In what way do you say thank you for gifts

[QueenOfTheKing]

Toddlers 2nd birthday soon, so I get with 1st birthday, she had a party and we sent thank you cards with a picture from her cake smash to anyone who sent and gave her gifts.

Do you do the same for 2nd birthday and so on, and stop at a certain age? I just want to know what the expectation is these days. She's not having a party this year, but she has a lot of people who love her and already asking what to get her for her birthday, so I just want to make sure we're doing the right thing :)

Same will apply to Christmas gifts too come to think of it...

Personally I think thank you cards are lovely to send to show your appreciation but also lovely to receive too, so I sent cards. Not personalised cards, just a generic batch of cards, but wrote a specific thank you for xyz in each, and said a bit about his day if someone couldn’t make it. I sent one/gave one to everyone who came to his party, who gave him a present or who sent money. He even ‘signed’ them (just turned two in November) this year!
The good thing about buying a big batch of generic cards is I can use them for Christmas thank yous too!

If it’s someone we see regularly I send a text. If it’s someone we see rarely I send a thank you card.

Once children are old enough to draw a basic picture I got them to make the thank you card and now write it too. It’s a good craft activity to keep them entertained and instills manners of saying thank you.

If it’s someone close but we didn’t see at the time, I might record a voice note of DC saying thank you instead.