The best $20 I ever spent

Our BBQ Pro grill has a 14" grill, 8" legs, and might be the best $20 I've ever spent.

We got it at the Allston K-Mart back when I lived in Brighton, back when B and I were learning how to cook together in a kitchen that was smaller than most bathrooms and in a time when kitchen fires happened so frequently we had a routine to handle them. My jobs were to open the windows in the living room and the door to the apartment, and B's jobs were to extinguish the flames, close the bedroom door (to prevent the smoke from reaching a very sensitive smoke detector), and to detach the electric smoke detector from the ceiling.

A grill--and the opportunity for outdoor cooking--was an attractive item, to say the least.

My third-floor walk-up (more like a fourth-floor walk-up when you consider the steps outside) wasn't the ideal home for a grill--no balcony, no easy way to get down to your grill, and no place to sit while your food is grilling. The fear that a neighbor would sniff our dinner and decide to walk off with our food (and grill) inspired us to get the cheapest model we could find--even if we used it only a few times (and if it happened to walk away one night), we wouldn't be too disappointed. Luckily, disappointment has never been an issue.

The cooking B has done in that grill--that is the true story of the grill. For most commodities, when you can buy a $20 option or a $1,000+ option, chances are good that the $20 option is going to provide a significantly lower experience, but that was not the case with our BBQ Pro. The BBQ Pro helped us realize that home-cooked food is often better than restaurant food. B has cooked everything from pork tenderloin to steaks to chicken to smoked peach salsa and grilled pineapples and peaches--and it's all been wonderful. He's experimented with different charcoals, rubs, sauces, and smoking chips, all to rave reviews from the peanut gallery (that would be me).

Sadly, it's time to say good-bye, BBQ Pro (where the dogs of society howl...? Please forgive my almost-daily need to for a literary or musical allusion--life doesn't feel complete without in-jokes).

While the 14" grill is adequate for cooking for a few, it's too small to use to cook for a group. We need to move on to something bigger. The grill we bought last night is great--it's another charcoal grill, and it's big enough to cook for an army. We both love it already--but it will never take the place of the BBQ Pro.

Dog days of spring

Our "Be responsible for another living thing" weekend will come to a close today when we return Oliver to B's sister. It's been an eventful weekend--we've met lots of neighbors with dogs and discovered that owning a dog offers admission into a sort of Dog Secret Society in which you are automatically friends with other people with dogs. There is something to be said for the social aspect of walking your dog and introducing your dog to other dogs (and therefore introducing yourself to other dog owners). There is also an implied social caste based on the behavior of your dog--the more well-behaved your dog is, the more highly respected you are as an owner (and human being).

It's a complex doggie world out there, and I'm just beginning to understand it as I return to my regularly scheduled programming. B and I have each taken away a key lesson from a weekend of life with a dog:

• B learned that watching the TV show The Dog Whisperer does not make you a dog whisperer, and that such a vocation requires a level of patience that he might not necessarily have all of the time.
• I learned that owning a dog is a little like visiting a dude ranch. A dude ranch might be fun to visit for a few days or a week so you can see what that kind of life is like. However, I don't see myself wanting to be a full-time cowboy anytime soon.

The challenges of home ownership

B and I haven't followed the most traditional path to marriage. Back in the day, there was an engagement (usually preceded by a hope chest, according to my mother), a marriage, and then a house purchase. B and I got the house purchase out of the way long before the engagement, and thank goodness we did--although the wedding plans have not been overwhelming, I wouldn't want to be in the midst of wedding and honeymoon planning and have to skip out to open houses every weekend.

We've got the purchasing out of the way, but the maintenance lives on.

This weekend, I tried my hand at a little gardening light because having flowers seemed like a nice idea (and the neighbors have done such a lovely job with landscaping their little plot of mulch, whereas ours looks as if we've been living in drought for years). I think I had a romanticized idea of what "gardening" entails--I wasn't expecting to emerge with arms covered in dirt (hepful tip--dirt sticks to skin that has had sunscreen applied...) and a sore back, wondering if my lily bulbs will grow or if my usual plant track record will prevail. Only time will tell.

