TOP 10 WAYS TO SAY THANK YOU!

 

    Lets face it, everyone likes to be appreciated. Whether it is friends, couples, parents and children, an encouragement of gratitude, even a "Thank You", certainly brightens up the day. Some of us may not be used to it or even if we are, it certainly doesn't get heard or said enough. Perhaps we don't quite know how. Here are 10 great ideas that will get you started in the right direction.

Say it with a Smile- Smile more! We are endowed with a powerful and contagious gift. Everyone can do it, and yet we tend not to do it enough. Remind yourself. The more often you smile, the brighter your thank-you becomes.

Write a Note- For a moment, remember your middle school years. What did half the classes do behind the teacher's back? Write and pass notes, of course! It was fun. Write thank you notes even for the small things that people do. Be specific and authentic. A thank you note is a very special way to show your gratitude.

Give a Gift- To say thank you is a gift in itself. Whatever your purpose, make the gift an interesting one. Is a major holiday coming up? Maybe you can wrap the gift in a holiday related fashion, or put it in a cute gift bag. You can make the gift a funny one. Go for it! The gift doesn't necessarily have to be flamboyant, just make it something meaningful, something from your heart. Even a thank you card can last a lifetime.

Recognize Publicly- Whether you smile, write a note, or give a gift, you can do it in two major ways. The first is to recognize someone in front of others. Special celebrations such as a graduation or birthday party, are great times for public recognition. You can thank someone for playing a part in your own achievements. If you ever happen to write a book, the acknowledgements page is a great way to say thank you. Even to say thank you in the presence of good friends is memorable.

Appreciate Privately- Words of gratitude said in private can be very special. A thank you in a small circle of close friends is a great way to show gratitude. It is also a perfect way to express appreciation for one's spouse. When you say thank you to those that are close to you, even when they are only acquaintances or co-workers, you begin to develop an attractive personality. People appreciate it when someone can notice the small things they do. It brings them a world of pleasure.

With a Handshake- This is the general form of greeting in America. You can also express gratitude with the same gesture. You may accompany the handshake with a few words of encouragement or even a simple thank you. Remember to smile, keep your posture, and shake hands like you mean it.

With a Kiss- If you ever decide to visit France, you will find that the French are genial with their greetings. A kiss in the moment of gratitude may be acceptable depending on the cultural context and circumstance of the event. When it is between spouses in private, it can be a passionate kiss. When done in a public setting, it may be quick and cheerful. Depending on the setting and purpose, a kiss is a great way to say thank you, a moment one may be reluctant to ever forget.

Give a Pat on the Back- A friendly gesture, it is great as a sign of support and is a perfect way to show gratitude. When a job is well done, a pat on the back by someone in a "higher position" may very effectively portray one's gratitude. Specifically coaches make it popular. Whether it's a great play or a thank you for effort in class, a pat on the back is a great tool for showing thankfulness.

With a Hug- Everyone at times need a hug. The reasons for doing so can be endless, but a very meaningful reason would be to say thank you. Depending on the situation, a hug can be a great way to say thank you. The perfect moment offers perfect
opportunities.

Do Something Special- Get creative! Think about what is meaningful to the person you want to thank. What will make them smile as if they won the lottery? Do they have specific hobbies or interests? How can you make them feel special or appreciated? For what do you want to thank them? What will be your great idea? As long as you express the message and the person understands it, you accomplished your goal. Do the best you can and don't be afraid to experiment with multiple ways. When you appreciate others, appreciation is bound to return to you.

NATIONAL HOLIDAY'S FOR THE MONTH OF MARCH 2012!

   It's another new month.  Let's see what March 2012 has in store for us!

• March 1st, National Pig Day-To celebrate National Pig Day, go out and buy some bacon or a ham and pig out. Everybody give a shoutout OINK! OINK! OINK! Or if you're from Arkansas....SOOEEE!

• March 2nd, Name Sake Day

• March 3rd, National Anthem Day-Go out to a sporting event and listen to an anthem....Just as long as Christina Aguilera isn't singing it...If she is, might want to give her the words to it!!!

• March 4th, Dentist's Day- Go out and get a new toothbrush. If you have a Dental appointment on this day, remember....rinse then spit!

• March 5th, Name Tag Day

• March 6th, U.S. Snowshoe Day

• March 9th, False Teeth Day-Go to Grandma and Grandpa's house and hide their teeth. Or you can say a solemn prayer of thanks to George Washington, the father of false teeth.

• March 10th, Learn What Your Name Means Day

• March 11th, Paper Day- What day goes by when we don't use paper? How about a don't use paper day or save a tree from the paper mill day.

• March 14th, Potato Chip Day-This will be a big day for all of the snackers around the world.

• March 15th, Buzzards Day-This holiday should coincide with road kill day.

• March 16th, Lips Appreciation Day-Pucker up honey, I'm gonna plant a nice wet kiss on you today.

• March 17th, St. Patrick's Day-Don't forget to wear something green and don't drink too much. If you don't drink, go out and have a nice dinner of corned beef and cabbage! I will also be having a story about the history and folklore of St. Patricks' day coming soon....so stay tuned.

