strengths are.  Does he want strictly college prep?  That’s probably a great direction to go in, with traditional math, science, and literature courses.  Is the business world what she’s looking forward to?  Then accounting, speech, and marketing are all great places to start.  Speaking with the guidance counselor will help you and your child decide what will be best.

10.    SUNRISE, SUNSET

Where does the time go, anyway?  Most likely, you are eye-to-eye with your freshman, and you are feeling time flying be very quickly.  Take the time, every week or so, to check in and adjust to where you all are now.  Over ice cream.

11.    BONUS

Mom, you are officially in a new phase in your life, as the mother of a high school-aged child.  Either join a network of other moms, going through the same thing, or start one.  Doing so will help you to navigate and recognize that you aren’t the only one going through this, and you never know… you might make some new friends, too.

Also, don’t involve your teen with this part just yet, but do get to know the processes of applying for college and what your costs will be, etc.  Get all the information, and after the winter holidays, go over it with your child, and share some of the things you’ve learned.  Over ice cream.

It seems that ice cream will be a great way to smooth over the conversations that may be met with those eye rolls.  What a great tradition!

*The ideas for this list comes from https://grownandflown.com/mom-of-high-school-freshman/.  All verbiage above is my own.

Santa at the Beach: What to Wear

Hey Moms!

So you want to have your children photographed with Santa at the Beach on Saturday, July 13 from 9 until 2.  You know that we'll be doing a couple of activities while we're together, but the biggest question you probably have is:

What should my kids wear?

So, since it's summer, and at the beach, I recommend choosing very simple, casual clothes in your favorite holiday colors.  You could use adorable bathing suits with hats; you could do cute over-alls with no shirt; you could do a cute breezy dress, or a polo shirt and shorts.  It's entirely up to you, and how fun is it that you'll be able to display these, not only at Christmas, but summer, too!  And you can TOTALLY use these for your benefit! 

ACT NOW.  Don't delay on your call for more information!  You don't want to miss this ONE SPECIAL DAY.  We have only 20 available slots.

Our Santa at the Beach Sessions: A Guide for You

Happy Christmas in July!

Are you a beach bum?  Do you absolutely love the Santa tradition, minus Elf on a Shelf? (We hear they hate sand!)  Do you identify as an Islander with hot weather and tons of sun all year long?

We have the perfect, and most UNIQUE premium session event coming up on July 13: Santa at the Beach!

Here he is, pointing to where Donner and Blitzen are grabbing a snack, and hydrating.  Santa's reindeer have a hard time in hot weather, but they love coming to Maryland 

for some crabs and Old Bay Seasoning.

We have a bunch of fun activities for these Santa Experiences that  you. and especially your children, will LOVE.  After the initial greeting, Santa will blow bubbles with your children, and then listen to the ocean sounds in a big shell.  Then, your child can try on a couple of Santa hats.  Santa will then introduce your kids to Sandy Snowman, a round, tropical person who is related to Frosty the Snowman.  After that, Santa will check to see if your child is on the Nice List (each child will get a copy of this, featuring their name), and give an autographed bottle of magical Santa Bubbles.

We're told the Magical Bubbles help keep bedrooms safe at night from anything scary.  There will be an instructional sheet on how to use these.

But WAIT.  THERE'S MORE!

The $99 reservation fee ALSO includes the following:  a beautiful 5x15" dry erase board, just for your child, with a special message from Santa, that can help your child relive those magical moments with Santa at the Beach (and which you can use to YOUR BENEFIT).  And you'll also have $40 to spend TOWARDS your favorite, specially priced package that fits your needs and budget, starting at $65,

The products that are included with these are gorgeous folded 4x5.5 cards, and flat 5x7 cards.  This year, we are adding GLITTER PAPER, which is a top premium product, but we saw this, and I squealed.  I really, REALLY squealed LOL.  The best part of the glitter paper is that the glitter is NOT LOOSE, so no worries about having glitter everywhere.

What's NOT to love?  Well, because Santa's so busy, he's only available for one day, July 13, from 9 am until 2 pm at Jonas Greene Park in Annapolis.  Also, appointments are MANDATORY, as we need to know ahead of time about names for Santa's Nice List and how many bottles of Santa's magical bubbles the elves need to make.  You are welcome to have up to 4 children in your photographs, but certain restrictions DO APPLY*.  We have ONLY 20 slots in 5 hours.  Cell phone photographs and video will be strictly forbidden at this event.  Sorry, that's Santa's policy, not ours.

You can call Megan or Erin at 240-766-8966 for more information and to schedule your slot for this premium event.

*The $99 price includes only 1 dry erase board, so if more than one child is photographed, each additional child's dry erase board will be only $35 (regularly $60)... you'll want one for each child for your maximum benefit.  However, there will definitely be a Nice List featuring each child's name individually, and a bottle of Santa's Magical Bubbles for each child, too.

Christmas in July with Santa at the Beach!

Sand. Sky. Beach. Bubbles. Fun. Santa.

If you’re a beachy, summer-lovin’ family, who happens to be die-hard Santa fans, then this is the event for you!

No elves on shelves will be attending, by the way. We hear they are not fond of sand.
Your children will be delighted to visit with Santa at the beach!

Imagine how they’ll feel: visiting Santa in the middle of summer, with the sand between their toes, laughing over a special sandy snowman, and blowing bubbles to their hearts’ content with the big guy himself.

You’ll have photographs, cards, and gifts that are quite different from anything you’ve ever had for the holidays. Nobody else you know will have such clever and unique holiday photos!

Now, for only $99, you’ll see that this is a fantastic value. First, we’ll hop on the phone and have a great chat about what you love about summer and how fun it is to visit with Santa in July. Then, we’ll schedule your experience for July 13, and your children (up to 4 kids) will have 10 minutes to spend with Santa. During this time, they’ll do a couple of quick, fun activities, and go home with a special, autographed bottle of bubbles from Santa.

Your experience continues later on with a design consultation with your photographs; either at our studio location in Bowie, or in your home. The $99 also gives you 2 more wonderful things: a 5x10” dry erase board (valued at $60!) for your refrigerator at home so they can talk about seeing Santa at the beach every day, and $40 towards your purchase of one of our special holiday packages that start at $65.00.

Location is TBA very soon, and we’ll also be offering a rain date in August. We know that you’ll love this opportunity to have fun photographs that we know you’ll cherish all year long!