If You Don't Want A Traditional Wedding Registry

Continuing with Wednesday's Wedding Registry theme...
I did a lot of googling research for this part of my registry post and found so much good stuff that I had to break it off into its own post.  Also now I want to get remarried and do an "experiences" registry!

If You Don't Want A Registry:
As someone who held off on buying nice kitchen and household stuff and instead used thrift store finds & hand-me-downs from my mom all through college and for four years after, knowing that I'd put that stuff on my wedding registry one day, you have a problem that I don't understand, but I will try to help anyway.

People love you and want to give you presents when you get married.  Either give them a list of stuff you'd love to have, do a nontraditional registry, or get ready to get a bunch of random stuff and hope you like it or hope for gift receipts.

Nontraditional registry ideas:

1-3. Honeymoon- Use a site like buyourhoneymoon.com.  This is from their site: "Instead of bed sheets, have the first night of your stay in a luxury hotel; instead of a toaster, have breakfast watching the sun rise over the ocean."  Also Traveler's Joy is another honeymoon option that is free and so is Wanderable.  

It keeps things more personal so you feel like you're still buying someone a nice present and not just handing over cash.  Plus it makes the Thank Yous easier to write when you can specifically thank them for an experience on your honeymoon and tell them a little story about it.


4. Honeyfund Registry is along the same lines, but you can register for anything, not just a honeymoon.  Do you want a king sized bed or a real couch?  Do you want to save for a house instead?  What do you really want outside of the traditional housewares?

5. Hatch My House Registry- If you want to go the save for a down payment for a house route from above, this site is specifically meant for that.  You can also use it for renovations or big ticket house items.

6. REI Registry- If you're outdoorsy this could be the perfect registry for you!  Get all the gear for your next camping vacation as a married couple.

7. Etsy Wedding Registry- Maybe you don't want the traditional household stuff from Crate & Barrel and Target, but how about the more personal handmade things from Etsy?  You could pick out art for your home or handmade quilts, the options are endless with Etsy.

8. Green Bride Guide- This is a resource for all of your wedding planning and they do registries as well.  Similar to Etsy you can register for really special gifts, but all of these are "green" in one way or another.

9. Zola Registry- This site lets you do a lot of nontraditional registries all in one place, but the one that looks the best to me is the experiences one.  If you live in Chicago, LA, New York, or San Francisco you can get more local experiences.  But they have national ones too, like a meal delivery service, coffee subscription, cleaning service, cheese of the month club, custom art options, handyman services, and more!  You pick the experiences you want to have as a newly married couple and guests pick the ones they want to pay for you to do!  Pretty cool.

10. Newlywish- Like Zola this is a combo registry place: "Create a wedding registry filled with unique and stylish gifts from our 50+ boutiques of vibrant brands and artisans. Register for exciting experiences you can enjoy together, or add honeymoon and cash funds where guests can contribute to your future dreams"

11. Card Avenue-  This place lets you register for all sorts of gift cards!  Amazon, Home Depot, Target, even Visa gift cards.  So you can register for absolutely anything that you might need in the future!  This is so useful and spreads out the giving for a long time.  Anytime you think of something you need, go grab the gift card.

12. I Do Foundation- If you truly don't need or want anything, then use this opportunity to be generous!  Your family can give to your favorite charity in your name to celebrate your wedding.  They have a few different ways to set it up and you can read more on their website.  This way their wedding gift can be tax-deductible :)

Hopefully if you were very BUT I DON'T WANT A REGISTRY before you read this, you're changing your tune now!  Congratulations on your engagement and now please allow your loved ones to give you presents :)

What to Register For - Wedding Registry Tips

I know that there are lots and lots of articles & posts out there on this subject already, but I want to put my two cents in.  I am not telling you what objects you Have to Have, but I wanted to help by giving a framework for how to think about registering.

Tip #1: Register for what you know you'll use and not for what you hope you'll use. 

 You'll feel bad sending that still brand new, but now 5 years old, bread maker from your Aunt to Goodwill.  If you aren't one for hosting frequent fancy dinner parties, you're probably not going to use that China enough to warrant the money spent and the space taken up.  And if one day you are ready to make your own pasta, go buy an unwanted pasta maker from the thrift store!  Just be realistic when you pick.


