...a thank you from astrid...

...this little thank you note made us smile. only us girls will thank our shoes. check astrid's shoes out here...

...jesse's surprise...

...we were all so jealous when lorraine won these stunning hand printed buttons donated by jesse at our last get-together...

...crocodile tears and goosebumps...

...this is the state kristen has left us in, an ugly mess...

                                     ~ c&h

"my thank you is to the sweet and soutie girls:

when i first received an invitation from "tjoutjou" on

twitter, whom i'd never met in "RL," to join a sweet and

soutie lunch, i was in a self-inflicted bubble of isolation

working days, nights and weekends on my business.

i had the social life of a quagga.

admittedly, i was super nervous to pitch up at a lunch

where i knew absolutely no-one, but i found myself

at ease in the midst of a group of colourful and like-minded,

i'll stress the word "genuine," women.

with different ages and backgrounds,and a peppering

of "sweet" and "soutie" personalities, we are all connected

by our need to express ourselves creatively and purposefully. 

this lunch was the starting point of some special friendships.

sweet & soutie has not only opened up a wealth of

creative opportunities for us, but also nurtures in numerous

other ways. whether it's for business or emotional support

or the sharing of joyful news, there is always a sweet and

soutie girl to reach out to!

after saturday's lunch of awesomeness, anja, a new member,

said: "i needed that." i couldn't agree more. 

so thank you, sweet and soutie sisters. i feel very blessed

to be a part of something so special."

 ~ kristen

...badge of gratitude...

...we absolutely love our badge of gratitude and appreciation, 

anja made these awesome badges out of clay, debossed each letter 

individually by hand, painted them gold and delivered them with love, 

so to anja, we all say thaaaaaaanks...

...thank you mommy! thank you for taking me to Ireland with you, to go to a wedding. 
the wedding was such an incredible experience. and all the sightseeing and 
touristy-things we did after the wedding, i enjoyed just as much. i am so proud of you. 
i know you specialize in the fine arts of reading, writing and sleeping but you took to 
walking the streets, the sights, the beeches and even the mountains of ireland with 
such gusto. even that horrible 9 hour stopover at dubai airport on our way back, 
you took in your stride. you graciously went along to see and do things - like the birds 
and looking at mummified bodies - that weren't of your choosing. 
and we were such a team driving ourselves around! i am so grateful for this shared 
experience we had.
THANK YOU.
your daughter, anja...

...FYI...

...at last i have a chance to post this 'thank you'. in the spirit of our latest theme, carmen made these stunning thank you cards that we handed out to every one that came to our exquisite~bunny~corpse~auction...

~ c&h

ps. carmen jy is 'n ster!

...huh and huh again...

...sjoe, anja is really good at keeping a secret. we have no clue what the next badge is going to look like. we wonder what she is doing with the gold paint...

~c&h

...snip-cut-past and ta daaaaa...

...just figuring out whom to give them too. will take photos when it happens...

~ carmen

...'n m*#@rse dankie...

...one of my favourite briefs that i do with my learners is called 'delicious monster'. the brief introduce visual communication 1 learners to the anatomy of typography. my stunning class produced such fabulous work this year and was an absolute pleasure to work with on this brief. i do not think that any job can be more rewarding when learners work so hard with you as a lecturer...

a m@#*rse dankie/thank you goes to the aaa school of advertising's visual communication 1 learners. you guys rock!

~henriette

...dear dr bester...

...i've been putting off writing this letter to you for 12 weeks and 1 day. the truth is that i think about doing it everyday, but what words can i ever put on paper that will adequately explain how eternally grateful i am for saving me and my baby, mila! you were there in my most terrifying moments, this baby that i loved before she was even conceived, my child, my daughter, we came so close to losing her. from the bottom of my heart, and with my whole soul, i thank you! thank you for being there, thank you for acting so quickly and thank you for giving me every moment from that second you delivered her safely. you will never be forgotten. i will think of you with gratitude everyday.

one day when mila is old enough i will tell her about you and what you have done for our little family. today, i will put these words on paper and send it to you!

forever grateful...

~ chantelle arpesella

...is it a bird, is it a plane, no it's...

...the teaser of our sixth badge. we can't wait...

...six of the best and not one less...

saying thank you for me is also about showing gratitude. i spent the past weekend (first weekend in april) with my family celebrating my sister angelique's wedding.
i am grateful for the time with my five sisters. the first time we have been altogether in twelve years!
this is all of us on  chapaman's peak drive.

~ lorraine

...@%*# you...

...these days we are all more likely to say and hear '@#*% you' than thank you. well the theme for this chapter is to encourage every one of us to say thank you. now not the dismissive, thanks wave, you quickly mouth out to the car guard, you don't feel like tipping, as you drive off. we mean a real THANK YOU, you have gone out of your way to help me, or you make my day better and I REALLY appreciate it. it takes sooo little effort. if you've ever been really thanked by someone, you know how great that feels to be validated for your efforts. so let's make a special effort to REALLY thank people the next time you feel that someone has brightened your day or helped you in some way. ask to speak to their manager, supervisor or boss and tell them how happy the person has made you by doing a great job! let's try validate the unvalidated, and spread a little love...

p.s.
anja found a quirky blog that takes saying 'thank you' to a whole new level, enjoy.

~ c&h