The gift of good manners.

Emily Post is of course the standard against which all are judged. This is a great book to help you introduce proper etiquette to your child.
This book is great for women of all ages. If you've ever been in a bit over your head on how to act in certain social situations, how to pronounce those French items on the menu, how to set the table, etc. then this book is a must.

Have you noticed the distinct lack of etiquette and good manners these days? Call me old fashioned but this irks me. I think that men should act like gentlemen and women should act like ladies {at least in public} and that children should behave and be polite {at least in public...we all know what monsters they can be at home}. I fully believe that this behavior just becomes second nature if it's what is expected from an early age, and while i know that this may be easy to say while Amelia is a baby and will be a more difficult task to implement as she gets older {hello toddler and teenage years} acting "like a lady" is just exactly what I expect out of her when she is old enough to grasp those concepts.

You know the kid in the restaurant that's running around like a banshee? Or the child in the grocery store throwing an all out tantrum? The young girl that burps at the table? Yeah, not under my roof. I don't expect a small child to be a perfect angel - that's simply not developmentally possible. But I do expect "please" and "thank you" to be automatic responses. I do expect a tantrum from time to time {it would be foolish not to} but I also expect my children to be able to go into public and trust that they can act appropriate.

It's a give and take of course, we {mom & dad} expect proper etiquette for certain situations and common courtesy for all situations but we know that no childhood would be complete without mudpies, tears when a sibling takes your favorite toy, and general rambunctious behavior - it's just a matter of drawing the line in the sand of what is ok and what isn't and then sticking to that.

I hope someday when she's at the home of a boss, a colleague, prospective in-laws or at work, a restaurant, etc she will appreciate her parents that taught her how to be proper and ladylike and show herself in the best light.