SPAM alert!!!!!

Congratulations, Muscat! I think you are very smart to realize that you can do whatever you feel comfortable with and NOT what the magazines are telling you! I was just talking with someone about things that are "standard" today that were not back when we got married almost 30 years ago. The only reason that they are "standard" (can't think of a better word) is that someone makes money off of it. For instance, back in 1981 we would never have thought of having a limo. Or a unity candle, when did that start? Or having everyone in the bridal party getting a french manicure on hands and feet! My neice whom I am very close with got married in a big ceremony last weekend. My daughter was in the bridal party with her boyfriend. I am very close to the parents of the bride and went through the experience knowing that my daughter might be next! I kind of hope that she doesn't have the big ceremony. My vote would be for a destination wedding. If you do a beach wedding I vote for casual....white flip flops or barefoot! Keep us updated, and enjoy this time in your life!

artemis, I am like you when you stated: "I have a bad habit of not getting back to the post office in time to return things I order online that end up not fitting." Wish I could work through that issue. It is like throwing money in the trash. I worked another few minutes this morning, not quite 15. One of my granddaughters said she might have time to help me tomorrow. I have a bad back and that hampers the length of time I can work at the purging. I know that I want to get rid of nearly everything in my closets. A few I will try to sell, but most will try to find a charitable institution to donate to. Will look for a local Dress for Success or try to find an address for a women's shelter. I know we have several shelters in our metroplex; however, their addresses are very well guarded for a very good reason.

Sorry, but THREE kitchens in three years is such a colossal environmental waste ... I know we all consume things that we don't need to consume, but this level of waste is bordering on a level of unethical. Gotta agree. You can donate /re-sell things, but we should all be more aware of our waste. Two things have opened my eyes to this in the last few years: - We ripped out our leaky shower and (to save money) took the old stuff to the dump ourselves. Wow, it was an eye opener. So much garbage that will still exist 100, 200, 300 years from now. Some of it just because people wanted "updated colors". - I attended a teacher workshop at the recycling center, and I learned SO MUCH. I've always come down strongly on the side of keeping your life "moderate in size" and buying things used. I thought I was a pretty decent recycler -- I wasn't. I understand the process so much better now, and I have made some changes in how I do things at home. I'm particularly trying to avoid plastics in all forms -- that's the biggest problem we face today in recycling. I don’t know what the square footage is for your kitchen, but it seems like you want to include all of the amenities of a much larger kitchen in a space that’s simply not big enough. Please note that I’m not saying your kitchen is small - I’m simply saying that an island big enough for a 42” cooktop + seating requires a kitchen with a larger footprint. Good points. This is kinda the elephant in the room.