Red Letter Days

Feel the Thanks

2011-11-25T20:12:00.000-08:00

‎"Living gratefully is probably the most selfish thing you can do. In the moments when I am bathed in gratitude, for a caring gesture or a spectacular autumn morning, I feel phenomenal." ~Howie Jacobsen

"Thanksgiving, after all, is a word of action." ~W.J. Cameron

"The Pilgrims made 7x more graves than huts. No Americans have been more impoverished, and yet they set aside a day of thanksgiving."

Professional Manners from a Professional

2011-11-22T12:54:00.001-08:00

Holiday manners aren't just for kids. Some helpful insights on holiday gifting and good behavior straight from the Emily Post family. They're written with the office in mind, but hold true for many holiday situations.

Cheers!

Don't Be a Turkey: Mind Your Thanksgiving Manners

2011-11-09T19:48:00.000-08:00

Big dinners don't come often for me (we're not a fancy family as a whole). So a brush-up on basic etiquette for gatherings like Thanksgiving is nice every once in a while. Here are a few tips I learned—or was glad to be reminded:

Dress considerately: Show you appreciate your hosts' efforts by showing up in something better than sweats (surely there are elastic waistbands in other styles?)
Simple hostess gifts are a great idea
Greet people warmly and by name
Arrive and leave on time
Pass serving dishes to the right; pass salt and pepper shakers together
Don't begin eating until all have been served
The host officially ends a meal by placing his/her napkin to the left of place setting and rising
You're done when the host is done
Help with clean-up: Just jump in and do a bit. Many hands make light work and your host deserves the help!
Say thank you (whether you're the guest or the host)

With thanks to these great articles:

http://bit.ly/tC29D1

http://bit.ly/rX7vx2

Any manners you appreciate most?

Thanksgiving Game Day

2011-11-01T12:18:00.000-07:00

...and we're not talking football. Engage your guests young and old with some good old-fashioned family fun.

At-the-table Games

Thanksgiving Mad-Libs

Chopstick Pass-Along

Thanksgiving Word Search

Bird Brain Builders

The first player answers one of the questions below, filling in the blank. The next person repeats that response, plus adds his or her own answer at the end. Repeat for each player so there's a long string of additions—and if you forget something in the sequence, you're out! Play until there's one adult and one child left for that round.

Start a new round with the next question and everyone plays again!

Last Thanksgiving, I ____________ (e.g. ate three pieces of pie)
My favorite Thanksgiving food is ____________
The Macy's Thanksgiving parade has a ___________ balloon
On Thanksgiving weekend, I like to ______________
On the first Thanksgiving, the Pilgrims ______________
Next Thanksgiving, I sure hope we ______________

Family Who, What?

In advance, ask each family member to bring an old, candid photo of themselves. Pass the photos around the table, and try to guess who the person is, where they are, and what they are doing. For a bit of tom-turkey-foolery, add one or two photos that have nothing to do with the family (find something online or borrow one from a neighbor). Watching people try to make the connection can be a lot of fun!

Make-and-Take Cupcake Card

2011-09-09T19:30:00.000-07:00

Thanks to all the cute girls who joined us at the Scrapbook USA Young Scrappers Club! We made these Cupcake cards to use for birthday greetings, a photo card to remember the good times, plus every girl received a Red Letter Days thank you card to write a quick note to someone who made the show possible.

If you didn't finish your card while there, you'll find instructions below. To get your photo from Friday night, go to our Facebook page—and Like us while you're there!

Invitation Cut out the candle piece along solid outer lines Before cutting out the cupcake, score along the dotted line between the card front and back (the two sides of the cupcake shape) Use a craft knife to cut slits at top/bottom of cupcake (follow dotted lines) Fold card in half and cut out along solid lines (cutting while folded makes the back and front match up) From the back side of the paper: Slide the candle flame in the top slit Slide the “Make a Wish” end through the bottom slit The flame and tab will stick out on the front side of the card The tabs behind the card keep the candle from sliding through slits Glue together on the inside edges, keeping glue free of candle and tabs Pull the tab to make the candle go out! Thank You Card With a craft knife, cut out the circle in the cupcake Fold in the card in half along the dotted line Center a photo through the circle Glue the two sides together with the photo in the middle Write a thank you note on back!

Good Manners Guide

2011-09-09T18:00:00.000-07:00

Thank you notes have you stumped?