Tip #2: If people are spending money on you, make it money well spent.

Pick out things you really like & need and will be happy to have.  As you use various things around the house you can remember who gave it to you and think of them fondly.  Also read Amazon reviews, and use a 2 week free trial of Cooks Illustrated's website to pick out the kitchen things so you're getting good stuff that will last.  You only get one wedding shower (season) so use it well!


Tip #3: Make sure you have things across all price points.

Some people who love you don't have a lot of money to show it right now, so make sure you have a good amount of stuff under and at $20 to balance out the more expensive stuff.


Tip #4: Don't add stuff just to add stuff.

If you're registering in a store don't let the salesperson talk into stuff you don't want.  And if you see the registry is pretty empty and you still have another shower, add some things you WANT, or add that 1 thing you thought might be too expensive, or add gift cards to different stores for stuff you think of later. Don't just add random junk that you don't like/love/need/want to fill up your house. Refer back to Tip #2.


Tip #5: Think outside the kitchen.

Maybe you are pretty set with kitchen stuff or you don't cook much or you need to add stuff to your registry.  Would it be nice to have new towels?  Or a second set of sheets so you can do laundry at your leisure like a queen?  Do you want that cute stuff (picture frames, pillows) at the end of the aisle in Target, but you have been trying to save money for the wedding?  Would you like matching bedside lamps for your bedroom like a grown up?  Want some nice soft blankets for the couch?  Really think about what would be nice to have in your home and go from there.


Tip #6: Read lots of articles titled "What I Wish I'd Registered For" 

This will give you tips on specific items that people love and will help you avoid other people's pitfalls.  I read so many of these and it helped a lot.  Don't register for everything they say, but pick the things from their lists that make sense for you.

Tip #7: Use a site like myregistry.com that allows you to register wherever you want all in one place

This is best for online shopping since you can't look at the registry in the store (but you can on your smart phone), which can be tricky for your older relatives.  But I did not want to be tied down to a couple of stores.  I wanted to get whatever was the best option, and not the version that Bed Bath & Beyond sells or whatever.  Anything that is online can be added to your registry, which includes websites for artists you love or Etsy (though I learned in my research for Friday's post that Etsy now has a wedding registry option).  For example, I discovered that Kmart actually has the best towels.  They're egyptian cotton, crazy soft & fluffy, have beautiful color options, and are only $13.  But that's all I wanted from Kmart so it wouldn't make sense to do a registry there.  But with myregistry.com I could do whatever I wanted!


Tip #8: Don't be a douche who registers for stuff and then returns it for cash.

You are terrible and don't understand the point of helping a couple to start their home together.  If you don't want the typical housewares stuff please read Friday's post and register the classy way.


I hope this helps!  Congratulations on your engagement!

Crafty Homestead Garden Notebook

Today was a very good mail day because my two new journals came!  I used Christmas money to treat myself to expensive custom journals.  They are from Paper Source and could not be cuter or more awesome.  When I finish my current To Do List journal and my writing-thoughts-down journal I will replace them with Paper Source journals.

Things I Love About These Notebooks:

• my pens fit into the spiral
• pens don't bleed through to the other side of the page
• they are spiral so they lay flat and can be folded in half
• they are so pretty
• I got 10% off the order

One journal (pictured above) is for all things garden.  When we were house (originally land) hunting I had a notebook that I kept everything in.  As we saw properties & took notes on them and made various lists everything was all in one place.  It was so nice to grab that notebook and know that anything that I would want to reference was in there.  No lists or notes were lost along the way.  I also do that for my To Do lists now.  I love having them all in one place and I love buying cute notebooks!

So I customized the cover of the notebook with "Crafty Homestead Garden."  I didn't put 2015 because it has so many pages I am sure we get at least two years out of it.  I picked grid paper for the inside because I want to sketch out garden bed plans in it among other things.  This way as the summer goes on and I want to write myself notes to reference when I'm planning next year (too much zucchini, move pumpkins next year, etc) they will all go in one place.  And when I want to remember what exactly we planted in that corner over there, I can flip back to the beginning and see the plan that I sketched out in Spring.  

