How to Write Thank You Notes for Weddings and Showers

Aren't girlfriend's great when they throw a lavish baby shower AND give you with the hottest, hard-to-find designer diaper bag? Weren't you touched when your sister who just had a baby still flew out with her family to attend your wedding? And didn't you cry when your grandma sent a photo of your mom at age1 for your daughter's first birthday? More often than not, family and friends are amazingly generous and thoughtful - so amazing that a personally penned THANK YOU note is the least you can do.

Of course, you'll also experience the time when your ex-roommate gave you a bottle of wine like the one you used to have in your collection. Or the time your cousin told you that he "forgot" to sign the card and "whatever" his parents gave is also from him. No matter - even such gifts become storytelling gems and should be acknowledged with a written note.

Ironically, this essential and all-important task should be completed when time is short and you are at your busiest either planning a wedding or settling into a new life with your new husband and/or baby. For obvious reasons, thank you notes can be daunting, time-consuming and on-going:

• For events like weddings and birth announcements, you could potentially be thanking hundreds of people
• For baby and bridal showers, you could potentially have more than one thrown in your honor by close friends, family members, or co-workers
• For events like weddings and showers, gifts and kind acts could potentially trickle in by mail or visits over several months before and after the event.

While it's tempting to speed through this task using streamlined notes that are pre-printed or contain quick one-liners ("Thanks for the steak knives. Love, Anna"), such notes should never be sent out. Remember, people who are important to you have taken the time and effort to honor you and thanking them should similarly reflect your time and effort. So here are a few tips on how to streamline the task of sending out personalized thank you notes without stripping the sincerity out of the note itself.

Address Thank You Cards When You Address Invitations or Announcements