We make being polite extra easy with our Good Manners Guide. Use it now to write the perfect thank you note. The full guide is included FREE with all Eti-Kits from funproperlydone.com

How to Write the Perfect Thank You Note
Dear ________,
1. Thank you for ___________.
2. (Describe what you like the most about it).
3. (Make a comment that's specific to the giver).

An example:
Dear Joey,
Thank you for the gumball machine. I love to put money in things. I'll bring you a treat from it at our next baseball game.
From, David

Another example:
Dear Landon,
Thank you for coming to my birthday party. You are the best piñata hitter around! I'm glad we're friends.
From, Brooke

The perfect Thank You Note may be as lengthy or as brief as you wish, as long as the three essentials are covered. You'll appreciate your friends and gifts more by writing these notes—and your friends will certainly appreciate your thoughtfulness, too!

Scrapbook USA Coupon

2011-09-06T17:03:00.000-07:00

We've got a booth at the Scrapbook USA Expo in Sandy, Utah this weekend. Lots of great deals -- including $2 discount on admission ($4 off for 2-day pass)! Use coupon code "red2" online or with the attached coupon

More deals: Girls ages 8-16 get a free make-and-take birthday card from us! Join us and other sponsors at the Young Scrapper Club Friday night!

http://www.scrapbookusaexpo.com/

Cupcake Birthday Party

2011-07-29T17:31:00.000-07:00

Cupcakes are all the rage -- and with a place like this, how could they not?

Found a darling bakery in Salt Lake City, So Cupcake, which hosts kids' birthday parties (besides being a great excuse to find a tasty little treat. "Little" being the operative excuse...).

For $7 a child, they get one giant or two mini gourmet cupcakes they can decorate on their own plus a tour of the bakery. Makes my mouth water.

Got the perfect cupcake party invitations, too (see photo). With a party place like this, the invite's not just for one-year-olds!

Anyone else have a favorite cupcake place?

Baseball Party: Take 'em out to the ball game

2011-07-10T12:49:00.000-07:00

My 10-year-old's team just had an end of season party—appropriately, at the ball park. We watched the Salt Lake Bees, our town's Triple-A team, and had a great time. The tickets were affordable, the weather was dreamy, and it was even Kids Eat Free Night (can't beat that!).

A ball game is a terrific summer party, whether for a birthday, Father's Day, a neighborhood night out, or a team get together. If you don't have (or can't afford) a major league game nearby, check around for minor league or college games. Be sure to ask about special group activities. The Bees offer a "Field of Dreams" promo that, with advance sign-up, a little league team can attend the game at a discount, get a tour of the locker rooms, introduce themselves to the crowd, and stand on the field during the national anthem with the pro athlete who plays their position. They also walked away with free loot like team baseball cards, t-shirts, baseballs, and more. Sadly, the home team lost, but you'd never know from our group's home run smiles.

Bridal Shower: Cookie Flower Favors

2011-03-25T10:02:00.000-07:00

Here's a fun take on the bride's bouquet. For a bridal shower activity, let each guest frost and decorate sugar cookie flowers. We ordered from a baker plain sugar cookies cut in a variety of flower shapes and put on wooden skewers. (You can bake your own, too -- just insert 1/8 - 1/4" wooden dowels when the cookies are just warm out of the oven. They need to be a good 1/2" thick.)

Everybody shared decorating bags with frostings in different pastel colors and with a variety of decorating tips. A colorful selection of sprinkles, colored sugars, and little candies finished the look.

Best part: Each guest selected one cookie to place in a vase for the bride's bouquet (a gift from everyone). Then, the rest were wrapped up in tissue, tied with a ribbon, and taken home by the guests to enjoy!

Kitchen Bridal Shower

2011-03-23T12:06:00.000-07:00

Chances are, soon-to-be newlyweds need just about everything but the kitchen sink. Get their lives started right with a kitchen or house-warming shower.

INVITATION:

A microwave party invitation opens up to reveal the details about the shower. There's room for the time, date, place, etc. -- plus where the bride and groom are registered.

GUESTS:

Showers can be intimate gatherings with just the bride and her entourage. They can also be a great way to celebrate with friends and acquaintances who might not be close enough to attend the wedding itself. Include them in the festivities; a low-key open house is a great way for lots of people to stop in and share good wishes.

Our shower was an open house that included neighbors and church friends. About 35 were invited which kept a nice flow of 8-10 people coming through to visit with the bride throughout the night.

