Letter to My Children - December 2013

Dear Destina, 

I am writing to you this month because it will be your second birthday on the 26th...you, my almost Christmas baby! Actually, your sister Jillian has a birthday this month too, but since I don't have any updated photos of her, we'll have to save her for another month. You are growing so fast and doing so many new things these days! You've decided that you've grown out of your high chair and will only eat while sitting at the big peoples table now. You're out of your rear-facing car seat - finally - you were in yours longer than any of your siblings though. You don't like your stroller anymore either - you're perfectly happy to walk the whole mall on your little legs during a shopping trip.

You can count to 10 (well almost...it goes more like 123...5...8, 9, 10) in English AND Turkish...not too shabby for not quite 2! Speaking of Turkish, you speak lots of other Turkish words too...your baba and babaanne are pretty happy about that! You can sorta read some English words. You know "hi", but then you think all letter groups spell "hi" (LOL).  You're learning your colors.You know how to open Skype on the iPad and call your babaanne...I am blown away by that one (and why are you not potty trained yet?!? I think you're holding out on me...) You still love Mickey Mouse and "babies" (any toy with facial features is a "baby" haha).

I hope you'll be excited about Christmas this year...and your birthday...you are, but you're not 100% sure what's going on yet. I bet you'll remember next year!

Squeezes and Smooches
Mom

Please follow our blog circle on to the next entry by Lauren Somershoe Bauerschmidt

Lens Giveaway

Crave Photography is giving away a lens, mentoring and other great prizes! Link to enter: http://cravemyphotography.com/blog/lens-giveaway-2/

I want the mentoring spot! I already have an 85mm lens...fingers crossed. I never win these things. 

Letters To My Children - October 2013

The whole clan...including the big kid :)

Dear Kids,

Instead of choosing one to write to this month, I am dedicating this entry to all of you :)

Our family has gone through so many changes in the past year. Alexa moved away to college. Happily, not too far away, but 1.5 hours is definitely away! I miss having you in the house every day but it makes me so happy when you come to visit! Noah is in high school now and *almost* taller than me (although you would say you ARE taller haha). Jillian is getting so big. I often think to myself that you are 12, forgetting you are only 11. You are just getting so grown up! Defne has just started ballet and soon, preschool! Destina. You are just too cute, talking up a storm and (we hope) potty training soon! You each are so wonderful in your own way, growing, turning into the people you were meant to become and it is my blessing to be here to help and guide you the best I can.

I love the times we spend together even when they are rushed, each of you going in 5 different directions all the time, it seems like. Photos are even more important as I realize how fast you are all growing up and for once, we all came together in the same place to do the same thing a couple days ago. Family photos at the park were fun and I think they came out great :)

Love you guys. So so much....

Mom

Defne, 4 years

Alexa, Jillian, Noah. My 3 older guys.

Sister love :)

My boy. Noah, 15 years.

Alexa, Jillian, Noah, Defne.

My girl.

Destina, 22 months. My baby.

Jillian, 11 years (going on 30 LOL)

Alexa, 18 years.

Please follow our blog circle on to the next post by the talented Jamie Carpenter :)

Little Miss A {One Year/Cake Smash/Halloween}

I did this little sweetheart's one-year/cake smash/Halloween photos over the weekend and came up with so many that I loved that I had to put some of them into a collage :) She was born on the 4th of July at 27 weeks GA so her mom wanted to incorporate patriotic colors into her shoot. I think she was just so adorable...I just LOVE babies this age! Was she not the cutest little bee/birthday girl you ever saw?!

General Session Prices

Due to popular demand, I have finally broken down and composed a pricing list, after carefully researching pricing of other area photographers. Please email me if you have any questions (tanya.karaman@gmail.com). The price list below are for general sessions. Newborn sessions will be priced as a ''package A'' because they are time consuming (minimum of 2-3 hours). All others (maternity, smash cake, etc.) will be your choice based on the number of final images you wish to choose from.  A 1-hour session generally yields a gallery of approximately 20 images to choose from, just to give you a general idea - this can vary based on factors beyond my control such as subject cooperativeness (read: small children can be unpredictable and may require a longer session or yield fewer final images at times...my own kids included! :)). Thank you for your interest!

 

Package A – $300

Included with Package A is a 1 – 1 1/2 hour session, a $200 print credit as well as digital files for all ordered prints.

Package B – $200

Included with Package B is a 45 minute – 1 hour session, a $125 print credit as well as digital files for all ordered prints.

Package C – $125

Included with Package C is a 30-45 minutes session and $75 print credit as well as digital files for all ordered prints.

A la carte – $50

The A la carte session requires a $50 session fee, it does not include any prints or digital files. It covers the photographer’s time for the session and editing of the files. There is no minimum amount of prints that must be ordered. As with the other packages, you will receive digital files of all ordered prints.

Print Prices

5×7 – $10
wallets – $10
8×10 – $15
11×14 – $25
12×18 – $35
16×20 – $55
20×30 – $75
24×36 – $125

Canvas Prices

16×20 – $120
20×24 – $160
20×30 – $190
24×36 – $220
30×40 – $260

Square Canvas

10×10 – $65
20×20 – $85
6×6 (set of 3) – $100

Gavin (22 days old)

This little guy was so sweet and cuddly. Such a little cherub! Just look at those curls and the little grin :) Me thinks he's going to be quite popular with the ladies in a decade or so...

