I'm sure most of you held or attended a few get-together's over the holidays. I did too and there was something that I noticed about myself. I often save my best attitude, my best clothes and my best manners for special occasions with people that I barely know. That's a very self-serving approach and I have to admit guilt on this one.
While I may give a good impression in a crowd when I take that approach, I should be saving those "bests" for the people that I truly care about. The family and friends that put up with my crankiness when I've stayed up too late. And what about my kids that have to deal with my bad mood because I had a long day at work?
It's not that looking nice and using my manners is a bad thing, but I need to save most of that for my family and friends. I'm going to try to be more aware of the impression that I'm leaving on those closest to me on a daily basis. I'll still save the fine china for the dinner parties, but I can use my other dinner-party bests every day.