For now I have two pages used already.  One is a list of what we want to plant this year and one is a list of goals for 2015 (based on what I struggled with last summer).

In case you can't read my handwriting I typed them out.

What To Plant This Year:

• tomatoes - grape, black krim
• basil
• cucumbers - regular, pickling
• carrots
• kale
• lettuce
• zucchini
• butternut squash
• pumpkins
• onions
• garlic
• green onions
• peppers
• brussel sprouts
• potatoes
• broccoli
• cauliflower
• sweet potatoes

2015 Garden Goals:

• stay on top of trimming & harvesting the basil
• make enough pesto for the year
• stay on top of weeding
• work on tomato bursting
• regular, deep watering
• try succession planting
• expand the garden dramatically
• check zucchini daily to avoid growing crazy monsters
• do fall planting again
• more than just garlic?
• keep track of how much we plant so we know how much more/less to plant in 2016
• do more from seeds than last year
• (which was zero) 

I want to get to the point where we are growing most of the vegetables that we need for the year.  So storing potatoes, onions, & garlic in the basement and freezing broccoli florets and canning tomatoes, etc.  I know it'll take several years to figure out how much we need to plant of each kind so that we have enough for the whole year, and documenting how much we plant this year is the first step.  Once we know how much to plant to feed ourselves the goal will change to planting enough to have some to sell.

My other notebook I personalized with my initials and used datebook pages on the inside.

 

This will be my planner.  A lot of my To Do Lists will move in to this notebook, along with meal plans for the week, and hopefully soon a work schedule.  It has lots of pages so it should be good for at least a year if not two.  I love that the Month spot is blank so you can start using this whenever you want in the year.  Plus if you miss a week you won't be wasting any pages.  The last column on the right is just a "Notes" column and I like having space that is not assigned to a specific day.  I used this week's blank spot for the grocery list :)

What's Been Sounding Yummy to Me Lately

Every time I find a recipe that looks good I keep it open in a tab on Chrome in my phone.  Recently I had over 30 tabs open and I thought I should gather them all up here.

Here are ones that I've made before and plan on making for dinner in this week:

These are so easy, yummy, and quick to put together for a week night dinner: 
Hearty Black Bean Quesadillas by Budget Bytes 

This is the greatest baked potato soup I've ever had.  However before I pureed the soup I scooped out about half of the broth and I'm glad I did because I like a creamier, thicker soup. I have made this in the crock pot and in a dutch oven on the stove. It's great either way:
Loaded Baked Potato Soup by food.com

I used the broth reserved from the Potato Soup as the broth in this amazing Tortilla Soup recipe.  I did one cup milk and 1 cup broth, added in a can of white northern beans instead of the chicken, and used an entire recipe of this delicious enchilada sauce.  And to actually get some tortillas into this soup I cut them up into little pieces and pan fried them in some olive oil as a crunchy soup topper.  I HIGHLY recommend doing this!


I haven't made these before, but they are coming up soon in one way or another:

Roasted Tomato Pesto Grilled Cheese by Joy the Baker

Hasselback Potatoes with Spinach Cashew Pesto by Joy the Baker

How to Make A Simple Salad Worth Eating by Serious Eats

Moroccan Lentil Vegetable Stew by Budget Bytes

Irish Brown Bread by Irish American Mom

Cheese Puffs by Ina Garten 


I am in Christmas cookie mode right now, but I want to start working on these in January:

Desserts- 

Apple Pie Biscuits by Joy the Baker

Triple Berry Cinnamon Swirl Bread by Joy the Baker 

Smore Pie by Dinner A Love Story

Milky Way Cake by The Pioneer Woman 

Salted Caramel Apple Pie by the Cooking Channel 

I used these tips recently to finally have a successful homemade pie crust for the first time: 
Five Tips for the Best From Scratch Pie Crust by Joy the Baker

Fixing Up A Wood Table Without Refinishing It

 The day before Corey's birthday dinner I set aside the whole day for cleaning (well 80% cleaning and 20% food prep).  That shows you how dirty my house was.  When I get on a roll with something I get A LOT done.  One of the random unexpected things I did once I got into Cleaning Mode was fix up my wood dining room table without refinishing it. 