Another home ownership challenge--when nature comes too close to home. Like gardening, nature experiences also fall into the "This is not nearly as exciting as I hoped it would be" category. Our experience has been something like this:

Day 1: "Oh, isn't that a cute chipmunk in the back yard! B, look at the chipmunk!"
Day 2: "Aww, the chipmunk is back! I think he's eating the birdseed!"
Day 3: "Maybe we should give the chipmunk a name!"
Day 4: "This chipmunk seems to be around a lot, doesn't he..."
Day 5: "I wonder what's been eating the neighbor's plants..."
Day 6: "Is that a rodent hole leading under the porch?"
Day 7: "How bad would your afterlife punishment be if you were to (hypothetically, of course) kill a family of chipmunks?"
Day 8: "The chipmunk almost ran across my foot! Where is the rat poison?! Die, chipmunk, die!"

We've blocked the entrances to their "home" under our deck and tried to create a lovely basement swimming pool for them--let's hope they get the message before we have to resort to more drastic measures.

More like a spending chill, really

The spending freeze is melting quickly as the days grow warmer.

I haven't succumbed to any other splurge purchases since the dishes (which arrived, at least part of the order, this week--and they are marvelous), but I've been eyeing another "necessary" acquisition--luggage.

I have an enormous suitcase (affectionately known as "Big Suitcase") that suited me well when (a) I relocated to another country or state for months at a time, and (b) airline restrictions on luggage were more loosey goosey. But times have changed.

I no longer go away for 10 months at a time, and airlines allow bags to be only 40-50 pounds before they exact an overweight charge on your luggage. I think it's rude, as does Big Suitcase, who prefers to be described as "rubenesque." But offense aside, I've come very close the past 2 airline trips to having to pay an overweight fee because Big Suitcase is just too big and holds more than I am actually allowed to take (and frantic clothing rearrangement between bags in the airport is not as much fun as it might seem). We need a new game plan for France.

Coincidentally (or is Big Brother reading my mind? I suspect we'll never know), I received an email from Amazon informing me that as an avid traveler (they are all too familiar with my guidebook habit), I ought to check out their travel store, which conveniently sells luggage with Amazon's swell super saving shipping. I had thought about hitting up Marshall's for new bags, but I think Amazon's prices are better, and you can get whole luggage sets for a very good price.

I haven't bought yet but plan to do further research this weekend. The goal is to buy a non-black set (because everyone has black luggage and it's hard to spot your particular black bag when it rolls by you) that isn't too girly so B will be able to use it during his travels. Lavender isn't that girly, is it?

Dog trials

This weekend, B and I are going to be in charge of a living thing for the first time.

Well, technically, this isn't the first time as we have both been in charge of plants for a while now, but considering we've killed all but the most indestructible plants, we're going to ignore the track record and focus on the positive.

Back to this weekend. We're watching B's sister's dog. He is a toy poodle, and I haven't had the honor of meeting him yet, but B says he is a great, well-behaved little guy. I suspect B has an ulterior motive in this venture, though.

He has been pushing to get a dog ever since he got the condo. I have never owned a dog and would be perfectly happy to keep it that way for the rest of my life. However, B would love to get a bulldog, so in the spirit of compromise, I have settled on a few cat-like breeds that might be acceptable should we decide to go down the dog avenue. All of the breeds I have identified are small and would fit in a handbag (a shopping buddy!) or could be brought on a plane in a carry-on bag. The breed I keep coming back to is the chihuahua because they are just so darned cute (and small--smaller than most cats, even). There are lots of chi mixes, like chi-weenies (chis plus the hot dog dogs), chi-poos (chis and toy poodles), and others. So many options.

We don't plan to get a dog any time soon--B would have to be home more often than he is now because I don't see myself waking up early in the middle of February to take Bowser for a walk--but at least we will have a small idea of what it will be like after this weekend.

Preparing for culture shock

My recent evenings (when not spent at work) have been spent in the company of Rick Steves (who materializes in the form of a guidebook), as I research and prepare for our trip.

