Thank You...Gracias...Merci...Danke...

Wow...I'm not a good little blogger lately! For the past week, Mr Jones and I have been working on our wedding Thank You cards. Oy. There's only so many ways you can say "thank you" without starting to sound insincere...or cheesy.

Mr Jones has been pestering me to get my Thank Yous done (because Boy Wonder is done with his, of course)...and I'm trying. Honest. I just prefer to do a couple at a time instead of powering through them. Maybe that makes them more sincere and less cheesy? I'd like to think so!

Well, news for him...according to Emily Post, I still have time...haha! She also has 10 Do's and Don'ts of Thank Yous.

When should Thank Yous be written?

Contrary to popular myth, the happy couple does not have a year’s grace period. All thank you notes should be written within three months of the receipt of the gift. Ideally, a response should be written on the day you receive a wedding gift. If that’s not possible, set a daily goal. It’s a lot easier to write three or four notes a day than to have to write a hundred notes in a month after the wedding!

Ten Dos and Don’ts of Thank You Notes

1. Do personalize your notes and make reference to the person as well as the gift.
2. Do remember that a gift should be acknowledged with the same courtesy and generous spirit in which it was given.
3. Do be enthusiastic, but don’t gush. Avoid saying a gift is the most beautiful thing you have ever seen unless you really mean it.
4. Don’t send form letters or cards with printed messages and just your signature. Also, don’t use email or post a generic thank you on your wedding web site in lieu of a personal note.
5. Do promptly acknowledge the receipt of shipped gifts by sending a note right away or calling and following up with a written note in a day or two.
6. Don’t mention that you plan to return a gift or that you are dissatisfied in any way.
7. Don’t tailor your note to the perceived value of the gift; no one should receive a perfunctory note.
8. Do refer to the way you will use a gift of money. Mentioning the amount is optional.
9. Don’t include wedding photos or use photo cards if it will delay sending the note. Oops...we definitely did this one! But I love our photo cards...sorry they delayed sending the thank yous!
   
10. Don’t use being late as an excuse not to write. Even if you are still sending notes after your first anniversary, keep writing!