Just look at the camera and smile.....PLEASE!

April and I were at a Holiday Vendor Fair last night. We had our table all set up displaying our Personalized Photos.One of the things we love  about doing these shows is that we really get to see peoples reactions to our product. We get to hear all about the people who will be receiving one of our photos as a gift. We also learn what occasions people are buying them for. And we get to hear how much people really seem to love and appreciate the fact that each one is personalized. This makes us SMILE :)  
      Well, last night we were reminded about a certain situation that it seems all mothers go through at this time of year. The Oh-So-Stressful-Make-Me-Wanna-Kill-Someone- Christmas Card Picture. Here is how it usually goes in The DiTocco Family ...... 
          We start out "Happy". I dress my three kids in similar colored  outfits. I spend quite a while doing my 2 daughter's hair all pretty. I run a comb through my sons hair & give it a little spray to keep it slightly out of his eyes. I Find the best  (uncluttered) spot in the house. Get the kids all together.....and then the fun begins!
       My son does that big show every tooth in his mouth fake as can be smile.....
                                so I say " Angelo just give me a regular smile"
                                his reply  " I don't know how... this is my smile, you hate my smile!"
Greaaat...then you have the girls trying to cheer him up and get him to smile. So he does....but now the girls are not. They are looking at him.
                              "Okay... let's try again"  That's when it starts... the tears, the snot, the red eyes, the screaming, the "Forget it!!! We just wont have a Christmas Card this year!".
                               And then ....it hits... THE GUILT.  Why am I stressing over this, Why am I stressing my kids over this???.    People know what my kids look like....the same as last, just a year later. And now with Facebook, and Snapfish, and email....people see my kids more than I do.
Back to my vendor fair.....As we told each other our very own "WAR STORIES", a customer realized that our personalized photos would make a great holiday card. You can still personalize them... have the kids names on them (even yours!) . It's original.... it will stand out amongst  the  100 photo cards they will receive, and people will say "How did they do that? " and more importantly
"That is so fricken smart.... they avoided the whole Photo shoot Drama".
Not only can you personalize the note card with any message you want..... but you can personalize the cookies by adding the cookies that represent YOUR family (and pets)!! 
(ex: a Mommy cookie, a Daddy cookie, 2 girls, 1 boy, 2 dogs)

Please email us at info@nameyourwishimages for card info. You can also check out our website at http://www.nameyourwishimages.com/  or  http://www.etsy.com/shop/nameyourwishimages to see other photos you can choose from.

And now it all begins.....

So I think most of us are now happy that Halloween is over. It was fun.. for some of us cold and extremely exhausting. The costumes are still in a pile on the floor. Just where the kids and I left them last night because it took an hour to wash all that make up off their faces and get all that spray out of their hair. The candy is all sorted into the "Good Stuff' and the "Why would anyone buy this stuff" piles. Moms have hidden all their favorites form their kids and their husbands. And now it's time to move on...... to CHRISTMAS!
 I know... sick.. but it's so true. Look in the store, the trees are up already. You'll see the ornaments, and soon start hearing the holiday music. So now we can all go into "PANIC" mode. And why is it that stores always just skip right over Thanksgiving? Oh because you really don't need to go Thanksgiving shopping.... you buy or bake a pie get a bottle of wine and you're done! That's why I love it. People should really just slow down & enjoy Thanksgiving... but most of us can't because we are constantly reminded that  Christmas is just around the corner.
And so I think..... no wait.. I know what I am going to do. I am going to get all my shopping done early so I can really enjoy my holiday season, without all the stress. And so.... let the online shopping begin!
That is my favorite way to shop. No standing in looooong lines in back of someone wearing a gallon of perfume, no crowded malls, or taking an hour to find a parking space and no getting up at 4:00 am to get in on "THE BIGGEST SALE OF THE YEAR".... to see in the flyer the very next day that today is "THE BIGGEST SALE OF THE YEAR".  Buying on line allows you to get all your shopping done without any of that stress and has the added bonus of getting people really unique and meaningful gifts and not the same old stuff everyone sees while they are out shopping themselves.

So this is what I  plan on doing this month so that I can relax.... enjoy Christmas... and then move on to stressing about buying that perfect bathing suit when they are all displayed in the stores on December 26th.

When a gift is not just a gift

I was just looking over some of our previous orders and came across one that really hit home.  Now I know that most of the gifts we purchase are done at the last minute. Maybe you thought about what the perfect gift would be, but  then got extremely busy (which happens... I know) and then realized..... Wow that party or special occasion is just a few days away.... or more commonly.... tomorrow. So you make that last minute trip to the mall in search of something that could be looked at as a gift you put a lot of thought into. But then after going into the 7th store and walking out empty handed you finally say.... just pick something!  I hate to admit this... but that has been me many of times. I don't intentionally do this, but sometimes I put too much thought into it and go in search of "perfect" gift... not find it and then have to settle. 
  What I don't think people realize is that sometimes what you give a person might end up being one of the things they love the most..... something that will be in their lives forever, and possibly the lives of their children. Now don't get me wrong... there is nothing wrong with giving a really warm sweater or a comfy pair of pajamas... I love those too... and they are great gifts for those everyday occasions. But that is not the kind of gift you would want to give for a wedding or anniversary, a  first Mother's Day or Father's Day. Some occasions require long lasting gifts ... something to touch their hearts.... because these are the days they will remember forever... the days that will bring tears of joy to their eyes when they are thought of.
 During the Summer we received an order for out Personalized Names in the Sand Photo. We worked on that photo and sent it out within a few days.  It was just 2 names and a date in the sand. By the date we had a feeling it was for an anniversary. A few days later we received this email from the woman who ordered it.
"This gift means a lot to me. When I was a little girl my dad and step mom would take us camping. I used to carve their initials in the sand all the time. My dad is now terminally ill and this will be their last anniversary so thanks so much for what you have done. I know they will cherish it."
This letter brought tears to my eyes..... I know what it is like to lose a parent... and I know just how tightly you hold on to the objects that meant alot to them. I know that whenever her stepmother looks at this photo she will be reminded of their wedding day & her love for him. And possibly one day this photo will be given to their daughter to have & to cherish. This was the day that I realized just how deeply our photos touch peoples hearts.... and that sometimes a gift is not just a gift.... it's much more. This is the reason why we put a lot of hard work into our photos... because we know just by ordering one... you are putting a huge amount of thought and love into your gift.

