Hostess Gifts

          

       When invited somewhere, initially ask what you can bring. If you are told "nothing" or "don't worry about it" still don’t show up empty-handed. If they are welcoming you to bring food, bring your favorite holiday dish to share with the rest of the party. If it is a more formal occasion, show up with some flowers, or you can never go wrong with a bottle of wine or champagne to ring in the holiday. Wine charms are also a great gift, or cute paper hand towels for the bathroom are both decorative and useful. This is just a little something that shows you appreciate the host, and are grateful for the invitation to their event. 

       This week is a good week to stock up on hostess gifts for the holiday season if you aren't planning on hosting a party at your house, but you will be attending some in the very near future!

Sick During the Holidays

       Got the sniffles during the winter season? A bad cough at Thanksgiving dinner? What are you going to do so you don’t gross anyone out, but you are still able to join in on the fun?

          Having good manners is important, but having good manners when you’re sick is essential. When you are invited to go to someone’s house, party, celebration, especially during the holiday season, it is an honor being invited to celebrate with that person. You want to treat them with respect, and show up on time, be on your best behavior, and have fun. On top of that, you don’t want to risk anyone else of catching an illness from being in your presence. This is when being clean and having good manners really matters.

        When you’re sick, you really don’t want to get anyone else sick and have him or her go through the same thing you are going through. Wadded up tissues, being tired and fatigued, having no appetite, coughing uncontrollably, it really messes with your productivity. And you aren’t able to enjoy the party like everyone else because you do not feel well.

         Proper etiquette for when you are sick during the holidays would include: letting your host know in advance you are sick, and asking if you should still come, bringing tissues with you, and going into private if you need to blow your nose.

Awkward Holiday Situations

           

    Come the holidays, there are always those relatives or friends that are pressing you for information, or pressuring you to buy “good” presents, or there’s just tension between some people for personal reasons. How do you navigate these situations? The holidays are supposed to be about celebration and fun, not stress and anxiety.

        When family members start questioning your life choices, along the lines of: “When are you getting married?” “What are you going to do after school?” “Why aren’t you dating anyone right now?” “When are you going to have kids?” “Why haven’t you found a new job?” and so on. These can be personal, and stressful questions that you are not obligated to answer. What you should do is be very vague and not get too personal, and redirect the topic by asking your family a question at the end of your statement.* For example: “When are you going to have kids?” your answer could be “I’m working very hard on my career, and I want to travel a bit more before settling down. By the way, how are your kids doing?”*


        The stress of trying to find “good” gifts for those who are very judgmental of what they receive need not be a problem anymore. If there are some picky people to gift for in your life, go broad and generic with your gift purchases. Edible or drinkable items are god, but knowing what the person likes is good to get for someone who is difficult to buy for. Most likely, those tricky gift givers would use hand soap, and again, go very broad with scents, and maybe opt for a “clean” or “fresh” scent. Gift cards are always great too, especially places like Target where you can find anything there!

        Tension can always arise between family members that are in a fight, or a divorced couple who come to the same event. Be respectful, it has to be hard to be at the same party as someone you aren’t too fond of, so don’t air anyone’s dirty laundry and go around gossiping about other people’s personal lives. You want them to have fun just like everyone else, so don’t press them for any information or egg them on to be upset, they want to have a fun night out and celebrate with you! 

*Citation: Kimberly Fusaro, “Navigating Awkward Holiday Situations” Woman’s Day, November 25, 2013, http://www.womansday.com/relationships/family-friends/advice/a4298/navigating-awkward-holiday-situations-100658/

First Blog Post!

Welcome to our Please Pass the Manners blog! Check out our website pleasepassthemanners.com to check out more about me and my company. In order to gear up for the holiday season, we're going to be blogging tips, tricks, and etiquette on getting through the holidays!