Having a wedding does not stop with the last dance at the reception. As any couple knows, the honeymoon soon follows and then the dreaded Thank You note phase awaits upon returning from the honeymoon. Several companies offer this service as part of their wedding package, but you may feel it is much more personal and meaningful if you fill out the notes together. The guests who bought you a gift put time and thought into what they bought from your registry, so the polite thing to do is to personalize your appreciation of their kindness before you forget about it. The best time to send your Thank You notes out is within two weeks of returning from your honeymoon. This serves two purposes.

It shows the gift giver that you appreciate their thoughts and gifts by thanking them in a timely manner. It also ensures that you do not forget to do it. The longer you let them go, the easier it is to make excuses not to do them.

Forgetting to send Thank You notes to friends and family in a timely manner after your wedding can cause many problems in the future, so be sure to do this as soon as possible. The exception to the two-week rule is if somebody sends you a gift before the wedding. If they are thoughtful enough to ship a gift to you and your soon-to-be spouse before the wedding, you should send them a Thank You note immediately. It will only take a minute to sit down and write a short Thank You message to this person and they will know that you appreciate their thought.

When filling out your Thank You notes, mention the gift that the person has given. If you open your gifts at the reception, it is a good idea to have a close family member next to you when opening the gifts so they can write down who gave what. This speeds along the process and keeps your guests from getting bored. If you open the gifts at home, be certain to keep some type of record of the gifts and who gave them.

It is important to mention the gift in the Thank You note so the giver knows that you filled the cards out personally. It will give it that extra touch that will ensure that the giver does not feel slighted by an impersonal message. For the gifts of money, it is bad etiquette to mention the amount in your Thank You. It is proper to mention that it was a gift of money, but mentioning the amount is not called for. Simply say that you and your spouse have put the money to good use in starting your new life.

You can even say something specific that the money was used for, such as "Your gift of money was used to buy a new refrigerator for our new home." As long as your money was not blown on something foolish, the giver will feel that they have helped a new couple just starting out in life. One of the most important aspects of a wedding is being able to show appreciation for the things that others have done for it. This includes the people who show up for the event and the people who bring or send gifts to you and your spouse.

They have put thought into their gift and it is only proper manners to thank them for it. To follow correct etiquette, it is also important to send the Thank You notes quickly to show your appreciation.

Andi Michaels is the father of 4 grown up children and writes regularly on family related topics including relationships and groom's gift and much more