Thank-You Notes and Family Quotes

Thank-you notes have become something of a lost art in recent years. Has thankfulness disappeared? Must we take one another's generosity for granted?

Maybe we overdo this in my family, but we think it's important to thank people for gifts. For generations, this has been a significant tradition in our clan. In fact, when we were much younger, one of my siblings neglected to thank our grandmother for his Christmas money. The following year, our mailbox received one less check from her address. I guess someone learned his lesson!

Gee, I sound just like my mother, as I tell my own children: "If someone loves you enough to spend their own time hunting for a thoughtful gift for you, purchasing it with their own money, and giving it to you . . . . well, do you really think it's too much to ask you to thank him or her for it?"

In our family, we have insisted that our kids write thank-you notes for Christmas gifts, birthday presents, and other generosities. Here's the rule: "You cannot use, wear, eat, or spend the gift until you have thanked the giver."

As they have grown, my kids have become amazed at the number of people (children and adults) who do not acknowledge gifts.

Age-Appropriate Appreciation

When they were younger, my kids wrote really simple notes:

Dear ______:

Thank you for the ________.

Hope to see you soon.

Love, ________.

Of course, their thank-you letters have grown more creative and newsy, as they have matured. Now they usually include information about how they will use the gift, whether it's their favorite flavor or color, and why it was a thoughtful choice for them.

A Variety of Options

This can actually be a fun activity to do together - not a chore! Here are a six simple ways to help kids learn to write thank-yous.

1. Purchase ready-made cards.

Stationers, bookshops, and even discount stores offer wide selections of thank-you cards. Children's editions even come with fill-in-the-blank formats. These are so simple that preschoolers can complete them.

Grandparents and others really do love receiving items in children's own handwriting. (We have family members who collect these treasures and keep them forever.)

2. Surf online for free printables.

Many family-oriented websites offer downloadable or printable greeting cards. Finding and using these can be a fun learning experience, as children select the graphics and colors they like.

3. Create your own template.

When we have birthday parties in our family, I like to save the computer graphics, so we can make matching thank-you cards. If we have a dinosaur, cowboy, tropical or princess party, then the post-party cards will correspond to the event's theme.

You can make thank-you cards with blanks (for names, gift items, and personal notes) or type each message individually.

4. Print digital photos with notes.

Birthday parties and holidays are excellent photo opportunities. We like to snap a photo of each guest with the birthday child holding his or her gift. This helps us to keep our thank-yous accurate. Plus, we are guaranteed to have at least one photo of each guest, for use in that friend's note. We try to include a group picture as well. Our thank-you notes become party keepsakes!

5. Send kid-created originals.

Most children love to color and draw. You can even download or print line-art coloring pages from the internet. Why not look for a favorite animal or cartoon character? How about holiday-themed snowman, reindeer, cupid, bunny or pumpkin? Jot a quick note on the back or in the margin, and mail it off!

6. Go brief, with e-mails.

Some people frown on electronic mail thank-yous. Certainly, a hard-copy note, received in the actual mail, is most desirable. However, as a last resort, an e-mail is far better than no thank-you at all.

If a gift is extremely special, generous, or clever, we might make a phone call or send an e-mail. Still, we will aim to follow up with a real note as well.

Just say "Thanks"!

The old saying is most certainly true: "It is more blessed to give than to receive." Thank-you notes are a way of giving back and blessing the giver!

However you choose to make your gratefulness known, your thankfulness will surely be appreciated by the giver. After all, who wouldn't want to be acknowledged for reaching out to you in the first place?