• March 18th, Rubber Band Day-Get your child a rubber band gun and let him wreak havoc on your pets and his siblings.

• March 19th, Swallows Return to San Juan Capistrano Day

• March 20th, Kiss Your Fiance Day-It could be a nice day to kiss your wife today also!

• March 22nd, International Goof off Day-I always look forward to a day where I can goof off and not have to ask permission to do it! YYYYYAAAA!!!

• March 23rd, Near Miss Day-A good day to almost get a traffic ticket.

• March 24th, Kick Butts Day

• March 25th, Letting Go of Stuff Day- The day that every hoarder refuses to celebrate.

• March 26th, Make Up Your Own Holiday Day- Isn't that how we get all of these other non-national holidays? We just need something to celebrate 24/7/365 days of the year!!

• March 27th, Viagra Day- For all of the older people in the world....just don't hope a STIFF wind starts blowing.

• March 28th, Weed Appreciation Day-Oh those poor, poor weeds.

• March 30th, Doctor's Day- Help your doctor out and go get some kind of exam today...so he can pay his bills.

• March 31st, National She's Funny That Way Day-The only time of year that we need to laugh at our significant others jokes.

Week Long Celebrations in March

    The first week in March is National Author and Illustrator Week. Be sure to visit the library and check out some of your favorite authors and illustrated books.

The first week in March is National Shoe Week. As winter is coming to an end and spring is just around the corner, go through your closet and get rid of those worn out shoes or if you have children, they are probably growing out of some. Give those to a charity for the less unfortunate.

The third week in March is National Bubble Week. Celebrate with a bubble bath for you, your kids or maybe that dog in the family that hasn't had a bath in about 2 or 3 months.

Month Long Celebrations in March

    March is Let's Go Fly a Kite Month, National Umbrella Month, National Frozen Foods Month and National Crafts Month. So many celebrations, so little time to do them in.

MARCH 2012 NATIONAL FOOD HOLIDAYS, THESE WILL MAKE YOUR TASTE BUDS JUMP FOR JOY!!

    Holidays are always fun to celebrate, but why wait a few months for the next major one to arrive when you could be enjoying some nice edible food holidays everyday of the month?

• March 1st, National Peanut Butter Lover's Day- This has to be one of the greatest national food holidays of the year, or at least for the month of March. Go and make a couple of PB and J sandwiches for lunch on this day.

• March 2nd, National Banana Creme Pie Day-While it still may be a little cold outside, why not enjoy a tropical banana cream pie for dessert....if you want a little more tropical, add some coconut.

• March 3rd, National Cold Cuts Day-This national food holiday is perfect for an evening when you're too tired to cook. Just stop by your local deli and pick up some favorite sliced meats and some soup.

• March 4th, National Pound Cake Day-What could be more delicious than a piece of pound cake served with some strawberries and whipped cream.

• March 5th, National Cheese Doodle Day-This national food holiday is easy to celebrate. Grab your favorite cheese doodles and a soda and crash on the couch and watch some t.v.

• March 6th, National White Chocolate Cheesecake Day-This is another national food holiday of pure pleasure for the stomach.

• March 7th, National Crown Roast of Pork Day-This isn't something you wear on your head. This is more upper crust food, usually done around Thanksgiving or Christmas. Just take the easy way out and barbecue some nice, thick pork chops.

• March 8th, National Peanut Cluster Day-Sure you can go out and buy them....but why not try and make some, they really aren't that hard.

• March 9th, National Crabmeat Day-Seafood is such a wonderful food to help you forget about the chilly nights. Make a seafood stew with crabmeat in it.

• March 10th, National Blueberry Popover Day-Popovers are good on their own....add some blueberries and enjoy them even more. Served with some bacon, eggs, and cereal.

• March 11th, Oatmeal-Nut Waffles Day-A not too guilty about something that's good for your body.

• March 12th, National Baked Scallops Day-If crab wasn't enough to get you over your cold weather blues, why not have some scallop fettuccini.

• March 13th, Coconut Torte Day- I'm not crazy about coconut. But if you like it go get some Hostess Sno-balls and pig out.

• March 14th, National Potato Chip Day-This has to be what a majority of people have been waiting for. Make yourself a sandwich, some soup and grap a bag of your favorites.....

• March 15th, National Pears Helene Day-I'm not much of a fan of them either...maybe you could poach some for you and your sweetie...with some vanilla ice cream.

• March 16th, National Artichoke Hearts Day-My wife loves these, I'll give her a shout out for this one....HHHHEEEEYYYY!

• March 17th, Corned Beef and Cabbage Day- Let us give thanks to the Irish for this one.

• March 18th, Oatmeal Cookie Day-What better way to celebrate this one....by making a big batch with your children.

• March 19th, National Chocolate Caramel Day-Go out and split a candy bar with yourself.

• March 20th, National Ravioli Day-Go open a can of them, pop it in the microwave and watch a little t.v.

• March 21st, California Strawberry Day-Slice up a bowl full of them, put them over some ice cream and drizzle a little chocolate of the whole thing....YYUUUUMMMM!!

