To Do: Post Christmas Edition
Unpack from Christmas Part 1 (which was spent with PIC’s parents, brother, and brother’s wife in New York this past weekend)
Wrap presents for Christmas Part 2 (which will be spent with my parents, brother, brother’s fiancée and brother’s fiancée’s kids here in Philadelphia tomorrow)
Finish building Space Fort (which is currently under construction in our living room and will be given to the brother’s fiancée’s kids—aka my nephews—if I get it finished in time, complete with glow-in-the-dark stars, accurately positioned glow-in-the-dark planets, and two packets of astronaut ice cream sandwiches that PIC purchased in the gift shop of the Vanderbilt Museum and Planetarium on Saturday night)
Send wedding STDs (Hehe… I crack myself up just saying this. For those of you not in the know, I’m talking about Save the Dates. Obviously.)
Convince PIC that Airbnb is totally legit (and that we will not get axe-murdered on our honeymoon; any help in this department would be much appreciated)
Invite the neighbors over for “holiday drinks” (while “the holidays” are still technically in effect; I’m beginning to think that I committed a serious faux pas when I left our Thanksgiving décor up a week too long… we need to win[e] them back)
Order wedding gown (which brings me to my next point: should I pay the $200 extra for silk instead of charmeuse? What the heck is the difference between silk and charmeuse anyway? All I know is that the silk comes with a silk lining and the charmeuse comes with a synthetic… but how am I going to pressure my future children/grandchildren/great-grandchildren into wearing my wedding gown if it has a synthetic lining???)
Fieldwork in Stilettos 
5 Responses to “To Do: Post Christmas Edition”
Do check out Airbnb – I have had nothing but good experiences. I also use HomeAway, VacationRentals, and VRBO (Vacation Rentals By Owner). Sometimes I am disappointed because the description isn’t detailed enough, and I have learned to e-mail the owner and make sure there is a bathroom on the floor where the bedrooms are, and how much clearance there is on the ceiling over the stairs (after hitting our heads every night whenever we had to go, in an otherwise charming rental near Bar Harbor, Maine). As for my two cents on the wedding gown, get what YOU want to wear next to your skin – if that’s silk, then go for it, or if the synthetic lining feels silky (like rayon), that get that. As for worrying that your future offspring might not want to wear it, let me tell you right now that they won’t. Styles will change, and that fashion-conscious, dress-designing, shopping companion that you hope you’ll get will probably turn out to be someone who wants to wear the same old pair or jeans all the time (I prayed that my kids wouldn’t turn out to be right wing, and thank goodness they didn’t, but otherwise all bets are off). If you’re lucky, your future daughter (or daughter-in-law) will use your dress as inspiration, or take a part of it for her veil, but don’t even dream about anything more. As your mom can tell you, they have minds of their own!
Totally, I was being facetious about the future-generations-wearing-my-gown. I am VERY grateful that my mom hasn’t tried to get me into hers, ditto my MIL, and I have resolved to be just as gracious when the tables are turned. I have several friends who are currently “getting the pressure” so to speak and I am so GLAD to not be in that boat!
And yes, I had a perfectly lovely experience with Airbnb in Maine a few summers ago. I rented a studio in Portland for a month and loved it. Had some fun “housemates” who lived downstairs (which I wanted because I didn’t know anyone there and was traveling by myself) but also a lot of privacy as well due to separate entrances; it was great.
FIRSTLY!!! Doesn’t PIC know I have ALL of my properties on Airbnb???? And, they are just like vacation rentals. Just don’t do the ones that aren’t “complete” apartments/homes, especially as it is your honeymoon 😉 Seriously, if this is more than you being a drama queen, PIC and I need to talk 😉 Airbnb gets a lot more “negative” press than other vacation rental sites, simply because they offer a lot of competition, because they DO offer room stays alongside the more common “entire home/apt” and they are an up and coming “young” company daring to move into established territory. The issues that are in the news about Airbnb can be found about ANY type of lodging, we debate this all the time on our owner’s forums. Airbnb tend to have nicer, more “hands on” hosts, who really want you to enjoy their city/location, etc.
Go down to fabric row and ask an expert, your “future” mythical daughter may not have your fashion sense or figure, so go with whatever makes you feel best, $200 is a night’s stay at the wonderful Fattoria…in fact I would definitely recommend the Airbnb we stayed at in Venice, right off a water taxi stop and in a less crazy district of Venice that was lovely. Although there are plenty to choose from.
Ditto what landlord no longer said about figure. I was actually disappointed I couldn’t wear my mother’s, but it was completely out of the question. Make a quick decision on the dress lining and get back to the space fort construction! I knew you’d rock the auntie role!