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When someone has been exceptionally kind to you or gone out of their way to help you, a traditional thank you gift just won’t do. You need something extraordinary to show them how thankful you really are. Be sure to get your thank you gift out as soon as possible and include a note detailing just how thankful you are for your recipient’s kindness.

Here are some ideas that are far above the ordinary dozen roses.

1. Tickets to a sell-out event
   Your recipient will flip when they find out they’ve got seats to the hottest event in town. The one that’s sold out for every date. Try to check with a personal assistant or secretary before purchasing tickets to see if your recipient’s schedule is clear on that date.
2. A dinner cruise
   Send your friend on a lovely dinner cruise. Just about every city that’s near water has them. It’s a fun-filled night that your friend won’t soon forget.
3. Dinner at a fabulous restaurant with a wait list
   Get your friends on the list at a hot new restaurant and they’ll be thanking you.
4. A culinary walking tour
   If your friend is a foodie, give them a tour that hits all the culinary hot spots in town. If you’re lucky enough to live near New York, you can hit Little Italy, Chinatown, and many more neighborhoods known for their culinary greatness.
5. A flight lesson
   For the adventurer who has everything, give a flight lesson. Your friend can be copilot for a few hours along with a trained pilot. He will see the world from a whole new perspective.
6. Race car driving lessons
   For the hot shot who likes to drive fast, a race car driving lesson is the thing. You can gift your friend with a few hours of lessons on a real race track. Many tracks around the country will be able to handle your request.
7. A fishing excursion
   An avid fisherman will need no excuse to get away from it all. Give him a fly fishing day trip or rent a cabin for him so he can spend his down time doing something he loves.
8. An elite spa day
   For the lady who has always been there, treat her to a spa day at the Elizabeth Arden Red Door Salon or another prestigious locale. Get her a full day’s worth of pampering so she can relax away her cares.
9. A personal shopper for the day
   A style maven will love having a personal shopper on hand to help her select the trendiest outfits. Treat her to a day in the city with a shopper all her own.
10. A song all their own
    For someone too special for just a gift basket or a gift card, have a song written. A songwriter will write and record a song just for your recipient. This service is available through companies on the web and will surprise your recipient like nothing ever has before.

If these gifts are too extravagant for your tastes, you can still be thoughtful without breaking the bank. Send over a wine gift basket filled with an assortment of fine cheeses. Or offer to babysit your friend’s children for the weekend. That’s worth its weight in gold.

It’s the holiday season, and you’re not sure what to do about corporate gifts. Maybe you’re new to the company or the industry. Or maybe you’re just not sure what’s appropriate. It’s good to get advice before you send any gifts, so here are some things you should think about.

Before a single gift goes out your doors, make sure to check with each recipient’s company policy. Are they allowed to accept gifts? If gifts are under a certain dollar value (such as $25) is it okay? Each company is different, so assign an employee the task of calling each company to find out. It may take someone all day to call every company on the list, but it will save you embarrassment in the end. Even if you’ve got the greatest gift in mind and can’t wait to send it, you’ll find it’s returned to you if the recipient is prohibited from receiving it.

Do you have to give gifts? No. No one is expecting, or has a right to expect, a gift from your company. The reason you’d want to give a gift is purely because you value the relationship with the recipient. Have they been a good client all year? Have they helped you with rush orders? Have they been an indispensable part of your supply chain? Then by all means, recognize their good work with a gift.

This is the only good reason to send business holiday gifts. Any gift sent with the intention of “buying” a client’s allegiance is wasted. You’d be better off taking that account to lunch instead to talk business. People will see through your less than honest intentions if you send an expensive gift as a way of wooing them.

So, you’re sure you want to give gifts, now what should you give? This all depends on your unique situation. Are you a new company with little cash flow? Then you’re not going to be able to do the same sort of gifts a large corporation could. Nor should you have to. A simple, thoughtful gift is fine. Send a fruit basket the entire office at the recipient’s end can enjoy. Make sure the card includes  all those who are owed a thank you. A sentiment such as, “For everyone at XYZ Company, Thank you for making this our best year ever. Enjoy!” is perfect. In fact, even if your company has tons of reserve cash, you may still want to send food. Office workers love an unexpected treat like long stem cookies, gourmet brownies or exotic coffees. Splurge a little and recognize each department that’s helped you out.

Include a hand written note. Never print out a note. It may come off as impersonal. Take a few minutes to hand write on nice card stock a heartfelt note. It may make all the difference in whether you’re still in business with the recipient when the next budget cuts come around.

While giving a business gift won’t ensure that you retain clients or accounts, it will help others to see you as generous and grateful for their relationship with your company. If you can’t send something nice, don’t send anything at all. It’s better to just send a thoughtful card than a shoddy gift.