ACTIVITIES:

Bridal shower games can be fun with a smaller group. Should you have an open house (or people who'd just rather visit with each other), get everyone involved by sharing some advice or a favorite thought or memory about the bride. We had people write something they loved about the bride (so her groom would remember how lucky he is!) on pre-designed pages that match the invitation. At night's end, the pages were collected and bound into a book along with pictures of the evening. The bride received the book as part of her wedding gift.

FOOD:

Good girly stuff (can you say, chocolate?). A selection of homemade and store-bought treats can go a long way without too much effort. Our menu:

Homemade chocolate cake, cashew cookies, slush punch (easy but fancy)

Purchased cream puffs, pastries, sugar cookies shaped and decorated as bridal dresses

Fresh fruit

DECOR:

Pick something the bride loves:

Seasonal -- our shower was close to Valentine's Day, so we leveraged the holiday theme of hearts and love. It was easy to transition pink, red and white decorations into shower decor without feeling like a Valentine's party. Think blushing bride and use any of your seasonal decorations to give your shower a relevant feel.

Interests -- What does the bride love to do? At a previous shower, our bride was well envied for her closet's fabulous contents. We raided her shoe selection and decorated with them. Shoe boxes were wrapped in black paper and her colorful heels displayed on top of them. Inexpensive mini "glass slippers" came from a party supply store and served as decorations as well as favors.

Gift Specific -- Try keeping with the party theme of kitchen/home and decorate using gifts the bride may have already received (place a new toaster on a pedestal, arrange flowers in a blender, make a display of her dishes).

THANK YOUS:

As part of the bride's book with wishes from the guests, a few pages served as a record of gifts received. Not only could the bride look back at her friends' generosity, she can use the list to write thank you notes. Matching thank you notes were given to the bride as part of her shower gift from the hostesses.

Say Thanks: A Great Way to End the Year

2010-12-30T11:28:00.000-08:00

The economy's tough. The year may have been rough. But you can show a lot of appreciation in a way that means more than expensive gifts ever can.

Take a few tips from IndustryWeek which, although targeted to professionals in this case, apply to every age and interest:

Write thank you letters (sound familiar?). A little attention goes a long way.
Say thanks personally. Make a phone call or a visit, just to say thanks.
Give the gift of time. Schedule an hour, or even just 10 minutes, to spend with that person, and that person alone.
Spread the love. Tell other people how much you appreciate someone or what they've done. Do it in person, in a tweet, on your blog... make others appreciate your source of gratitude, too.
Be happy. Say thanks, be helpful, be mindful of everyone around you. After all, that's what the spirit of the holidays is all about.

Thanksgiving: Teach Your Kids Gratitude

2010-11-16T10:48:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving is the time of year we pause to be grateful for people, for belongings, for happy circumstances. And while it comes naturally to some, giving thanks is actually a skill—one that can be taught to your children. Fun Properly Done shows you how.

Think Grateful. Act Gracious.

FunProperlyDone.com is all about good manners, and a big part of basic etiquette is being thankful. Just thinking about what you’re grateful for is a good step, but it’s even better to act on it. That’s why we take the motto, Think Grateful. Act Gracious.

You can put this into play by teaching kids about gratitude in three ways: Explain, Express, and Exhibit.

Explain gratitude

Kids don’t need a lot of help knowing what makes them happy, but they often need guidance recognizing that their happiness comes from someone or something. You can help kids Think Grateful by helping them verbalize what they appreciate—it can be a list, a picture, or a regular dinner-table conversation. Follow that up by discussing ways they can Act Graciously to let someone know about what they appreciate.

Gratitude can be as easy as demonstrating to someone that they’re important to you. For Thanksgiving celebrations, we often do this naturally; we invite the people we care about to spend time together at dinner. As an invitation business, FunProperlyDone.com sells creative Thanksgiving Dinner cards. By simply sending a special invitation, you’re demonstrating you think that person is important. You “Think Grateful” by remembering them, you “Act Gracious” by sending an invitation.

Express gratitude

An excellent exercise at Thanksgiving time—and year round—is to keep a gratitude journal, make a “thankful list,” or even like one family, have Thankful Thursdays on which every family member points out a blessing.

But, no one knows that you’re thankful for them or something they do if you don’t say it! And that’s where Act Gracious comes in.

Teach your kids to write a thank you note to someone who aligns with their thankful list. Maybe it’s a teacher who gave extra minutes at recess. Maybe it’s the author of a favorite book. The cookie baker at the grocery store. The school crossing guard. A coach, music teacher, or a scout leader.

With a little help, kids begin to realize there is a real person behind everyone and everything they enjoy during their days. FunProperlyDone.com has a selection of blank thank you cards you can keep on hand for any occasion. Write a note a week during November to create a habit—and a practice—of showing gratitude.

