Maybe this is way off base, but what's wrong with picking up the phone and calling to confirm receipt of the gift? I think I'd just forget about the emails and call and just ask if the gift had been received and state my concerns, as if I'd never even sent the email. In other words, I'd act on the assumption (whether true or false) that the emails had not been read. If she said anything about the emails I'd just say, Oh, since I didn't hear back from you I figured they hadn't gone through. On the topic of Thank you notes, I'm not as nice as gellchom (I already knew that!). I'm one who thinks that people who don't send thank you notes don't need any more gifts. So... here's my story of an ungrateful recipient. A daughter of a friend's apartment caught on fire, she escaped with her life and singed eyebrows! Several of uss dug into our closets to give her some basic items to help her make a new start, I gave sheets, a lamp, some other odds & ends. Subsequently she got pregnant. I (along with others) gave her a baby shower and a very nice gift. I gave her a gift when I visited her in the hospital, and another gift when I visited her later at her mother's house. For all of this I received no thank you note. Neither did any of the other shower-givers. I felt like I'd done a lot for this girl and yet she could not take a moment to sit down and write even one note to me. A few months later she got married. I attended the wedding but gave no gift. I figured I'd about done all I needed to for this girl. Thank you notes are important. As has been said above, the giver has given time, effort and expense to you and the few minutes it takes to write a note is not a lot to ask. And it should be done in a timely manner. A year is not timely. I'm afraid that gifts have become expected so that some people think they are owed. That's too bad. A gift isn't supposed to cover the cost of attendance at the wedding or meet any other criteria except that it should be given from the heart. And I agree that I'm not giving a gift in order to receive anything in return per se, but if I give from the heart and don't feel that the recipient has similar feelings in his/her heart for me, it doesn't make me want to rush out and buy yet another gift for that person. A thank you note is such a simple and easy way for a recipient to say, I appreciate and return your feelings. Both of my sons were raised to send thank you notes for all gifts. They both had to address the envelopes themselves as well as write the note (when they were old enough to). My older son writes great notes which have humor and gratitude. My younger son tends to write two line notes. But either way, they understand the importance of the written note.

bail0081, we paid for 1/4 of the costs because 1) that was a huge chunk of $ for us; 2) she also has a mom & stepfather who I'm assuming paid for some of it; 3) we know her in-laws paid for some of it and 4) her husband is 33 years old, they have been living together for 6+ years both working lucrative jobs so the expectation was of course that they would pay for some of their costs. The son-in-law is very responsible and expected nothing from any of the parents and was very grateful for the costs we picked up. As colleen noted, times have changed, and for my own daughter, she and her husband paid for their entire wedding. If someone isn't happy with a parent picking up $5K of their wedding costs well they can get what I got for both of my weddings - nothing. We had modest weddings, paid for everything ourselves and had no hard feelings toward our parents. Since my original post, we have cut back a lot on gift giving, etc. when it comes to her because it isn't appreciated or even recognized. You are right southernsummer, I do feel a lot better now, no more frustration wondering if the gift was good enough, was it the right gift, was it not enough?? It's ridiculous, people should be appreciative no matter. We did send a really nice gift basket during the holidays, which i had custom made based on what they like. In return my husband got a text message, "got the basket, thx". Again, no enthusiasm, no thx to me, I guess she expects a new car. As for thank you notes, I don't even expect actual paper thank you notes at this point, but a verbal thank you when she got the gift or at the reception would have been nice.

As a professional photographer I have had the opportunity to see an entire wedding day and weeks later hear the bride's opinion of the day's flow. Listen to your church coordinator, florist, photographer & other wedding pro's advice. A private, romantic meeting before photographs start actually creates the first of two exciting "reveals". It is an opportunity for the couple to exchange wedding gifts ALONE. It will be the only time you have together the entire day. The second heart-pounding "reveal" moment is walking down the aisle. It will always be a memorable moment for both of you even if you've seen each other earlier. Shorten your photo request list if you insist on doing them after the ceremony. It will take two hours only if you give the photographer a two hour list. Your parents, family & friends are anxious to attend the party, not pose for photos. At this point you are on an adrenaline high yourself & wish you could just pop over to the reception. Now that carefully planned pose list has become an obligatory nuisance. Please do not keep your guests waiting for several hours during a cocktail hour. Yours may not be the only function they are invited to that day. I personally arrived at a reception as a guest, waited an hour and a half for the couple to appear (they had photos at a park after their ceremony) but had to leave for another social event. A reception is the time for the couple to "receive" their guests. Many times I have heard brides say "Oh, they'll entertain each other" in such a flippant manner. Many have such selfish attitudes toward guests: "Those bothersome guests should just drop my gifts by the door & leave me alone". Yes, this is your special day but don't throw social graces out the window.

I was taught cursive in the 60's elementary schools -- back when teachers had kids practice daily with a set method. No making up your own interpretations or doing it "your way"! My handwriting was pretty good, but for the last 20 years I've been using a keyboard more than a pen or pencil, so it's not as consistent as it used to be. My daughter had terrible handwriting for years, I think because her pre-kindergarten teacher gave the kids pencils and let them 'draw' the letters with no instruction where to start the pencil, when to push, when to pull, etc. So watching her print was painful ... there was no "flow" to it. She struggled for years. But now she has beautiful printing, and quite nice cursive too! What made the difference was she took a Drafting class in 11th grade. I have no idea what method the teacher used, but now dear daughter's printing looks like it was professionally type set. And she can write fast -- absolutely amazing. I'd recommend any high school kids out there look into taking a Drafting class if their school offers it.