2 Become 1

Apartments that is. For a variety of reasons, B is moving into my current apartment which is a great two-bedroom near Ball Square. It is very neighborhoody, close to the Red Line, and affordable. My one complaint is the stove from 1970 but I have a washer/dryer, basement storage and a backyard.

The problem is that I have been living by myself for just over a year and by the time he moves in, it will be two years. I like things my way. I like answering to no one and if I want to eat Kraft singles in bed, I can. I also do things a certain way and do not like change.

The best example is locking the door. I lock my door with a key, even though I can just turn the knob thing and lock the door before I close it. I do that when I close the door at B's but at my place I have to lock it with a key from the outside. However, there is a reason for my rule. I forget my keys a lot. I misplace them often. I lose my keys several times. So if I am outside my apartment there is a good chance that my keys are inside. So if I only lock the door with a key, I always know that as long as the door is locked, I have my keys somewhere. It is a simple system and it works for me.

Now if B is over and we go out, he tries to lock the door his way not with a key. I don't like it. It puts a crimp in my system and could cause me to get locked out. Then I have to get my landlady to let me in and I feel stupid even though she says "that's what I am here for" when she lets me in.

We have Gocco'd

So B and I tried out the Gocco machine yesterday and it is awesome. We still were unsure about how it worked. It is as simple as the instructions say but there will be some complexity in dealing with the invitations since we will have multiple colors and our print area is bigger than the printing screen.

Here is the machine on my dining room table (with a towel underneath just in case).

This is the image we were trying to print copies of.

Here is the screen with ink.

Then we press down...

And voila! We have created prints in gold ink of the picture. We tried it on textured and flat paper. We like the textured better.

I have to remember to go heavy on the ink but still pretty cool and easy.

Save the dates are next!

Playing Hooky

I mentioned a few posts ago that B and I were taking off the Friday after the BC/VaTech game. I am glad we did since after the miraculous win, we (along with some of his friends) were the last to leave BSG. The win made for a non-cranky B on Friday as we went to Rockport for some no frills, economical, delicious lobster, clam chowder and ice cream. The drive up was really pretty as the foliage is hitting its peak. And being a Friday, there were not that many out of state leaf peepers. We hope to start exploring New England more. Next I want to go to a corn maze. We will see when that actually happens.

Our no frills table and chairs...

Our view...

Other pictures around Rockport...

BC's next game is Saturday at home - we have a wedding and I have much empathy for the bride dealing with her BC alumnus groom to be. I wish her Godspeed. And B is not allowed to check scores during ceremony or reception. But I am sure any of his ten BC friends will keep him updated.

Cake Time!

We are not having a large cake and instead are having cupcakes with a small two-tiered cake for cutting into (and serving that night) and preserving for our one year anniversary. If we were having a cake, I would use the one below as inspiration. Imagine a whole cake that looked like me in the same wedding dress. There is only one word to describe it - Awesome!

Keeping Secrets

I am a horrible secret keeper - if you have told me something in confidence I have more than likely told B. The good news is that he is a great secret keeper so if I did tell him your secret, it will go no further than him. I like to think that he would not have caved to Voldemort and Harry's parents would not have been killed. But that is just me.

And after dress shopping, I realized that me not divulging anything about the dress is going to be torture. I have to keep this to myself for over a year (and 2008 is a leap year so I have an extra day to deal with). If I do falter, I do not doubt that he will quickly put me in my place. I already have been scolded because I accidentally left some pictures up on my computer screen after I transferred them from my camera to the computer. They were thumbnails so he didn't see much except blobs of white or ivory. I would have looked.

The other weird thing is that we discuss (and he might say overdiscuss) every wedding decision. This is a very big one and feels weird for me to be making it all by myself. It is also hard because I want him to love (not like) the end result.

Registering

Because I can't show the pictures that I took on Saturday, I am moving on to another topic - registering. After we had gotten engaged (or as New York would say, after B engaged to me) we did not go down to New York and visit any reception sites for almost two months. In those two months I got antsy to do something wedding-related, so I decided to open up a registry.

Because of their lenient return policy I knew that we were going to register at Bed Bath and Beyond and then another store to be named later. After blogging about going to Target with B after I had already done all my shopping, I thought it was too bad I didn't register at Target. The other store we picked was Macy's because it is everywhere and everyone knows it. I didn't want to send people to a store that I don't shop in normally (Williams-Sonoma or Fortunoff) and everyone has Bed Bath and Beyond or Macy's near them. Also I have heard that Crate and Barrel discontinues things fairly often and many brides have to register multiple times because their original items are no longer in stock.

Also Macys and Bed Bath and Beyong usually have good sales or send you a million coupons (I am looking at you Bed Bath and Beyond...20% off any one item). While registering, Lynn (our bridal consultant) informed us that even though the 20% off coupon lists a bunch of brands that are not included in the offer, all you have to say is "I didn't know know it didn't include [insert brand name here]. I don't know if I want it" and the cashier is supposed to allow you to use the coupon "this one time." It is part of their training in providing the utmost in customer service.

So on this Saturday afternoon, we have our first encounter with the scanner. B was intrigued and the first five items placed on our registry we his choosing. The jigger was the first item we registered for and he picked it. While I did look forward to registering, it was very overwhelming and after awhile, I started to feel uncomfortable about selecting the exact things I wanted and how much things cost. After about two hours, we turned in our scanner and decided to finish off the registry in the comfort of home and over the next few months.

One weekend when I went to New York without B, I dragged bridesmaid extraordinaire, Kim, with me to Macys and started that registry. Macy's Herald Square was definitely overwhelming but I liked that they had EVERYTHING there. I saw all my options in person rather than on the computer screen or just a picture in a flyer. (Also when you tell them the number of invited guests they tell you how many gifts you should register for and the number in each price range which is handy.) While there Kim feel in love with a pineapple patterned china. One day Kim, one day and it will all be yours. After about an hour in Macy's, we left and replenished our bodies at the Beer Garden but that is a whole other story.

On another return trip to NY, B and I finished off our Macy's registry for the most part - he selected the bedding. I say for the most part because I feel like they are in a state of constant flux. I add stuff and then feel guilty about how much I have registered for and take stuff off (I do that with actually purchasing things either I go to the strore put a lot of things in the cart and then slowly put most back or I just buy a bunch of things and then end up returning some). I go back and forth as to whether I should have an item on the Macy's list or the Bed Bath and Beyond one or both. B gets a gift from work which is similar to something on the registry so I take that off. I think I need to stop thinking about it for awhile and just let the registry sit, unchanged, for awhile.

Day of Dresses

My Saturday consisted of trying on several dresses in the Boston area. The started with me meeting Laura, trusted dress advisor, in Davis Square at 10:30 and ended at 6:00 with said dress advisor dropping me off at home. And while I was exhausted and tired and couldn't look at another dress, I was able to get a good idea of what I wanted and what worked for me. I am now able to really focus my search for the one dress to rule them all. While I can't go into specifics about what I am now looking for, I can tell you a few things:

1) I don't like pouff
2) I hate petticoats
3) Facial hair does not look right on a lady (though she was very nice, patient, and helpful)

Thanks a ton to Laura for shepharding me through the day and Alett for infusing us with some life towards the end of the day.