During Thanksgiving Day itself, kids can show what they appreciate in the people around them. Our Baskets of Thanks cornucopia can be used as a place card, or just a “thank you for coming” favor. Write things you appreciate about a person on the back of each vegetable, and fill the cornucopia with thoughts of gratitude.

Exhibit gratitude

The best lesson, of course, is to be an example of gratitude every day. Parents can do this by simply saying “thank you” to a clerk at the store, and by recognizing the small services people do in their everyday jobs. Another lesson is to say why you’re leaving a tip at a restaurant; giving a specific reason is a good lesson for your child—and a great note for a waiter to receive.

Since Thanksgiving Dinner is a special meal in and of itself, it’s perfectly suited for teaching good manners beyond “thank you.” Have some fun by turning Thanksgiving into your family’s own Etiquette Dinner. It’s the ideal opportunity to teach kids about how to politely greet guests, use proper place settings, put a napkin on their laps, hold out a chair for someone, etc.

The Etiquette Party invitation at FunProperlyDone.com helps make it a formal affair. But even if you don’t use etiquette as a theme, use the opportunity for kids to practice their best manners. And when you see them do it, Think Grateful and Act Gracious yourself! Award the good-mannered one with an Etiquette sticker you can find at FunProperlyDone.com. They’re a fun way to reward family members of any age for saying their pleases and thank you’s.

You can find all of the Thanksgiving and thanks-sharing products here at www.funproperlydone.com.

Party Etiquette: Things to Remember

2010-11-03T14:41:00.000-07:00

Saw this handy article about party etiquette basics. The tips aren't new, but they do serve as good reminders. (That faux pas she mentions about the opera music? Been there, done that. Ouch.)

With party season upon us, happy holiday planning!

Halloween Candy: What to do after the sugar rush

2010-11-01T10:00:00.000-07:00

Curses upon whoever invented Hershey's Snack Size. When it comes to the candy, I. have. no. restraint.

Fortunately, nutritionist Julie Negrin has some great ideas for what families can do with your sacks of sweet loot to avoid a month-long sugar rush. All are very well mannered, of course; my favorites are the first two. Here are her suggestions, you can link to the full article here.

1. Give it away (at the office, or perhaps to a good cause)

2. Donate it to soldiers!

3. Send it to the Candy Fairy

4. Store it out of sight

5. Make holiday gifts

6. Create a game or candy art

Halloween Games: Ghost Catcher

2010-10-20T10:01:00.000-07:00

We throw a neighborhood Halloween party every year, and it's been going strong for 13 years now. Though every year has its highlights, this game has been a long-standing favorite.

Ghost Catcher (credit to FamilyFun Magazine)

This game works best with a group of 4-8 people, and grown-ups will have just as much fun as the kids. If you have more people at your party, break up into smaller groups (we had three groups of 5 to 8 playing at once).

For the game you'll need:

Large funnel (check the auto maintenance section at the store; a pan lid will work in a pinch, too.)
Dice
Ghosts (you need one fewer than the number of people playing)
Candy corn

To make the ghosts, wrap an 8-10" square of thin white fabric around a small rubber bouncy ball. The ball is the ghost's head; tie one end of a 36" piece of curling ribbon to secure the fabric around the ghost's "neck." You need the long end of the ribbon to grab the ghost.

Place all the ghosts in the center of the table. Each player gets 5 pieces of candy corn to use as "points" during the game. One player begins as the Goblin -- he or she is in charge of the dice and the funnel. All other players hold on to the long ribbon attached to their ghost. Now the fun starts.

The Goblin rolls the dice so that everyone can see. If the Goblin rolls a 6, the other players yank their ghosts from the center of the table before the Goblin can trap them by slamming down the funnel on the ghosts.

If the Goblin captures a ghost under the funnel, that ghost player gives the Goblin a candy

Here's where it gets tricky. The Goblin can try to trick the other players by faking a slam.

If a player yanks his or her ghost away and the number is NOT a 6, that player gives the Goblin a candy
If the Goblin captures a ghost, but the number rolled was NOT a 6, the Goblin gives a piece of candy to every player

The Goblin gets 10 rolls of the dice, then trades the dice and funnel with the next player for a turn as a ghost. If a player runs out of points, they're out of the game.

This is a great game for school parties. Try playing it as one of many activity "stations" the kids rotate through during the party. Play for a set number of minutes (5-10 minutes is good) and the player with the most points wins.

