registry take two

Friday night, The Fiancé and I took crack number two at registering for gifts (yep, folks, get engaged and this too can be Your Friday night!). This time we headed to Macy's. Which. Was. Overwhelming.

I thought Crate & Barrel was hard?! It doesn't hold a candle to the Macy's on State Street here in Chicago (a/k/a the second largest department store in the world). The store spans an entire city block and shoots up several stories into the air. I thought this would make it a great place to register, given the amount of options.

Big mistake.

Over 450 patterns of crystal and china = no idea where to go first. The Fiancé and I literally wandered around with our scanner-gun for an hour before we made our first click (on an electric can opener, after I bemoaned, "Just click something!")

I don't recall the details of what we registered for. I do recall wishing desperately for my mother at some point. I think that was in the pots-and-pans section. I don't even know what "Anodized" is, much less if I need it. And why are there SO MANY POTS AND PANS to choose from?!

I remember there were several moments of sheer terror (on my part). The Fiancé kept telling me how much he loved me, as if I was undergoing some sort of adverse medical procedure just by being in Macy's. I'm not entirely sure why I hate registering so much, considering how much I love to shop otherwise. It is perplexing, and inexplicable.

Like most things in my life that I don't like to do (clean the bathroom, grocery shop), I wondered who I could delegate this task of registering to ... Unfortunately, I don't think my cleaning lady or Peapod can be persuaded to take this task on for me. I'm holding out hope that my mother will help guide us when we show her our dismantled list. *fingers crossed* Yes, I realize the absurdity of a 30-year-old woman needing her mother's help. I'm over it. And fine with it.

Beyond the pots and pans, there was the inevitable dispute about how much is too much to expect guests to spend? The Fiancé thinks $10.00 pans are fine. I think: These are meant to last us our whole lives; I am not, I repeat, not, doing this ever again, so these bloody pans better withstand World War III and therefore should cost a bit more... *sigh*

Ironically, in the knives section, The Fiancé was okay registering for a $600.00 block set, while I thought the $199 version was just fine. I suppose this contradiction shouldn't surprise me.

Meandering over to the bedding section, it became glaringly clear that The Fiancé's and my aesthetic is very. very. different. He thought a certain bedding collection was perfect for our room - it involved florals and pastels and some sort of quilting. I'd post a picture but I have desperately tried to destroy the vision in my mind and can't bear to look it up. I just remember seeing it, and thinking no no no no. eww. eww. eww. A thousand times over eww. I shudder to think The Fiancé thought this was remotely related to anything I would put in our home. *sigh*

Thankfully, we eventually compromised on one thing: registering is hard and should be done in small doses. Maybe next time with alcohol. So we eventually left the biggest-scariest-store-ever (once we figured out where the door was... If You've ever been to this particular Macy's, You appreciate that it is not self-evident...We were like two little rats in a maze, smelling the cheese but unable to find it...We ran into the same obscure elevator bank twice...and I could never seem to find a bathroom...it was scary, I tell You. Scary.) and had a nice dinner (with lots of wine) instead.

the beginning

in the beginning, You do things like this with a person chasing You around with a camera and saying, "Act natural!"...









(source: Turtle Pond Photography...more of that later...)







...because of course it is 0h-so-natural to sit in some random door (of a home You don't own), make out in broad daylight (ok, well maybe when You weren't 30 this seemed ok...), and simultaneoulsy pet Your lhasa apso.

Why do You do this? Because You are ENGAGED! Congratulations, You!

Soon thereafter, the not-so-fun (public making out be damned!) tasks creep up... and You and Your betrothed spend Your Saturday afternoon at Crate & Barrell (Old School flashbacks ensue...) and find Yourself having email conversations like this:


----- Original Message ----
From: Bailee's Bride
To: The Fiancé
Sent: Tuesday, September 9, 2008 12:52:39 PM
Subject: FW: Have fun with your Gift Registry

So, I may have gotten sidetracked while eating my lunch and added to our registry... There is SOO much more online than in the store...

To: Bailee's Bride
From: The Fiancé
Sent: Tue, 9 Sep 2008 12:02:45 -0700
Subject: Re: Have fun with your Gift Registry

uhmmm. When WE left the story, WE had 31 items . . . there are now 64 items . . . "MAY have gotten sidetracked!!!???"
love you.

From: Bailee's Bride
To: The Fiancé
Sent: Tuesday, September 9, 2008 2:52:19 PM
Subject: RE: Have fun with your Gift Registry

Dude, but did you SEE the Carlos Margarita glasses I added for you?!?! Love you!

To: Bailee's Bride
From: The Fiancé
Date: Tue, 9 Sep 2008 13:56:06 -0700
Subject: Re: Have fun with your Gift Registry

Dude? Dude? We're going to MARRIAGE prep tonight and you're calling me DUDE!!!???

***

After which, You attend said Marriage Prepation Course at an Unnamed Catholic Church, and then it truly hits You: YOU ARE GETTING MARRIED [...to this amazing person you've started calling "Dude" for no discernable reason...].

You thus decide it is time ... Time to join the ranks of those other style-obsessed, internet-searching, unable-to-work-with-so-many-blogs-to-read brides out there... and You do this: You decide to use Your English degree and start Your own blog. So slam a Bailey's with me (seriously, it's a suuuuuper easy shot... in fact, I am obsessed with the idea of doing Mini Guinness shots at our wedding instead of champage... it's Kalua & Bailey's...mmmm.... but I digress.... That's another post) and Enjoy. Because if You are reading this blog, You're probably a lot like me.