Be prepared for picture day! 5 Tips for Your Best Smile #Smilehood #ad
This post has been sponsored by Orajelā¢. All opinions are my own.
My son has been in preschool for just over a year, and I was surprised last year when we were sent home forms for picture day. I couldn’t believe how early this monumental day began! He was just barely 4 years old, and at that time, he was not a fan of pictures. I was pretty scared of how things might pan out, actually. Only three weeks before, we managed to get a photo of him looking particularly unpleasant.
We really talked the picture day up. When I asked him how he was going to smile, he gave me the creepiest smile he could come up with. The morning of his pictures, I pleaded with him to cooperate, listen to his teachers and to give “sweet smiles” in hopes that we wouldn’t end up with something awful.
Something worked because we ended up with the best photos.
Little did I realize that his school does picture day TWICE a year, so we went through all of that again in late April. This time, I was in a newborn-haze and had to remember a few tips for my son.
1. Make sure your child has a decent breakfast. My son’s school does pictures as soon as the kids are present, and it’s harder to photograph a child if they’re running on empty. My son loves cereal for breakfast, and I try to make sure he has turkey bacon to fill him up a little more. He also enjoys milk, which I’ll occasionally give him to drink during the car ride to school.
2. Brush your child’s teeth – and floss! Brushing our teeth in the morning has become engrained in my boy’s head. Bedtime brushing is always easier to remember. When I’m home with him during the day, we occasionally brush after lunchtime (and before his rest time.) Brushing at least twice a day is so important! If you’re having a difficult time getting your child to brush his/her teeth, check out these tips from Orajelā¢!
3. Let your child help choose their picture day outfit. My son has a few shirts with pockets that he’s obsessed with. Even if I select something different, he will argue until I agree to let him wear what he has in mind. The perfect outfit isn’t worth the struggle (and he has done a great job choosing, so far!)
4. Practice smiling. I’ll take a lot of silly pictures with my son, just to get them out of his system. I then ask him about his sweet smile, and I’m fortunate that the sweet smile shows up in most of his school photos.
This photo was taken at the end of his school year, and we just had school pictures taken earlier this month. I’m fairly confident he rocked them and I can’t wait for the photos to be sent home!
What tips do you have for getting the best school pictures?
Iām excited to be part of the Orajelā¢ Smilehood community ā a group of moms promoting healthy smiles and oral hygiene. Iāll be sharing my stories and tips over the next several months ā and hopefully learning some new tricks and techniques as we navigate parenting an infant again. Read my previous posts about Keeping Smiles Sparkling, Preparing for Baby (and Teething) and Caring for Baby Teeth and Gums.
Great tips! Especially the breakfast one. No one wants to sit and smile nicely when they are hungry.
Great tips. And what a cutie patootie! He is so handsome!
Awwww these are great tips and telling him you wanted sweet smiles worked! His photo is so adorable.
Aw your kid is so photogentic I love all of his facial expressions. It always helped to have a good brushed smile to match!
School pictures are such a sweet way to cherish special memories. Your little guy definitely rocked it!
Great tips for picture day. You want your kiddo looking their best, smile and all.
haha I remember our mom begging us to no get dirty. Just be chill until your picture is taken lol
I used to love picture day. My hair never made it through but hey, the smile was great!
Picture day is always so exciting but sometimes the kids dread that day! It would be awesome to do these steps to help encourage them. I hope a lot of parents get to read this post!
These are all really great tips. Mt kids love using Orajel toothpaste.
Wonderful tips! Our school picture day is coming up and i’m nervous for it! I hope we get better photos this year. We are huge orajel fans in our house we get the toothpaste all the time!
Awe! Good tips and great tip on telling him to smile sweetly! I always hated picture day because I never felt they gave me enough time to get my smile just right lol
Your son is so adorable! Love his cute smile! Thanks for your tips! Will definitely try these for our picture with kids!
I do not really have any great tips for picture day. But you have some really great ones here, I will have to keep these in mind.
My tips for getting the best pictures is to tell my kids a joke early that morning. I tell them to think about it before they take school pictures. š Your son is handsome!
When my kids were little, we made sure they had a good breakfast on picture taking day. We also helped them choose the clothes they want to wear and get every thing ready the night before. Less stress, happy tummy, lots of hugs and words of encouragement!
These are lovely tips, It is hard sometimes to make them smile, Your kid looks so adorable!
These are great tips. And your boy is ADORABLE! It’s so important to get these good habits down at his age
Awww what a cute picture. Love the missing tooth š
Oh my goodness! You did get a good photo out of this!! What a sweet smile :-).