Letters to My Children - September 2013

Dear Defne

I am writing to you this month because you have a birthday coming up soon. Oct. 1st you will be a big 4-year-old! We have had an adventurous year this year...which is not always an easy thing with you. You like your daily routine to stay the same and it really throws you off when things change. Even in a fun way. We went on a cruise this past spring and then visited your grandparents in Turkey last month....and unfortunately both trips were hard on you (which made them hard on us!). Even a little thing like having to take a bath in a different bathroom is a traumatic experience for you (and therefore for me as well...since I am usually the one having to inflict it on you!). But I hope you will begin to enjoy these adventures as you grow because your baba and I love to travel and we hope to take you to lots of places as you grow!

We have been amazed with how much you have learned this year. We bought you ''Your Baby Can Read'' DVDs for Christmas last year...mostly just to give you something educational to watch...and were surprised when you actually learned to read! You are also learning more Turkish words and we hope you will be fluent someday so you can converse with your Turkish speaking family.

Despite your ''difficult moments'' that still occur pretty frequently...you are growing into such a sweet girl. You are definitely a cuddle bug and I love that about you (even though it involves you sleeping in our bed pretty much every night....and still wanting to be carried at times - and trust me...you are getting wayyy to heavy for that!). I know that when I come home after a hard night at work...once your sister goes down for a nap...I can always convince you to curl up on the sofa with me so I can catch a nap as well.

As I said...you have a birthday coming up in a couple weeks but you are so funny when we talk to you about it. I ask you every day if it will be your birthday soon...and you protest with a bashful ''Noooo!''. You love cake but when I ask if we are going to have a big cake for your birthday...you again protest with an emphatic ''Noooo!!!''. Then I ask if you are going to have cupcakes and you finally agree with a noncomittal ''OK''.

I'm looking forward to celebrating your birthday and to seeing what changes the next year brings for you.

I love you silly little girl....with all my heart!

Love
Mom

 

Please follow our blog circle on to the next post by the talented Jennifer Moore Davis

Baby Jasolyn

Her mom warned me that at almost 15 days old she might not sleep...so I think we were both pleasantly surprised when she did just that...and pretty much slept through everything I did to her for the next 2 hours! :) We got some beautiful shots of her with her parents and her gorgeous older twin sisters. These poor parents are going to have their work cut out fighting the boys away from their doorstep in a decade or so!!

 

Letters to my Children - July 2013

Dear Noah,

You are the subject of my letter this month for a couple reasons. First of all, we just celebrated your 15th birthday a couple days ago, so it is only fitting that I dedicate a blog post to you. Also, you are the only one I haven't dedicated a letter to in my monthly letters to my children thus far... and there is a reason for that. Quite simply, you don't end up in a lot of pictures...for the same reason that I don't: You prefer to be behind the camera. So your birthday was a good (sneaky I know) opportunity for me to take your pictures without raising suspicions :)!

You are such a special kid in so many ways. You are my only boy. I know you were hoping one of your sisters would be a brother but that just never panned out. I am happy to be able to call you my favorite son :). I think boys are often closer to their mothers than girls and I am glad that we are close. I love our little private jokes...love your sense of humor and I can always count on you for a laugh or a hug. You are so good with your little sisters and I am really proud of you for being so responsible and loving with them. You really do have a gift for photography. You are really into video games right now (and not much else) but I hope someday you'll make the time to develop your other talents as well. The only real difficulty we have right now is your school work. I guess you are just at that age where school is boring and you are not quite old enough to seriously be thinking about the future or having it seem important to do well. I have been there so I get that, but I am hoping that will change a little bit this year as you will be starting high school and the grades you make will start to count toward the future.

You are showing a desire to be more responsible and independent already as you are constantly telling me how much you want to get a part time job and I think, as long as you can keep your grades up, that might be a good thing for you. Next year, you will be driving (OMG!) and soon after that, you will be all grown up. So hard to believe. I can remember like it was yesterday holding you in my arms your first night in the hospital and memorizing your little face while you slept (you would ONLY sleep if I was holding you...and it was like that for a loooong time. I know I've told you the stories of how I used to sleep on the floor next to your crib because you would only sleep in your crib if you were holding my finger!). Such a little cuddle bug...haha...sorry! :) Love you so much buddy!!

Love
Mom

15 candles

Make a wish...

Trick candles...gotcha!! :)

 Please follow our blog circle on to the next post by the amazing Theresa Martell!

Letters to My Children - June 2013

Dear Jillian,
You're my third child, my girlie girl, my social butterfly. You would attend or host a sleepover every single night of the week if we let you! It has been that way from the time you were a teeny tiny 3-year-old in pre-K and you knew every single person in your school, and they knew you too. And loved you. And what's not to love?? You are funny and sociable and kind...but you definitely put your own spin on things with your somewhat dark sense of humor (gee, wonder who you got that from??). Like the Halloween - I guess you were about 4- when your older brother and sister were wearing doctor scrubs...we were looking for some fake blood to smear on their scrub tops and you innocently informed me you needed fake blood for your costume too because you were going as a ''bloody Whinnie the Pooh''!

You are definitely your own independent person and I love that. I think it is fantastic the way you mix and match and cut up your (old) clothes to make new styles. You are so creative! I think it is great the way you over-organize your stuff, carefully laying out your outfits for each day of the week and labeling each pile with a detailed sticky note, and writing out down-to-the-minute schedules for each day. You crack me up but these are great skills you are developing. I love that you love school. Try not to let that change. You are a born leader and you are going to do something big someday, I am sure of it.

You got a big surprise this month when we got our new puppy, our teacup Chihuahua, Rocky. I can tell you two are going to be great buds and you are doing a great job of helping to take care of her.

I am glad you are my kiddo! You bring a whole new dimension to my life and I hope we will always be shopping and mani-pedi buddies! I will even let you squeeze the fat on the back of my arm :) :)

Love,
Mom

Please follow our blog circle on to the next entry by the super talented Lauren Bauerschmitd!