Tip: The kids love playing with candy corn as points, but with the swine flu season in full swing, we opted to use pennies this year instead. (The thought of germ swapping is scary enough.)

Happy ghosting!

Halloween Party Invitations

2010-09-18T20:33:00.000-07:00

Invitations are half the fun of parties for me. And this one's my all-time favorite. To invite the neighborhood to a Halloween party, we attached a ribbon to this Halloween bat invitation and hung him upside down from the front door frame of each house. A spooky surprise in itself -- then unfolding his wings uncovered the information about the party.

Another favorite from www.funproperlydone.com is the witch hat invitation. Pull the buckle on the brim and the spider spins her web to crawl up the invitation.

Best tips for invites:

Make it interactive (can it move? does it surprise? do you want to keep it on the fridge as just a dang cute decoration?)
Throw in some bewitching wording (Wand to party with us? I vahnt to see you next Saturday... etc.) Puns are fun -- just don't go too overboard.
Remember the basics: Who's giving the party, Where and When, What should the guest expect (wear a costume? will there be a meal/refreshments? should they bring anything?), How to RSVP

Got any ghoulish invite ideas to share?

Halloween Party Invitations: More Ideas

2010-09-15T11:37:00.000-07:00

Here are a few other great ideas we've come across:

Skeleton invitation. Its arms and legs move! (Credit to Martha Stewart)
Mad scientist invitation. Spooky stuff in a test tube. (Martha, again.)
Mummy invitation. Print your invitation on a paper mummy shape then wrap him in long, thin strips of toilet paper. Kids get a kick out of unwinding him.

Halloween Time: Wand to Party?

2010-09-12T14:18:00.000-07:00

Witch kind of party is best? What skeletons of ideas are piled in my closet? What do I carve out the most time for every year? You ghost it...Halloween.

Okay, okay, I'll stop. But I do love Halloween to its very bones.

So, in the spirit of the fun-loving dead, check out the ideas coming this month that are sure to leave everyone involved with haunting memories:

- Halloween party invitations

- Halloween parties at school

- Neighborhood Halloween parties

- Halloween Night: Beyond the candy bowl

Check back every week to get suggestions for your spooky shin-digs, and please be sure to share the wicked ideas you've concocted!

Cash gift requests: Right or rude?

2010-09-09T08:41:00.000-07:00

So ABC News reported on a bride who is requesting cash donations in lieu of gifts to help cover the cost of her wedding. One of my favorite sisters-in-etiquette bloggers, Khris Cochran of DIYBride, equates the request to an admission fee and calls it in poor taste. Etiquette expert Anna Post tends to agree.

My kids have been invited to birthday parties with similar requests. The invitation suggests a dollar or two instead of gifts so that the birthday child might purchase a certain item/experience they really want.

It's easy. But is it right? What do you think?

Weddings to go

2009-09-01T08:30:00.001-07:00

For those who love to have the party come to them, check out this itinerant idea. For $2/mile, this wedding chapel on wheels will travel to your destination of choice. Nothing like celebrating the Big Day in on-the-road style. http://bit.ly/4BYSxA

Anniversary Traditions

2009-07-07T12:38:00.000-07:00

It's my anniversary this week and my sweet husband sent me the most enormous lilies you've ever seen. I didn't realize it, but they're the traditional flower for this particular anniversary. It also turns out my lovely new wedding ring setting (bling bling!) is of the traditional metal for this year.

Wondering what traditional gifts mark your upcoming anniversary? Here are a few links to spark some ideas:

Flowers

Traditional and Modern Gifts

Gemstones

Alternate Flower/Gift Traditions

Of course there are creative takes on the traditional themes, too. For my parents' Ruby Anniversary (40th) a while back, my siblings and I gave them gift certificates to Ruby Tuesday restaurant, Ruby River steakhouse, and Ruby's Inn -- a fantastic getaway in Southern Utah.

Anyone have more creative anniversary gifts you've loved or shared?

There's a Party for Everything

2009-04-29T09:06:00.000-07:00

Feel like celebrating? You don't need much of a reason. Check out this article about partying it up around the world with party themes galore:

Cheese rolling

Wife carrying

Monkey feeding

Tomato fights

Playing in the mud

Little radish people

Celebrating turnips...

A naked festival?

Who needs a birthday -- hand over the turnips and let's have some fun!