This table was the table my mom used growing up and that I used growing up.  My brother used for awhile, too.  The point is that it's old and it's seen a lot of abuse.  Here is the sorry state of before:

This is the table with all of the leaves in it which is why the one part is so much darker than the others.  It is the least-used leaf.

Materials I Used:

• razor blade
• vinegar
• olive oil
• Vaseline
• Formby's lemon oil

What an odd list, huh?  I used some pins I had pinned on Pinterest to plan my attack.

1. First I mixed a 50-50 mixture of vinegar and olive oil because Pinterest told me to.  I wiped it all over the table and it gave everything a nice sheen and cleaned it up a bit.

2. Then I put Vaseline on all the white water damage spots because Pinterest told me to.  There were a LOT of these spots.  I put Vaseline on any sort of discoloration and it worked wonders.

3. Then I slowly scraped off the paper spot with a razor blade.  Then I put Vaseline on it and let it sit for awhile.

I got down to the actual LETTERS from whatever that paper is!  I ever so carefully scraped them off too and it's like the paper was never there!

Then I wiped off the Vaseline in all the areas that it hadn't fully soaked in.  It did wonders on all but the very worst spots!  It must put some moisture back into the wood or something so they don't look so light anymore.

Finally I put on a coat of Formby's lemon oil treatment.

I can't believe how much better it looks!  Those really bad spots probably need to be refinished, but for a little bit of work it looks a million times better.

Here is the table all set the night before the birthday dinner:

And here is a before and after:

Puppy Food, Training Treats, Health Care Stuff, & General Dog Supplies

Basil when he was tiny and still had fluffy fur!

Continuing with this week's doggy theme, here is a list of what I feed Basil (and why) and what I use to keep up with his health care needs.

-Food-

Fromm Gold Puppy: I feed Basil Fromm food.  When he's too old for puppy food I'll give him Fromm Gold Adult Food.  That's the brand his shelter (Wright-Way Rescue) uses and it is really good quality so I continued giving it to him.  It's made in Wisconsin so it's pretty local to me.  The first three ingredients are meat and there's no filler or grain in it.  Plus they put in veggies, flax seed, brewers yeast (helps repel biting insects), and probiotics.  This is what I put in his two Busy Buddy toys.

Fromm Gold Wet Food: For each meal I mix in a spoonful of wet food to make the dry food a bit more interesting.  I also use spoonfuls of the wet food in his Kong toy that I talked about on Tuesday.  I've given Basil the duck & chicken one and the just chicken one and he likes both.  The wet food is pretty expensive, but in a week he only goes through two cans.

-Treats-

Blue Buffalo Beef Training Treats: These are Basil's standard treats.  I use these for going through all his tricks (sit, lay, shake, stay) and back when he used to get a treat for "going" outside.  Now with the invisible fence I'll use them to reward him coming inside when I call him.  I break these in half since they're expensive.  Plus in a training session he'll get a bunch.  I tried a lot of treats with Basil that he didn't like and I learned that he doesn't like dry crunchy treats.  He likes ones like these that are a little "wet."  Training treats are great because they're small and easy to eat so you can go right into the next trick and not wait for them to finish their treat.  Plus these ones have good ingredients (flax seed & salmon oil) and no junk.  I used to get the chicken flavor of these, but I did a little puppy taste test and learned he likes the beef one better.

Costco Chicken Jerky Treats: These are a BIG TREAT.  He gets these whenever he's been super good.  He also gets one every night when he goes into his kennel by himself.  When it's late and he hears this bag crinkle he runs right to his kennel and lays down!  Sometimes I rip these into little pieces and use them for a training session (I am trying to get him to learn "drop it").  Obviously I buy these at Costco, but I'm sure similar ones can be found elsewhere.

Dried Liver Treats: These treats gross me out, but Basil loves them.  They are another BIG DEAL treat.  We bought this bag in July and he's still working on it.