• March 22nd, Coq Au Vin Day-If you don't like complicated dishes that require a full day in the kitchen, do yourself a favor and head to a nice French restaurant and leave it to the experts.

• March 23rd, National Chip and Dip Day- Another day for snackers around the world to unite, raise a chip high in the air and dunk it in some tasty dip.

• March 24th, National Chocolate Covered Raisins Day-Time to hit the candy isle for this one, or go out and see a movie, they usually have them there.

• March 25th, Pecan Day-Stop by the bakery on the way home and pick up a Pecan pie.

• March 26th, Spinach Day-Also known as Popeye Day, UUUKKK!! UUUKKK!!UUUKKKKAAAA!!!..."He's strong to the finish, that's why he eats his spinach. He's Popeye the Salor Man"!!!

• March 27th, National Spanish Paella Day-Takes alot of time to make...you may want to go out and have someone make this for you.

• March 28th, National Black Forrest Cake Day-  Chocolate...Chocolate...Chocolate!!!

• March 29th, National Lemon Chiffon Cake Day-I've got to love that lemon cake!!

• March 30th, Turkey Neck Soup Day-I think on this day, all of the turkeys are hiding until Thanksgiving...they don't want to loose their necks quite yet.

• March 31st, Tater Day-What day isn't a good day to have some Taters!! You'all agree with Me??

NEVERMORE HALLOWEEN WREATH!

   This diy comes from www.kdatydidandkid.com .  Very cool, I like this!

Nevermore Halloween Wreath {Tutorial}

One of my favorite holidays is just around the corner--Halloween! I love everything about it, from the chill in the air, to crackly, curled up leaves on the sidewalks, to costumes and spooky decor. In the spirit of the holiday, I decided to craft a goth-like wreath for the front door, using stuff I found at the local dollar store.

It cost all of 3 bucks to make, but I think the finished result looks quite elegant, almost like a feather boa.

Here's the wreath hung on the back door

I purchased a foam wreath, a fake raven, and a roll of black crepe paper (it also came with an orange roll, but I need to figure out something to make with that). I also used scissors and Glue Dots that I had on hand to use for adhesive, but you could certainly use hot glue, a stapler, or other binding agent (within reason).








I'm a big fan of black birds, crows, ravens, etc., so I thought this bird would look spooky perched on the wreath.






Now I can't get Edgar Allen Poe out of my head: "Quoth the raven, "Nevermore!"" Hence I leave you with the Nevermore Wreath.

So here's what I did:

STEP ONE
Cut a length of crepe paper, roughly a yard long. Fold it in half and cut it at the end, fold it again and again until you have a bunch of pieces that are 3-4" long (on the left, in photo below). You could cut them individually, but I find that the folding method makes quicker work of it.







Holding the stack of crepe paper as seen above (on the left), cut out a shape that looks rounded like a feather. Get rid of those points on the end like in my photo!







Ah, much better. Also, cut a stack of ones just slightly smaller. The variety helps make it look nicer, in my opinion.







Now you have a stack of "feathers" to start adhering to your wreath form. I made more stacks periodically while creating the wreath.

STEP TWO
Before assembling your wreath, I highly suggest spray painting it black or wrapping crepe paper around it (gluing periodically as you go) to hide the green. An unfortunate result of gravity, the crepe paper feathers will "wilt" after a week or two of hanging up.

Once your wreath is ready to go, Glue your feather shapes onto the wreath. I started in the middle and worked my way to the outside, layering as I went. The Mini Glue Dots were really handy with this project.







I kept up this pattern of layering all the way around the wreath, making sure to glue the next line of feathers overlapping the previous line by about a half inch.






It's slow and steady work, but in all this entire wreath took me about an hour to do.






STEP THREE
Once you've made it all the way around, it's time to close the gap.







Gently tuck in some more feathers underneath the row you first started with. You might have to hold the wreath vertically and let those first feathers fall open to get the finishing feathers tucked inside (and glued, don't forget that!)







Fill in any other gaps or places you might see the green wreath peeking through.

The raven, minding the gaps

STEP FOUR



Ta da! The wreath is done!




Now time to attach the bird. He has wired feet, so this is an easy task.







I clipped the wire a bit and just stuck the wire into the wreath where I wanted him.








STEP FIVE
Add a ribbon. If I had found a nice, black, satin-y ribbon at the dollar store, I would have bought it. I thought I had some at home, but didn't (too many funeral gift wrapping projects--kidding!), so I just made a crepe paper ribbon.

Take a long piece (about a yard) and two shorter pieces (6") of crepe paper.








Fold the shorter piece into a loop and secure.






Pinch the "tube" in the middle, creating a bow tie, and secure the other short piece around the middle to hold it. Glue or tape it around the back.








Cut a notch on each end of the longer streamer to make it fancy,







and glue to the back of the bowtie. Pin or glue the entire ribbon onto the foam wreath.







STEP SIX
Add a piece of coordinating ribbon or a hanging hook to the back. I simply stuck two pins into the ribbon through the back of the wreath for hanging.







Fluff out your feathers, and display most graciously, I mean, ghoulfully!







I can't wait to hang it up this Halloween! I have a feeling I might just have to make one for the back door too.