Pet Store Party

2009-04-21T09:02:00.000-07:00

When people ask if we have pets, my typical response is "yes, two boys." They're wild enough. But truth be told, they're dying for a pet. My answer: regular trips to the pet store. And we have so much fun you'd think it was, you guessed it -- a party!

INVITATIONS

Choose a favorite animal to be the star of your party (examples here on the wild and mild side). You might consider asking guests to bring a can or bag of pet food in lieu of a birthday gift (more on this momentarily).

ACTIVITY

Take a trip to the local pet store or animal shelter. If you've got more than 4-5 kids in the party, call ahead to ensure you'll be welcome. While most kids can entertain themselves the whole time just by peeking in the cages, looking for the lizards hidden behind plastic tree leaves, and making up wacky conversations with the parrots, you could come prepared with a few games of your own. Try an age-appropriate scavenger hunt (can you find the Yellow Canary? a 20-lb bag of Alpo? a furry purple kitty toy?). Learn where the animals originally came from. Or see what animal best matches each guest in the group.

A thoughtful twist is to turn the birthday gift booty over to the animals. Guests might be invited to bring a can of food, a dog toy, etc. in lieu of a child's gift. The group can then present the gifts to an animal shelter (or to the pet store who will often donate them in turn).

THANK YOU'S

Take each guest's picture with their favorite animal and send it home in a customized thank you card. If he/she gave a gift to an animal, you might include a "pawprint" of thanks from it too.

Tea Parties, Past and Present

2009-04-16T12:21:00.000-07:00

So I got a kick out of all the Tea Parties hosted yesterday in protest of government spending. All political views aside (I'll decline to get into mine here), I love the clever factor. And, it got me thinking about (what else?) party opportunity!

Whether or not you make yours as a statement to the government, a Tea Party may be the ultimate in proper parties. Since they can lend themselves so well to teaching good manners (and even peaceful activism), here's a Tea Party invitation that's a lesson in etiquette itself.

Attached to the invitation is a tiny envelope with three dainty messages reminding kids of the three Golden Good Manners: Please, Thank You, and You're Welcome. Each is an instruction for the party.

Please arrive on time

You're Welcome to enjoy (describe your activity)

Say Thank You to the person who invited you

I used this originally for a classroom party. The kids were taught basic etiquette lessons for a couple of weeks, then attended a matinee play and a "formal" luncheon served by the parents at the school. Those students who remembered to thank their teacher for the invitation received a sticker with captions like:

Hello, my name is Well Mannered

RSVP is French for "My Manners Rock"

You know my name. Good Manners is my game.

Clearly, this invitation could be used for much simpler Tea Party celebrations. So grab your table manners, tea cups, and teddy bears. Heated political discussions are just a bonus.

Good Manner Watch: Lousy Lesson from World Leader

2009-04-06T08:49:00.000-07:00

Sadly, today's Good Manner Watch is a bad manners bummer -- especially since the whole world could see it.

Italy's Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has been hammered by the media for his lack of etiquette in public situations. Now, in my humbly polite opinion, a few of these were more a matter of personality quirks (not everyone's meant to be as prim and proper as Her Majesty). BUT, here's a bad manner that's too common, too awful, and almost too painful to watch.

What does this have to do with kids' parties? Let's play a little pretend.

When arriving at a photo op event to honor fallen soldiers (or in our case, a fun event to honor a birthday kid), Mr. Berlusconi (or our invited guest) is on his cell phone. The host of the event, who has planned for his arrival, his comfort, and his presence, is left waiting while she and her preparations are simply ignored. Mr. Berlusconi missed the photo op, the host is understandably irritated, yet he feels justified that he was "on the phone." Scortese! (Or, Rude! in anybody's native tongue.)

Lessons to be learned:

- Arrive on time. Your host has worked hard to make things happen during a particular timeframe.

- Greet your host with your full attention. Real people always get first dibs. That means don't put off real people for phone people (with rare emergency exceptions)

- Plan ahead. Your host has planned for your attendance; you should plan for it, too. Don't take calls that will overlap this scheduled time. Turn off your phone and turn your attention to the real people at hand. (That is exactly what voice mail is for.)

Here's the thing. Kids might not have cell phones to pull egregious gaffes like this (though we're seeing phones in littler hands all the time!). But they DO watch the grown-ups around them as examples. Hopefully, we're not watching our world leaders for the same....

Slow Down and Write a Thank You Note

2009-03-30T08:22:00.000-07:00

Now I'm as much a victim of the techno-now, instant-everything world as anyone (having a blog speaks to that, eh?). But it's nice to see that good old-fashioned letter writing is getting its due as a source of true gratification.

