Growing up, my mother always had me write thank you notes whenever I received gifts.  I appreciate her doing that (especially since I’m sure I didn’t cooperate all the time).  But now it’s second nature, and I enjoy sending them because I know they’ll make someone feel good.  Here are a few tips to make the Thank You Note simple.

1. Keep a stash of thank you notes or blank cards on hand at all times.  Before the holidays, make sure you get a couple of packs while you’re out shopping for gifts.
2. Keep a list of the gifts you receive.  As you receive gifts, immediately write down who gave you what.  When you receive several gifts at one time, keep the gift card and the gift together so you can write them all down later.
3. Keep the note short and sweet, something to the effect of “Thank you for the _____ you gave me.  I love [the color, the way it looks in our living room, how yummy it is, etc.].  Thank you for thinking of me.”

Of course, to actually send the notes, you need to know people’s addresses and to use postage stamps.  If you don’t know some addresses, try looking them up on WhitePages.com.  If they are listed in their local phone book, they will appear in your search. 

And if you don’t have enough stamps on hand or enough time to run to the post office, you can order stamps online from the United States Post Office.  I recommend buying any of the “Forever” stamps because they will still work even after the cost of stamps increase.

Image: Aleksandr Kutsayev / FreeDigitalPhotos.net