-Health Care-

I need to be better at following through, but my goal is to brush Basil's fur & teeth and clean his ears once each week.  I have been good about giving him a bath every other month.  And he gets his heartworm & flea medicine each month.  

Brushing his fur helps keep his shedding down (he doesn't shed much, if your dog does you might want to do daily brushings), brushing his teeth keeps them healthy & white (here's an article about doggy dental health), and cleaning his ears helps keeps ear infections at bay.  Here's what I use:

Furminator Brush: This is a great brush!  It gets out so much of the undercoat which is what sheds the most.  There's no point in buying another brush in my opinion.

Toothbrush:  I like that this is double ended.  I used to use the tiny end on his puppy teeth, but now I use the big end on his adult teeth.  I like that if he has a particularly bad spot on a tooth I can focus on it with the tiny end.  Basil tries to eat the toothbrush the entire time I brush his teeth, but I am able to get them mostly clean.  Also sidenote, I am terrified to brush Banjo's teeth!

Toothpaste:  Chewy.com actually messed up my order and sent mint instead of poultry flavor.  I didn't care enough to have them exchange it.  Works well enough!  I'm pretty sure this tube will last forever.

Ear Cleaner:  I put a few drops of this onto a round cotton pad and wipe out his ears.  I use one cotton round per ear.  I just buy Target brand cotton rounds.  They're what I use to take my makeup off, too.  He hates me cleaning his ears, but it's gotta be done.  This bottle will last forever.  You can't hurt their ear, the actual ear drum is way inside and you're just cleaning out the canal.  As deep as you can get you're still not getting to a part where you could hurt their ear.  Here's a picture:

Shampoo: This smells good and Basil has never been itchy after a bath.  I'm pretty sure this bottle will last forever.

Conditioner: Same shampoo comments apply here.  This makes Basil fur nice and smooth for several days after his bath (day of it's fluffy though, which is weird).

After a few minutes Basil stops trying to escape the tub, gives in to the reality of the bath happening, and gives me this WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO ME look the entire time:

I'm leaving out nail care, because I don't feel confident in what we're doing right now!  Basil hates his paws being touched in any way and clipping his nails is torture for both of us.  When he got neutered they did his nails while he was out and I haven't done anything since....

-General Doggy Supplies-

Pooper Scooper: I avoid the plastic bag method whenever possible.

Doggy Leash Poop Bags: I use these when we're away from home.  I love that they're attached to the leash and can't be forgotten.  The little container has a hook to hold the poop bag for you for the rest of the walk and they're scented which are nice touches.  And they're super cheap!

Doggy Bed: This is what we have in Basil's kennel to make it cozy.  I've washed it a few times and it comes out well.  I recommend using a sticky roller to get the hair off before you put it in the washer, though.

Doggy Bowls:  These are good.  You can put them in the dishwasher if you're lucky enough to have one.  They won't tip over.  However, if your dog is a weirdo who full-on PLAYS with his bowl, it will spill and slosh over the edges.

Dog Maze Slo-Bowl: If your dog is eating too fast this helps to slow them down (some dogs will throw up from eating too fast or get bloat which is very bad).  Once I started mixing in some wet food it got awkward to use this so I haven't been.  It's best for just dry food.

-Doggy Safety-

Lupine Pet Leash & Collar: Basil's shelter sells Lupine brand.  If your dog chews through their leash or collar they will replace it!  Just keep the tags.  Plus their designs are soooo cute.  Basil has "dapper dog."

Kurgo Seat Belt: In addition to keeping Basil safe in a crash or when I stop fast, it keeps him in place.  I have driven without it before and he tries to climb in my lap!  And this way I can put stuff in the backseat with him and he can't go investigate/chew it all.  It's nice to get him belted in and then load the car for trips.  Also it doubles as a regular harness that you can use on walks, just clip the leash to it instead of the seat belt loop.

Kyjen Outward Hound Backpack:  I got this because Basil was restless during walks.  This gives him a "job" (again he's a border collie mix) and honestly, tires him out faster!  Plus he has helped to carry in the tomato harvest and groceries!  When he can't actually be useful I just fill it with water bottles.