The days after the holidays can be the hardest for a friend going through a tough time. 12 Days of Friendship can be a great way to help your friend though those days. Gather a group of 12 friends and assign each friend a day. (You can organize this easily by creating a WhatFriendsDo team page or putting it on your team calendar.) Each friend then delivers or sends a card and gift based on the theme that day. Many of these gifts can even be sent to your friend straight from Amazon!
To get started, all you need to do is send an e-mail to your friend's support system. If you create a team on WhatFriendsDo, you can easily cut and past the explanation of each of the 12 Day of Friendship to your team calendar. Here's a sample e-mail and a card you can print and fill out for each day to make it really easy!
Dear Friends –
The time after the holidays can be especially lonely. Let's keep the holiday cheer going for a little longer by following the old tune, The 12 Days of Christmas, only we're going to make it The 12 Days of Friendship!
Check out [friend's name] team page on WhatFriendsDo and sign up for one of the 12 Days listed.
You can order something from the links listed or you can get creative and bring you own item. Don't plan on staying long if you are dropping something off in case [friend's name] is not feeling up for visitors.
Have a wonderful holiday season and thanks for all you have done to support [friend's name] so far!
Print this card (Right click, save to your computer and then print.) for each day and give it to your friend along with the gifts.
Here are our favorite 12 Days gift ideas for 2016:
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On the First Day of Friendship, my good friend gave to me -- a delicious pear from a pear tree.
For Day 1, order some nutritious and delicious pears from Harry & David. Or a bag of pear Jelly Belly jelly beans. Either way your friend will love the yummy treat!
Day 2
On the Second Day of Friendship, my good friend gave to me -- 2 turtle doves.
For Day 2, give your friend turtles and doves, chocolate that is!
Day 3
On the Third Day of Friendship, my good friend gave to me -- 3 French hens.
For Day 3, chicken soup is a great idea for your friend who isn't feeling so well. Chicken soup in a "French hen" cup is extra fun! Bon Appetite.
Day 4
On the Fourth Day of Friendship, my good friend gave to me -- 4 calling birds.
For Day 4, to manage the phone calls from friends, family and doctors offices give your friend a bird calling pad to help keep them organized.
Day 5
On the Fifth Day of Friendship, my good friend gave to me -- 5 golden rings
For Day 5, give your friend 5 golden napkin rings. You can also bring dinner if your friend would like it or send along a note with the promise of dinner another time. Or bring 5 donut rings (my personal favorite because it’s cheaper to buy six donuts and I can eat one myself!)
Day 6
On the Sixth Day of Friendship, my good friend gave to me -- 6 geese a laying.
For Day 6, give beautiful decorative eggs. If your friend is crafty, bring your own paints and tools to make blown eggs to give as gifts this year.
Day 7
On the Seventh Day of Friendship, my good friend gave to me -- 7 swans a swimming.
For Day 7, let your friend float like a swan...in the bathtub. Send some bubble bath and maybe a few rubber ducks just for fun.
Day 8
On the Eighth Day of Friendship, my good friend gave to me -- 8 maids milking.
For Day 8, attach some Milk Duds to a Netflix gift card and enjoy a movie with your friend. A gift card for a milk shake is also a great gift!
Day 9
On the Ninth Day of Friendship, my good friend gave to me -- 9 ladies dancing.
For Day 9, in order to dance you're going to need some music. Send an i-tunes gift card for downloading a few favorite tunes.
Day 10
On the Tenth Day of Friendship, my good friend gave to me -- 10 lords a leaping.
For Day 10, leaping lords get sore feet. A Spafinder gift card for a pedicure makes a great gift. A pedicure set can be handy in the hospital.
Day 11
On the Eleventh Day of Friendship, my good friend gave to me -- 11 pipers piping.
For Day 11, let your friend have a little fun. Send some bubble pipes or flutes and get 11 friends sign up on the WhatFriendsDo team calendar to fill your friends room with bubbles or music.
Day 12
On the Twelfth Day of Friendship, my good friend gave to me -- 12 drummers drumming!
For the 12th and Final Day fill a drum with a few of your friend's favorite treats. Another fun idea is a gift card for a bucket of fried chicken drumsticks.
Feel free to share your ideas and what you did for your friend and maybe we'll feature your team next year!