Social Etiquette and Christmas Cards

It all started off with mostly good intentions. We are house bound with a tired toddler, a vomiting 4 year old and a 6 year old with an elephantine ankle following a nasty bee sting. In a effort to make the best of a bad day, I got festive. A couple of weeks ago I bought some christmas stamps, for the sole purpose of converting the piles of discarded artworks lying around the house into christmas cards (recycling, aka typically cheap). Never mind that they are mostly droid battle scenes and dinosaur/monsters killing each other with extensive weaponry caches. But now the whole exercise has become a lesson in social etiquette. Little brother made a intricate card, stamped his name carefully on it, and decided to keep it for himself. Then he fell back to sleep. Big Brother has been prolific in his jingle-bell generosity, working on cards for all the boys at school. Now that he can write there's no on-the-spot editing possible by mum. These were the range of his messages Dear A, Please invite me to your house. Dear B, Hope you have a christmas. Dear C, You are my third best friend. (I suggested that while might be true was it really necessary to write it down so black-and-white/honest? 'Perhaps you will hurt your friends feelings?' I asked. 'But Mum,' he replied, 'thats what he calls me!' 'Carry on then.' I capitulated.) Dear D, Have a good trip to Africa. (Are they going to africa for christmas? I asked. 'No, he replied, I meant to write I hope you HAD a good trip to Africa. Last Christmas.) Dear E, Happy Birthday. Dear F and G, Happy Christmas. ('I wrote that one to both of them' he showed me, obviously proud of his corner cutting abilities. 'Oh, great, which one gets to take it home? I asked. He cracked up laughing, 'Don't know!' he said. We laughed at the thought of how they'd have to decide.) Then came the envelopes. He put them all in and sealed them. 'Have you written the right person's name on the front? I asked, helpfully 2 minutes too late. He ripped them out of the envelopes and put them in new ones. He wrote their names on the front. Job done. Phew. Next year we'll probably go for a simple message on his Club Penguin page. Snail mail is so complicated and frankly, so, like, 2011.