Costume Crazy

Okay, so the second ...and I really mean the second I got  back from LA..... (possibly filming for a TV show..... which I can not reveal many details, except the fact this is was for our business and sooooo exhausting and kinda fun.....) my kids hounded me about Halloween costumes. Before I left on my not so sunny but more rainy and cold  California adventure I promised them that I would get their costumes together as soon as I got back. So now I realize this is where the stress really begins.
 Britney, who is 12, has this whole obsession with Lara Croft (Tomb Raider). She's going through a I wanna be a girl who kicks some serious butt phase. Which is all good, cause I actually never got out of that phase myself..... but the costume I found was a little too revealing for a 12 year old, which seems to be the case with any costume they sell for a girl over the age of ....lets say 5. So now I need to make this costume myself.... so I get her a pair of shorts (according to her, not the right color brown), I get her a shirt ( it's suppose to be a tank top... so I get out the scissors).. get the guns, holsters, and combat boots...... $50.00 later I'm thinking..." It probably would have been alright if a part of her butt cheeks were hanging out and her belly was kind of showing."

Okay... then I have Bree (10)... who is angelic looking... pale skin, beautiful wavy hair.... extremely polite and deep down inside...... just as dark & twisted as they come. She always needs to be something extremely frightening for Halloween. The sicker the better. So when she told me she wanted to be a bride this year I was a little shocked.... till she said " and Mom can you rip the wedding dress all up... throw blood all over it and make it look like my face had been ripped off?" Then I thought... "There's the little Bree I know!"

And then there's my son, Angelo (7). Thank God for Angelo! He wanted to be a werewolf.... 2 clicks later....DONE!  Gotta love the boys!

A great Fall Personalized Photo.... Have 2 names "carved"  into this fence. Great for those Fall weddings.

How we met

Okay so how is it that April and I share a business when just a little over a year ago we had no idea who each of us were?
Well..... it kind of goes like this. April responded to Craig's list ad I had online.... no not one of those ads.... but one for an apartment for rent. I emailed her back and forth few times. She decided she wanted to take the apartment. Unfortunately, we decided not to rent it to her....... because we sold the house. But I thought it would be nice to still meet her once she did move to Mahopac from Massachusetts. I thought she might need some help figuring this little town out. She had no friends or family here.  A few days after she moved here I gave her a call & invited her over with her 2 extremely cute kids. 
As I waited for her to arrive a sickening feeling came over me. What if she is a complete sicko. Some crazy, missing teeth, pants up to her boobs, psycho. For a second I thought...hmmmm maybe this wasn't the smartest thing to do. Then I saw her jeep pull into my driveway, and I thought okayyyy she's driving a real car and not some nasty jalopy with 10 antennas sticking off the roof. This is a good sign. Then she rang my door bell and Oh my God..... she looked normal. Pretty even. So relieved.
So we began talking and it turned out that she was very nice. We spoke about the schools, houses, and other very important Mommy stuff.
A few days later we met for coffee. We discovered that we both wanted to go back to work now that our kids were getting older. We also needed to find a job that was super flexible being we both didn't have anyone to help us out with our kids. We felt like there probably wasn't a job out there with the schedule we wanted... you know... 10:00- 2:00, Monday through Friday, no weekends ever, no holidays, no Summers and all school vacations off.  Then we found out that we both loved photography..... and the rest of that convo went something like this:
"Hey you want to start a business?"
"Umm, Sure, I guess so."
"What about if we start tomorrow?"
"Sounds good... don't think I have anything else going on tomorrow."
"Okay... talk to you later."
"Yep... see you then."
And well that pretty much sums it up.  We've been busting our butts getting this business up and running.... and having a ball doing it.

Brand New Blogger

Hi! My name is Laurie and my friend and business partner is April. Our company is called Name Your Wish Images. We create beautiful and unique Photo Art.  We shoot all of our own photos and then, using a form of digital art, we personalize them to include names, dates or messages. We do this in a way that the names look ingrained in them, as if it has always been a part of the image. We work really hard to make each photo perfect because we know just how much these mean to people.

Many of our orders are for wedding and anniversary gifts. For these occasions.... they are perfect. Just add the couples name & wedding date and just like that their gift has been made memorable by you! It's something they will display on their walls for years to come & think of a joyous day every single time they look at it.

Our photos are also great as holidays, birthdays, birth announcements, Save the date cards, and pretty much any occasions you  need a gift for. And the price is soooo affordable, but don't worry..... these personalized photos are very high quality.....long lasting!