The Financial Times reported this weekend on the "Slow Down Festival" being hosted in London—its purpose to reconnect people in the fast lane with the pleasures of the slow one. The event stems from the world's financial slowdown, however, the topics are relevant no matter what speed your planet is moving.

Among the activities and workshops:

- A long, slow group walk across the London Bridge as rush hour

- Poetry readings

- Meditation lessons

And of course my favorite,

- How to write for snail mail

There are few things as mutually fulfilling as sending and/or receiving a kind note, especially one on paper that seems a shame to toss out, so that months later when you find it again at the bottom of a drawer or tucked in a page as a forgotten bookmark, it still evokes a memory, a smile, and a warm feeling about one particular person.

That's the good thing about good manners. They slow you down enough to smile no matter what lane of life you're running in.

Safari Party: Lion Invitation

2009-03-27T21:06:00.000-07:00

I've got two little wild things at my house -- this party theme was perfect for both of them.

Invitations

The king of the jungle roars out the party details when you open his mouth wide.

Party Favors

I went a little wild myself on this one. Each child got a plastic safari hat (available at party supply stores like Zurcher's for about $1), a t-shirt stenciled with the same lion as on the invite (found cheap t-shirts at an overstock store and at that point in my mothering life had boundless energy to do stuff like stenciling...), and a pair of "binoculars" fashioned out of empty toilet paper tubes (or when you run out of them, paper towel tubes cut in half). The binoculars came in handy during the Lion Hunt game.

Food

This party was for 4- and 5-year olds, so safari gourmet it was not. But the titles on the menu raised little eyebrows. "Giant Fried Butterfly Wings" were potato chips. "Boiled Snakes" were hot dogs. And apple and banana slices became "Orangutan Hors D'oeuvres."

For the birthday cake, we made a basic 8" round cake, frosted it orange, and cut out tiger stripes from fruit leather. Nilla wafers were the big cat's muzzle. Pretty easy for a homemade cake, and the kids loved it.

Good Manners: Great Sportsmanship in Little League

2009-03-20T20:36:00.000-07:00

Good Manner Watch: At a little league baseball tournament this weekend, a 10-year-old team showed amazing skills in more ways than one. Sadly for us, the Little Bronx Bombers from Las Vegas trounced our team -- but talk about taking away the sting. After the game end, the team lined up facing the opposing players and fans and applauded. They then gave props to their own parents by doing the same.

Kudos for true Good Sportsmanship!

Dress up party: go out all decked out

2009-03-16T12:00:00.000-07:00

I'm going to the opera tonight -- not everyone's cup of tea, I'll admit. But a "fancy night out" might just be a girl's dream come true. How about a party for a few good friends who dress up in their best finery and attend a matinee opera (try something light like a Mozart comedy or an operetta), musical theater, the ballet, a play, or the symphony. For younger kids who might not master a full performance (or who's parents can't justify the full ticket prices), some companies will allow small groups to attend a dress rehearsal for no or little charge.

Follow (or begin) the party with a tea party, at home or at a fancy little sandwich and cookie place. I've heard The Beehive Tea Room in Salt Lake City is good. Anybody been there?

Good Manners: Kids wish President Obama well

2009-03-15T20:19:00.000-07:00

Talk about a good manner that'll make a whole country feel good. These kids wrote letters to President Obama wishing him well in his new job. My favorite: Alexis Feliciano asks him to please help the economy, because her cup of whipped cream at Starbucks has gone from 43¢ to 74¢.

A girl's got to have her whipped cream, you know.

Letters were collected by literacy program 826 and put in a book called "Thanks and Have Fun Running the Country." You can hear them on McSweeney's web site and reported on by This American Life. Take a listen -- these few minutes of good manners guaranteed to make you feel really good.

Big thanks from Little Brothers and Sisters

2009-03-05T11:04:00.001-08:00

Over the last month, we've had a lot of interest—and thanks expressed from the birthday kids, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Utah, and the media.

A shout out to our incredibly talented photographer, Alise Allen, and to our Youth Board who made the event come together: John Gardner, Sam Lennartson, Dallas Anderson, Tami Hales, Gabby Jessop, Ashely Wilkinson, and Karli Rodriguez.

Construction Party Game: Wrecking Ball

2009-03-03T21:43:00.000-08:00

Another great game that the kids played over and over again while waiting for their parents to pick them up!