A housewarming party is the one time you can throw yourself a big party and everyone will be overjoyed to come. It’s a time to welcome friends and neighbors into your new place and get to know those who live nearby.

Be sure that you wait until you’re fully or at least almost unpacked so that you feel comfortable showing your house. It’s perfectly fine to wait several weeks to have your housewarming. You can even have it two months after. It’s totally up to you. If you need a little break from the move, let yourself relax before you plan the party. You want to be able to enjoy it too.

Once you have sent out cute invitations, turn your mind to what you’ll actually do at the party. Set up stations in several rooms so people can help themselves to finger foods. Keep in mind that some guests might bring a dish to share, so have a place for them to set it down and let people help themselves.  Some people may want to bring a housewarming gift.  If you would prefer that they didn't, you can state that on the invitation.

Guests will want to see the rooms in your new home, so be prepared to give several tours. You might group them together so that you take one every half hour or so as new guests arrive.

Formal games are not traditionally expected at a house party, but they can be fun. If you want to get everyone involved and introduced to each other, when guests arrive give them half of card that features a picture of half an object. For instance, one person could have a picture of half a bunch of grapes and another guest gets the other half. One person could have the head of a cow and the other has the body. If you can pick up a set of children’s cards that are already designed like this, it’s easy and fun. The object is to find the person with the other half of your image. This causes people to have to mingle and meet each other. It’s a great icebreaker too.

Another game you can play is “redecorate the room.” Choose one room in your house and offer people the opportunity to play interior decorator. Give out graph paper and colored pencils or pens. Guests can draw how they envision your furniture arranged. It's fun to let people take a try at it and you may even get some ideas out of the game that you can really use.

If you have one room in your house that you’re not finished with or one that was especially horribly decorated by the previous owners, you can use that room as the jumping off point for a game. Have guests come in and guess who lived there before you, what they did for fun, how old they were, if they had kids, etc. You can make up a little sheet so people can fill in their answers. You can also use this room as the “redecorate my room” space. People will be happy to offer suggestions on how a badly decorated room can be improved. You’ll have a lot of laughs in the process.

Overall, the housewarming party is a time for guests to mingle, be casual and get to see what you’ve done with the place. It’s a perfect time to make new friends and introduce your friends to people in the neighborhood.

If you really want to surprise and delight your new neighbors, bring them over a housewarming basket that you made yourself. You can include the things they’ll really need and like. Because you know the area so well, your recommendations of great places to eat and shop will be invaluable to them.

Start off with a sturdy basket. A clean galvanized metal pail also works well. Make sure it’s big enough to load up with lots of goodies.

Start with maps to area hot spots. They’ll want to know where the Starbucks and WalMart are. Even if you crudely draw them yourself, it’s a great way to break the ice. You can also print them directions to locations that are farther away. Yes, they may have a GPS, but if they have no idea there’s a great steak house nearby, they won’t know to try it. Also be sure to list any places they should avoid. You can do it in a light way such as, “If you need your car washed, go to Manny’s by the movie theater. Skip the one on Sunset.”

Then add things that people need when they first move in. Include supplies like pens, tape, a stapler, a pad of paper, sticky notes and any other things that they need to just jot something down quickly. Sure, they may have packed them, but who knows where the box is? Some people even go as far as to include a few rolls of toilet paper for those few days when you still can’t find the box marked “bathroom.”

If there’s a local specialty like chocolate chip cookies from the best bakery in town or fresh eggs from a local farm, include those too with a note that tells them exactly where to go for more. A gallon of milk is also a nice idea as they may not have had time to run out to the store. Some cereal and a few bowls and spoons are also great to have on hand.

You could go more traditional and just include a pre-made fruit gift basket or other food gift basket. That’s also going to be welcomed with open arms. Just be sure to include your full name, you husband and kids’ names, and your address and phone number so they know where to find you again. Even if you live three houses down in a new complex, they may forget which one is yours. Or, they may have been so busy when you delivered your basket that they didn’t quite get your name and are too embarrassed now to ask.

Think about what you’d need if you were new in town. List the names of the area hospital, bus schedules, library hours, or any other thing you think they might need to look up. Is there a great restaurant that stays open late? Include their menu. Are there several playgrounds within walking distance? Tell them about them all.

Your kindness will go a long way to winning new friends in the neighborhood. If you start off on the right foot, chances are you will have made a life-long buddy you can count on. Be sure to offer your help should they need anything and offer to help unpack if you feel comfortable.

