Showers Galore!

As of last Saturday, Kevin and I have participated in our seventh wedding shower (with one more to go after the wedding!). It has been wonderfully exhausting experience especially considering we made two very quick trips to Alabama and Georgia to make them happen both in July and September. We've seen old friends and met each other's families as a result. The people part of it all has been lovely!

The gifts part, well . . . . it is a lot to manage. My basement is getting full of gifts! We are making more and more paths every day as more gifts arrive. It seems when you get married, throwing a wedding shower seems to be the activity that most of your friends want to support you through. Somehow a can opener or a butter dish means love. And, loved we feel!

As far as the process of being engaged, the worst to me has been the gift registry. Kevin can attest to the fact the nights we deemed as 'gift registry' ones were some of our most tense moments as a couple thus far. While I understand the importance of registering . . . they do help your friends know what you like, what you need, etc., I also started to feel really bad about the idea of saying that I needed a $100 coffee pot. Mind you, I realize that most of the time a couple's wedding gifts last them a lifetime. People really want to buy you nice things. For example, my mom still using towels she got at her wedding (though I keep telling her that after 30 years they are gross and she needs to throw them away). So, maybe there is a point to get nice stuff when others want to buy you a nice present, knowing that you are going to be a good steward of this item and have it for life.

But, at the same time, the simplicity part in me, knows that the $20 coffee pot my grandmother bought me in college will do just fine; there is NO need for anything more. It killed me to think of asking someone to spend $100 on a coffee pot for us.

Then, enter my husband-to-be, Kevin, who for all his wonderful gifts and strengthens, has a opposite view on money than me (this is why we work as a couple and fight sometime too). He doesn't think twice often times about buying nice things (notice sometime the engagement ring on my hand... wow!). He likes quality, good brands, and products even if they aren't particularly useful in the long term (he has two fondue pots, an ice cream maker and decorations for every holiday known to man). Kevin insisted that we register for the good coffee pot, and he won me over. I'm not a push over, but in the interest of our peace I agreed.

After making decisions like this over and over again, you can imagine that in my very non-bride like stance on registries, I was so tired by the end of the trips we took to the store to play with the price guns. In fact, because of this, I let Kevin and his two friends, Frank and Bhavik, register at Target without me. I counted this as a blessing. People still complain we don't have enough on our registry. I'm sorry. I just could bring myself to add much more. . . .

(My suggestion is to give us Target gift cards if you don't see anything else on it that you like).

In the end, we do not have the coffee pot yet (from Bed, Bath and Beyond). I wonder if we will get it after all? I'm thankful for all the parties which have recently been in my life, but also more excited that the wedding is almost here! To me, that is when the fun part begins-- getting to see Kevin everyday!