Wrecking Ball Game

Before the party, use a variety of empty boxes to make a "cityscape" of buildings. For instance, a paper milk carton became an apartment building. A cereal box was a skyscraper. An empty paper towel tube was a smokestack, etc. etc. This was a great project to involve my kids in party prep. We covered the boxes in butcher or construction paper and drew on the building details with markers.

Also before the party, fill a black 9"-round balloon with dry beans. (Put a funnel in the mouth of the balloon and slowly pour the beans in.) The balloon is your wrecking ball; fill it until it's got some good weight (enough to knock over your largest box). You probably want to use about a cup of beans, but see what looks right to you. Knot the balloon so it closely holds the beans inside. Tie a long ribbon or string around the knotted balloon and suspend it from the ceiling. (We used a ceiling hook that you'd use for a hanging plant -- it was small and easily removed later.) The length of the string should let the wrecking ball hang about 2-3" above the surface of the table you'll use.

Set up your box cityscape on a table and place the table a few feet away from the wrecking ball.

To play, each child stands in a pre-determined spot next to the hanging wrecking ball. The player can raise the ball from where he/she is standing (let the ball go from their raised arm -- definitely NO throwing) and lets the ball swing! The wrecking ball will swing forward and knock down the boxes. Give each player the same number of swings (3-5 is good, unless the kids are pretty young) and see how many buildings they can tip over.

Construction Party Game: Dump Truck Relay

2009-03-02T21:26:00.000-08:00

I almost hate to categorize "Construction Party" under Boys Parties, because boys and girls alike were having a great time with these games! None of them were store-bought and they're pretty easy to put together with a little planning.

Dump Truck Relay Race

I took the lids off two large shoe boxes and decorated the sides to make each box look like the bed of a dump truck. (I just used yellow construction paper and markers and cut out the shapes freehand before gluing them on the sides of the boxes.) Then, I poked a hole in each corner of the box bottom and threaded some lightweight rope through the holes to make two straps for the box (like a backpack). Use duct tape to tape down the ends of the rope inside the box, or knot the end so it doesn't pull through.

Also in advance, make a big ol' pile of "rocks" by wadding up pieces of newspaper or paper from your recycling bin. You'll want a big pile -- a good 80-100 rocks will make for a great relay!

At the party, divide the kids into two teams. The first person on each team puts on the dump truck "backpack" and crawls across the room on hands and knees to his/her other teammates. The teammates fill the truck bed with paper "rocks" and the driver crawls back to the opposite side of the room where he/she dumps the rocks at the construction site. The driver can then get up, run back to the team, and give the dump truck backpack to the next driver on the team.

The winning team is the group who successfully moves the most paper rocks to their construction site -- but it's harder than it looks! With all the guaranteed giggling, rocks will fall out in transit. You might want to make a rule that the non-drivers on the team need to clean up the road while the truck's in transit. (They have to put the loose rocks back at the starting line -- no putting them in the truck while it's moving!)

Construction Party: Dump Truck Invitation

2009-03-01T21:18:00.000-08:00

Got a truck lover in the house? This dump truck invitation was a favorite for my 5-year-old and friends. The truck bed pivots like a dump truck to reveal the party info underneath. Ours stayed on the fridge door for weeks after the party, and little hands "dumped" it over every time they passed by.

22 refugee kids introduced to birthdays—and birthday parties

2009-01-24T21:52:00.000-08:00

On January 22, Red Letter Days hosted Brighten A Birthday—a charity party to celebrate the birthdays of 22 refugee kids—many of whom had never had a birthday party before.

What's so unique about a celebration like this? The “birthday kids” recently came to the U.S. from Liberia, Sudan, Kenya and other cultures where day-specific calendaring isn't common. In other words, their actual birth dates aren't tracked (or celebrated) as we do in the United States. Instead, they may know they were born "in the rainy season," for instance, but upon arriving in this country, those generalizations don't fit in well with our documentation-centric government. As a result, many refugees are assigned January 1 as their birthday. So holding Brighten A Birthday in January only seemed appropriate.

Accompanied by their Big Brother and Big Sister chaperones, the kids were treated to a few wild hours of bouncing fun, birthday gifts, and of course birthday cake. They were interviewed by Channel 5 News, KSL Radio, and The Salt Lake Tribune. But the best presents we all took home were the big smiles on their faces.

Red Letter Days partnered with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Utah to find and communicate with our birthday guests. A Youth Board of eight outstanding students from Murray High School helped organize the festivities. And terrific sponsors such as Bouncin' Off the Walls, Bank of American Fork, Alise Allen Photography, and other generous donors helped make this event possible.