When a person you love is ill, it’s hard to know what to say. That shouldn’t stop you from writing a card or a note to say how much the person means to you. Delaying the sending of a get well card is never a good idea. You want your card to be timely and thoughtful. But if sending it late is the only way to send it, still do go ahead and send it.

Here are some ideas of what you can write inside a get well note or card.

• Dear Ben,

I was so sorry to hear that you had broken your arm while skiing in Colorado. I know how much you had looked forward to the trip. If there’s anything I can do, please let me know. I will be thinking of you and hope you can use this time to get some much overdue rest. Don’t worry, you’ll be back to golfing in no time!

Sincerely,

Don Patterson

While this note may be specific to one situation, it gives you a guideline to start with for any get well letter. Start by saying you’re sorry the person is ill. Mention the illness unless it’s a long term illness. Saying, “sorry you have cancer” comes across as thoughtless, but you could say something like, “I am sure you are in excellent hands with your doctors.” Next, make an offer of your time or to be there if the person needs you. They may never have to take you up on it, but at least you offered. Be short and sweet. Don’t go into long rants about things that are bothering you, problems at the office where you both work, or any other downers. Just a few words about how you’ll be thinking or praying for a person can brighten their day. And try to be lighthearted if you can. A card that’s morose is not going to pick anyone’s spirits up. Sign it with your full name in case someone else opens the mail or the envelope gets lost. They may be wondering “which Don?” if you don’t spell it out.

• Dear Aunt Rose,

Mom told me that your rheumatism is acting up again when I called her last week. I am so sorry to hear that. I know you are such a trooper about your condition, but don’t overdo it. We are all praying for you and are looking forward to being able to visit you at Thanksgiving. Take care and know that you are loved and cherished by us all.

Love,

Peg and the kids

For a family member who you don’t see every day, you’ll want to write about how you found out they were ill (again, perhaps) and make a sincere comment about their personality. Are they always up and about and now saddened to be slowed down by illness? It’s ok to mention it. Tell the person you’re praying for them or that they are in your thoughts. If you are truly going to be able to get out to visit, say so, but never make an empty promise that you can’t keep. If there are children in the family, let them sign their names to the card too. A child’s chicken scratch can be a delightfully cheerful addition to a get well card.

If you'd like to send a little something extra to brighten their day, fruit gift baskets are a great idea.  Not only do they send a thoughtful sentiment, the nutrients in fruit can help speed their healing!

If a child in your life is sick, you’ll want to give them something to cheer them up and make them feel better. A broke arm or a case of the Chicken Pox can really get a youngster’s spirits down. When you show up with a get well gift for a child, the day is instantly brighter.

Some good ideas for gifts in the hospital are board games and toys that don’t make a lot of noise. A stuffed animal is always welcomed, but just check with the nurses as some floors can’t have stuffed animals due to infection precautions. But most times you’ll be invited to come in with your furry gift. Balloons also make kids smile. Most kids don’t really care about flowers, but a balloon is big time fun. Choose a shiny Mylar one in a fun shape and you’ll see the mood lifting.

Before you bring over candy or cookies or other goodies, check to see if the child has a restricted diet. For tonsils, ice cream is still the best remedy. Ask what flavor is the child’s favorite and then bring over a carton.

Other fun get well gifts for a bed-ridden child are DVD's they can watch to pass the time. Buy something that they don’t already have and is popular at the time. You may have to ask mom or dad if they already own a particular title. Show up with microwave popcorn and juice and you can make an afternoon of movie watching with the child.

Even if a child is older, you can still surprise them with a fun toy. Many games of mind skill will allow them to still rest in bed while playing. You can also be the hero of the day and show up with a new Wii or Nintendo game. Again, find out what the child already has.

While adults might like a good novel, check to see what the child enjoys reading before showing up with a book. You might think that a child would like a particular author, but you may be way off on their reading level and interests. Give them the book they really want by asking ahead what’s on their wish list. Often you can surprise them with several books in a new series and they’ll be entertained for hours.

It’s not a bad idea to bring over a new pair of comfy pajamas. If the child has to stay in bed, they might as well have new pjs. Bring slippers too so they’ll be ultra-snuggly. If you’re unsure of sizes ask or buy a bigger and a smaller size and you can always return one.

Sometimes all you need to do is show up to brighten a sick child’s day. Make them a homemade card with glitter and ribbons and hand deliver it. Include photos or make a little book for them to read that includes a story about a girl or boy with their name. They’ll love hearing a story with their own name in it. It’s the little things and the thought that counts sometimes. Don’t feel like you have to show up with an expensive item just to visit a sick child. You will be a welcome sight whether you come bearing candy baskets or not. And if you’re far away, be sure to send something in the mail as children love getting mail.