All of us correspond with other people almost every day. The habit of writing letters by hand is becoming a dying art. The new age of computers makes this ritual faster when letters are typed, and editing them is much easier than having to use an eraser. I enjoy writing letters by hand because I like the personal touch it gives. It proves I’m human when I have to cross out or erase a mistake or two. I enjoy drawing illustrations while I’m writing to get a point across to the one I send the letter to. I know you can do that with the computer technology we have now, but it just is not the same.

I enjoy making my own stationary. That’s when I like the convenience of using the computer! I can run off as many copies of my current stationary fad as I want to use for a while. I still like to write the body of the letter by hand though. It also shows the person I’m writing to that I’m taking extra time out of my schedule just for them. Get back in touch with someone you’ve not heard from in a while by hand writing a letter today. It will make you both feel better.

I received an e-mail from one of my distant relatives in another state the other day informing me of some genealogy. She mentioned a road near where she now lives where her family settled after moving westward from my home state. I wrote her back and told her that there is also a road that used to have a wooden-floored bridge by the same name as the road she had mentioned to me. Excitedly we have written back and forth over the past week discovering that evidently there was another family that must have moved from my state to where she now lives at about the same time as our relatives, and named the bridge the same as the one near where I live. More research for us family genealogist to do now!

Everyone can write poems with a little effort.  All poems do not have to rhyme like some people think.  Some are just an extension of one’s thoughts.  A poem can be lengthy, or very short.  There really is no right or wrong to writing poetry as long as it sounds good to you personally.

Give an assignment to write a poem to your children as a family project, and see what kinds of prose they come up with.  It might surprise you how well they can do when given the opportunity to be creative with words.   Don’t forget to save a few of the poems to include in the family scrapbook.  Years from now they may laugh at their antics; but it could also inspire a child to become a well known writer in the future.

     Character is something that grows within a person who hold honesty and integrity as high virtues.  We all like to be respected.  Our peers often seek out those among their friends who they can trust their innermost feeling with.  Make everyone feel welcome in groups, especially new people.  Introducing them to everyone helps them feel less uncomfortable.

Always try to have a positive attitude, and look for the good things in people.   If someone does something hurtful to another, the human reaction is usually withdraw from the situation if possible.  Don’t feel that you have to retaliate.  Most of the time, people that hurt others on purpose, don’t end up with many friends.  That in and of itself is a form of punishment.  Be kind to others, and usually the kindness will be returned ten fold.

All families like to pile in the car on a day off once in a while and go on an adventure. Family trips can be fun and relaxing if a few things are planned out ahead of time. If you will be traveling in the car for more than an hour or so, you may want to take some activities along to keep children occupied. Play a license game about who can find the most plates from a certain state. Or maybe see who can spot the most barns, or other buildings, along the way first. Some nationwide motel and restaurant chains now provide map-type brochures that have games and other activities that families can be amused with while on vacations or shorter trips away from home. They are usually kept near the checkout register; but ask a cashier if you don’t see them on display.

Don’t forget to take water or light refreshments to enjoy along the way too. And the day can be even more fun if your whole family packs a picnic lunch together. Have everyone pick a favorite food to put in the basket. If toll booths will be along your travel path, bring extra change. Stop occasionally on long trips to allow everyone to stretch their legs. Automobile trips are a good way to make cherished family memories of times spent together.

Following the Doctor’s orders is the best way to get over an illness. Those orders can be followed through with the help of a spouse, or whomever may be caring for you. A recovery time may be a matter of hours, days, or with life threatening illnesses, it may take months to be restored to health.

The most important thing is to take all the advice and medications your physician has given to you, keep set appointments and let others help during the days of recovery. Things that must be done can be handed over to others, or arrangements can be made to do them at a later date. Get plenty of rest. We are not indispensable, and life has its way of letting us know that fact.

I enjoy cooking, and having my recipes in sight while I’m preparing them is important for a couple of reasons. First, I want to see them from all angles when I’m busily moving around the kitchen sink area. My kitchen is small, and having the font a little larger and in bold print makes it easier to read. Secondly, I like to keep food and liquids from getting on the cards. My cards are all laminated on the backs. I don’t laminate the fronts in order to be able to jot something on them if I want to. There is a small piece of velcro attached just below one of my cabinets. When I’m using a recipe card, I attach a piece of rolled up tape to the back of the card. I then push the card against the velcro on my cabinet. If I don’t need to have a recipe card out, the velcro on my cabinet has a small, cute item hanging on it (with a matching velcro piece also on the back of it). The item can be a large unique button, a tiny picture frame, or anything I like to have on display at the time. Being able to interchange things that hang there, gives me the opportunity to make it look different all the time. Folks never know what is going to be hanging there in my personal little display area. If a card becomes sticky from using tape, I use a little alcohol or soap to wipe the stickiness off. I then tuck it back in the recipe card box, clean as a whistle, until the next time it needs to be used.

Another way to have a recipe card handy while in the kitchen, is to glue a clothespin to the inside of a cabinet door. Decorate the clothes pin with paint and little flowers to keep it from being unsightly when the door is open. Don’t leave the clothes pin unused. Hang a favorite verse or family picture there. Every time you open the door, you will be uplifted by the verse, or reminded of how special your family is to you.

Everyday dishes are fine to use whenever you like, but those special dishes we use for company could come out of the cupboard more often too.  Use a teacup or two, once in a while, to hold a floating candle during a party.  A dinner plate from your cherished set can make a fine holder for those large three or four wick candles.  The bread plate or saucer could be the perfect setting for the smaller candles. 

Don’t be afraid to mix and match your dishes.  Buy a few place settings from a thrift store to use when a small group of friends pop in.  Just make sure they are kept in the same color scheme.  All may have different pink roses in each place setting, or they may have yellow or blue flowers on them.  This makes the gathering seem fun and quaint at the same time.   After this enjoyable day, your guests will be scurring out to find some cute sets like these at thrift and consignment stores to use the next time you pop in on them.