Don’t you just love to get mail? I do! What a simple pleasure it is when checking my mail to find at the bottom of a stack of bills and magazines a card or letter from a friend. E-mail has caused a great decline in the handwritten note. I’m not saying I don’t enjoy reading the e-mails I receive but it definitely brightens my day more when there is an unexpected, old-fashioned piece of mail for me to open.

It’s nice to hear someone say, “I love you” or “I’ve been thinking about you”, but it’s more meaningful knowing someone took the time to write it. Writing requires thought and effort. I cherish those handwritten notes from my husband, my children, my parents, my grandparents, my friends. I have this permanent record I can read over and over again, cherish time after time.

For Christmas last year, my grandmother presented me with some letters I had written to her when I was a child. It was so much fun to read about my life in my own handwriting.

childhood letter I wrote at about age 8

Let your children write letters! Encourage them to write! It doesn’t matter if they don’t spell correctly or have the neatest handwriting. Just give them markers or crayons, paper, stickers and let them go at it.

And now for the fun mail! A simple, fun way to send mail to someone you love!

When my sister served her mission for our church she had a signature style for sending her letters. When anyone received a kraft colored letter in their mailbox they immediately knew it was from her. She folded the letter in a special way, added a cute label to keep it shut, and mailed it as is. No envelope was needed. Genius, right?

Here’s how to fold your own.

Fold a sheet of regular sized paper (8.5 x 11 inches) in half, bringing the short sides together.

Open it up and bring in the edges to meet the fold line in the middle.

Fold the bottom up so the edge is about 2/3 of the way up.

Fold the top down so it overlaps by about an inch.

Tuck the bottom edge of the letter into the pocket of the top edge.

Secure with a label. Flip it over, address and stamp the letter. Send it to someone special!

Since the cost of a stamp covers sending two or even three sheets of paper, my sister would also include tiny notes inside the big one for my children. She would just use a half sheet or even a quarter sheet of paper for their letters, fold them the same way and place them inside the big letter before folding it up. My kids LOVED getting these tiny pieces of love in the mail.

Most of us can think of at least one person who we could write to. It needn’t be a long letter, just a small gesture to let them know you care. So send a letter to a friend or loved one. You may just get one in return.

Now go brighten someone’s day. Let you kids write some letters, you write one too, and send some snail mail!

Be sure to visit these brilliant women during our 10 days adventure between November 7th-18th! I love these ladies and we know you will too.

10 days of Character Studies | Confessions of a Homeschooler
10 days of Christmas Countdown Ideas | Milk & Cookies
10 days of Creative Writing | Chocolate on My Cranium
10 days of Crockpot Meals | The Happy Housewife
10 Days to a Godly Marriage | Women Living Well
10 Days of Growing Leaders | Mom’s Mustard Seeds
10 Days of Homeschooling High School | Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers
10 days of I Wish I Had Known | Fruit in Season
10 days of Keeping Your Marbles | The Tie That Binds Us
10 days of Kid-friendly Food | Planner Perfect
10 Days of Language Arts Lesson Planning | Jimmie’s Collage
10 Days of Learning Apps | Daze of Adventure
10 Days of a Mason Jar Christmas | Cajun Joie de Vivre
10 Days of More JESUS in Christmas | Preschoolers and Peace
10 Days to a Peaceful Home | Raising Arrows
10 Days of Raising a Life-Long-Learner | Bright Ideas Press
10 days of Science with Math | Blog, She Wrote
10 days of Teaching Values | Our Journey Westward
10 days of Winning your Child’s Heart | I Take Joy

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