Lighten Up!

Here's what I want to know...and I'm sure the answer is really simple and some smarter people than me who are out there would roll their eyes that I am even admitting to asking this question, but how in the world am I supposed to order prints from my digital pictures, which seem to look great on the computer, but when I get the print made, it looks dark?  And it really depends on the angle from which I'm looking at the computer what the picture looks like, so it's hard to edit it anyway.  And when you bring the picture up on the screen at the photo printing place (wherever that may be) it's fuzzy and doesn't look like anything you would ever print much less pay for, but you think you have to take your chances.  And then when you get the print, you can't really tell if it's a good picture or not, because Photoshop has changed photography forever. 

For example, is this picture good or not?

And what about this one?

To me, one seems dark and the other really light.  But when I printed the one of all three kids, before I made the changes that you see, it was pretty dark.  I wasn't able to print a new version because the time got late, etc. 

Well, I just had to get that off my chest so I could breathe a little easier.  Maybe after you do it long enough, you just "know."  You get it.  You have a gut feeling.  I have a gut feeling, but it doesn't have much to do with when to stop fooling with the picture because it's finally right.  It has more to do with being full of brownies.