Mumsnet Talk

Dear x,

Thank you for Y. I really love it/have built it already/am enjoying playing with it.

Love Z

This is what my 7 yo has done in his thank you letters. Is this about normal? He is having some mental health problems but the gift givers don't know this. Is this about the level all 7 yo would come up with? I don't want them to think he is ungrateful.

that is absolutely fine.

a short note of appreciation is all that is required.

Thanks Milicano I suspect I have overthought it and lost all perspective.

Bad people here thank you phone calls, texts or emails only here.
For two reasons.
DHs writing is truly illegible, his parents were English teachers. You can imagine the rest. He says he'd have rather distant aunts didn't send him things than the hell of letter writing.
DD1 is dyslexic, thank you for my X it is very nice could take all afternoon.

His letter seems fine!

startail It did take a while - and that was when he felt willing! I totally feel your pain.

Thanks everyone. I will post today if that format is acceptable.

Now to find addresses!

Last year I bought a packet of blank postcards and just got my DC to draw a picture for the recipient - usually something to do with the gift they got - and to write a little title under the picture (my new lego, for example). Some cards I just did a big bubble-writing THANKS and he decorated the letters with the fancy pens Santa had brought him and glitter, etc - whatever took his fancy. He did a few each day of the holidays and enjoyed drawing much more than he would have enjoyed writing. I wrote a very brief thank-you on the other side (Dear X DS is thrilled with his BLANK and has been enjoying it every day of the holidays. Thank-you for thinking of him, love Y) He got to do the fun part - drawing and sticking on stamps/putting something in the post box every day - the boring part got done by me without any nagging, the recipient's effort was acknowledged and they had a completely personal picture to show the child was making some effort to think of them, or at least their gift. Everyone happy.

Good luck with the mental health issues - if you are dealing with that, have just aced Christmas AND are managing thank-you letters then you are clearly related to Wonder Woman. Go you!

marinator a little Wonderwoman blood would go a long way here.

Your ideas are great and similar to things I have done in the past with ds and dd. I was just worried that by now people might expect ds to have moved on (and he hasn't really) and we are not at the stage of telling those further afield about what is going on as yet.

I'm afraid I wrote dd's again as a joint one with ds and dd2 who can't write yet. Dd is six and capable, but I have got all letters in post before new year with a mention for all the gifts and how they've enjoyed, some news about out Christmas and good wishes for 2012. I would have liked dd to write hers but I figured that a letter by me in the post is better than an unposted pile of good intentions (like last year )

Btw your example of a seven year old's note very much acceptable.

Thanks Molehill that is good to know. I was tempted to write a note with them as well but had written individual letters with the Christmas cards so didn't have much more to say.

I've got my two to record video messages on dd's camera this year. ds is dyslexic and although he can write it is a bit like drawing blood out of a stone, so I thought my family might prefer five minutes of him talking instead (plus they get to see that their gift did arrive). We'll see how it's received.

I think that's fine. When we were children we always had to do more than a page - I will not be enforcing this!

That letter sounds fine from a seven year old.
I am sitting here writing my four year olds for her.... Just leaving her to write her name, which will be chore enough.
I know for a lot of people Thank you letters are going out of fashion, but I still enjoy receiving them and I think it is important for the children.
< old gimmer >

Moomoomie obviously I feel the same.

My dcs received 5 gifts from people who weren't there on Christmas day with us.

2 of these people are elderly friends who will have gone without something in order to buy for my dcs and it matters to me that we do our best to show that it is appreciated.

The others live a distance away from us and, apart from anything else, I want them to know that their gift arrived safely. I also want them to know that we are grateful too.

Like I said... Wonder Woman
My NYR is to actually get ours stamped and posted tomorrow - u have put me to shame!

I love the postcard idea.