Everyone loves to receive a beautifully wrapped gift, and it's fun to give surprises like that, too. But if your gift wrapping supplies aren't all neat and tidy, the process becomes a little more frustrating and a little less fun.

In a day and age when it's more common to send emails and texts, some of the standard "rules" that normally apply to thank you notes sent on nice stationery may have been forgotten. And, yes, it is possible to send someone a "thank you" electronically, but there's something extra special about sending a heartfelt note expressing the same sentiments.

It's not difficult to find lots of pretty paper and fun accessories like ribbons and bows when preparing to wrap a gift. But then it comes time to make some decisions, it's perfectly understandable to feel overwhelmed.

It can be difficult to find the perfect thing to give someone as a gift. The trouble with things is that not everyone likes the same things. Things get lost, things get damaged, things get put aside and forgotten.

Now is the time to start preparing for the holiday season, so you can sail right through the most wonderful time of the year. Keep these tips and ideas in mind as you plan ahead for your cards and gift wrap.

Gift wrapping hasn't exactly gone the way of dinosaurs just yet. There are still stores that offer the service in one form or another, but the days when most stores routinely offered courtesy gift wrapping seem to be over. Millennials, in particular, are typically more accustomed to using gift bags, and a lot of consumers have different gift-giving habits than what was popular in the past. There are just some of the reasons why gift wrapping as a courtesy service is less common.

For generations, parents, teachers, and other adults have delighted in reading storybooks to children. Even in today's digital age, there are many significant and potentially long-lasting benefits to capturing the imagination of a child. Whether it's a classic fairytale or a tale meant to impart an important moral lesson, storybooks are still as essential to childhood as ever.

When it comes to invitations, nearly everyone will send at least one or two at some point in their lives. The Emily Post Institute warns about sending an invitation too late and states it's better to plan and send them early rather than wait until the last minute.

For more than a century, children of all ages have been honoring their mom on Mother's Day, an occasion celebrated by eight out of every ten Americans. Today, it's a $20 billion holiday in terms of what consumers collectively spend every May.

Gifts come in all shapes and sizes, not just things that can easily neatly into boxes. While there's nothing wrong with literally thinking out of the box when it comes to gifts, it can be a challenge to try and wrap those gifts in a way that doesn't take away from the surprise.