Are Thank You Notes and RSVPs a Thing of the Past?

If you're not into etiquette, you can just skip this post. It's going to be a bit of a rant regarding this topic. Don't say I didn't warn you. (And furthermore, if you're a close friend, family member or neighbor this post has nothing to do with you. I love you. You're wonderful.)

I have found in recent years, with the rise of things like e-vites, e-cards, and the ever famous e-mail, that we as a culture have become so accustomed to communicating via the world wide web that we've forgotten what it means to pick up the phone to respond to an invitation, write a thank you note, or even send a card through "snail mail." Now, I often utilize the aforementioned methods, so I'm not saying they are bad, I'm just saying that the good old fashioned methods of communication are quickly becoming a thing of the past.

Example: Almost two years ago, I sang in a wedding as a gift for somebody, but I also gave them a separate wedding gift that they could open as well. I never received a thank you. Over a year ago, we sent a baby gift to good friends who'd just had their first baby. It went quite a distance, and over time I began to wonder if they'd gotten it. It was such a cute gift, I thought sure I'd hear something. Nothing. A year later my husband called about a different matter but happened to ask, "hey...did you ever get our gift?" to which the recipient replied, "uh yeah, thanks!" I mean, there's such a thing as a grace period of a few months, especially if you're new parents, but come on. A year or two??? How hard is it to write out a thank you card and throw it in the mail???

Now, let me just say that I don't need a thank you card everytime I do something nice for somebody. I really don't. But if I've gone to the effort to get a gift, wrap a gift, and mail a gift, it would at least be nice to know that they received it...or even just a phone call to say "thanks!"

Cody's teacher wrote us the most beautiful thank you note for the gift we gave her for Christmas. We made a donation to Samaritan's Purse in her name that benefits children in impoverished countries. A gift as small as $15 can educate one child for a year! Well, she was so touched by the gesture, and she shared from her heart what it meant to her in the note. Her response to the gift meant so much to us as a family. Jerry read the note to us over dinner and we all said, "wow." As the giver, it made me want to go out and do that for ten more people!

And then there's the matter of RSVPs. Actually, I'm not even going to go there. You've probably already experienced this for yourselves. I'll just simply say this: If I send out an invitation, it's almost guaranteed that I'm going to have to pick up the phone and call most of the guests because they failed to reply.

I hope that I am the kind of mom that encourages gratitude in my kids. I hope, when they are out on their own, that they will take the initiative and send along a note of thanks when somebody blesses them in some way. Ultimately, we can thank the Lord for those that have blessed us...but it sure is nice to be told personally that what you did and what you gave was appreciated.

And that wraps up this rant for the day. If you got to the end, thanks for sticking with me! And if you've experienced this for yourselves, please share in the comments. I'd be interested to know your thoughts on the matter. Just call this Etiquette Thursday!

Wordless Wednesday: This is the Man I Married

I know, you're scared. It's okay. I am too.

****Updated to add: My hubby wanted you to know that he took this picture himself. I don't know what's worse: the fact that he made this face using chicken fries or the fact that he cracked himself up so much that he felt the need to photograph himself!****

Happy Birthday, Darci!

Here's a big shout out to my little sis, Darci, who celebrates a birthday today.

I love you, kiddo!

Curious Caden Strikes Again!

It never fails...just when you think he couldn't possibly get into ONE MORE THING, he does.

Cody's teacher assigned a snowman project for the kids over the break. The families were asked to work on the project together, and we were supposed to find things around the house to create our snowman.

We decided to make ours edible. So, we used marshmallows (2.5 lbs of them to be exact), m&ms, and tootsie rolls. Caden, of course, was intrigued with Mr. Snowman and decided it would be fun to keep grabbing at all the ingredients. We kept telling him NO, but he kept insisting. It made doing this "family project" somewhat challenging. To say the least.

We finally finished this masterpiece last night, and I think it turned out great.

This morning, I set it aside on the boys' little art table, as it is quite large and was taking up half the dining table. I didn't think twice about it. But I should have.

While going through a massive number of emails that I'd been neglecting, Caden had been busy. Suddenly, he appeared at the desk where I was sitting with tootsie roll smeared all over his innocent little face. He came to tell me that what he was eating was good ("mmmm....mmmmm," he said!).

Now, I wish I could tell you that the first thing that came to my mind was WHAT was used to glue all the pieces onto the posterboard, or even that I had thought to snap a couple pictures of Mr. Snowman and enemy #1 (for the blog of course), but alas, I began to express, in no uncertain terms, that what he'd done was a big NO NO.

And then it hit me.

The adhesive we used is made with acetone.

So I called the pediatrician immediately. Who told me to call poison control. Who proceeded to keep me on hold because she'd never heard of that product.

Come to find out, it's only really toxic when injested directly from the bottle. So, just watch for a rash in and around the mouth and difficulty swallowing. OH! Is that ALL?

Thankfully, Curious is taking a nap at this posting, and all is well in our household.

And if I play my cards right, big brother will never know what hit Mr. Snowman today.

Please Pray...

Dear Friends,

Your prayers are needed. I know most of you don't know my friend Charity, but her brother was recently diagnosed with lung cancer (he never smoked a single day of his life) and today he found out that the cancer has spread to his brain. This precious family believes in Christ and the power of prayer, and they are vigilently praying that God might choose to heal her brother Dave, or at least prolong his life. The doctors say the outlook is grim, but we know our God is the Great Physician and that there is power in prayer.

Would you please stop what you're doing now and pray for him? Pray for this family, for his wife and two children, for their parents (I can't imagine how difficult it must be as a mom to watch her son going through this), and for the siblings and relatives as they deal with the reality of this news. Perhaps you might also go to her blog (linked here...scroll down and look for the above picture to read more) and leave her a note of encouragment as well. I know that would brighten her day. Thank you, prayer warriors!

I urge then...that requests, prayers, intercession,

and thanksgiving be made for everyone. ~1 Timothy 2:1