B and I tend to be active (dare I say it--over- ?) researchers when it comes to...well, everything. We called the town clerk to find out if a WalMart was coming to town before buying the condo (it's not--and it seemed highly unlikely that it will happen in the foreseeable future). We've been researching cars for months in preparation for selling B's delightful-yet-as-unreliable-as-they-come Saab. And now I am researching France, and more specifically, French customs.

The length of our trip makes the research especially important. We'll be away for 2 weeks--neither of us has taken such a long vacation--and it can be challenging to be away from home and comfort and everything and everyone you know for an extended period of time. Knowing what to expect, and what not to do to stand out as an obvious tourist, is critical.

The first surprising tidbit I picked up was related to cheese. We will do our best to increase the per capita cheese consumption while we're there, but I didn't expect that there were rules governing how to eat it. To avoid offending, you have to keep the shape of the cheese when you cut it, which means no cutting off the tip of the brie wedge, no matter how tempting it may be. We had a brie/cracker/cured meat dinner a few weeks ago so we could practice cutting the brie in an unoffensive manner, and I think we've got it down.

Shopping is another area with rules. Greeting employees upon entering a store is de rigeur. Perhaps I should start practicing in French here in the States. And another rule--we're not allowed to touch anything, except in large department stores. We have to ask for assistance. And if you're shopping at a farmer's market, you should never choose the food you want--you should let the proprietor choose for you (the idea is that they know their produce best and will choose what is best for you).

The general rule is that when you are in doubt as to what to do, look for a French person, and follow their lead. The easiest way to find French people is to eliminate those wearing sneakers, sweatshirts, and Red Sox hats.

The spending freeze, or, How I learned to stop worrying and love my debit card

Today I broke the spending freeze that B and I agreed to. Fear not, he won't find out about the breach by reading this blog; I asked him for his opinion before I even added the dishes to my online shopping cart.

The spending freeze was my idea. It's a way to minimize non-essential expenditures before the wedding, and so far, B and I have been stuck to it. One tactic is to plan our expenses for ATW (after the wedding), including new everyday dishes. Our dishes are mismatched and they stack badly in the cabinet, and they just don't match the style of our living/dining room, so we thought buying new ones together would be a fun activity--in a few months.

But then trouble started after I received an email at work about a spring-cleaning drive. We can bring in household wares (apparently "ware" is a real word), including dishes, sheets, and towels, to donate to a homeless shelter. I immediately thought to myself, "I have some dishes I could donate, but I can't donate them unless I have others to replace them..." A frenzied text messaging session ensued between B and me. I expected B to be the voice of reason and to say that we ought to observe the spending freeze and wait. Luckily for all of us, my persuasive sales technique prevailed, and I purchased the (deeply discounted, of course) dishes.

I think the issue stems from one's (and certainly my) tendency to live within one's means. In college, I got by on a smaller income, and I dealt with it--you learn which ATM dispenses $10 bills, and you figure out how to make 3 batches of hamburger helper last for lunch and dinner for 3 weeks. (Yes, I accomplished both, but the latter feat of wizardry is never to be repeated again because the overexposure left me unable to even smell the stuff without wanting to make a run for the nearest farmer's market.)

After your income surpasses the poverty line, you find you have a few more options, and it's hard to "deprive" yourself (whether actual deprivation would take place is questionable) of stuff you want when you know you could figure out a way to make it work. I just have to take a step backwards and realize that every expense now might mean one fewer fun item on our honeymoon.

I'm hoping that attitude will prevent me from upgrading all of our silverware and glassware (both of which are also being collected for the drive).

Tentative honeymoon itinerary

Today I bought our Eurail passes (France only, any 4 days in 30 days, SaverPasses so we have to travel together--that ought to be easy enough), and I have a tentative honeymoon itinerary (obviously subject to change, but here's what I'm thinking so far).

Day 0: Take red eye to Paris.
Day 1: Arrive in Paris in early afternoon. Arc de Triomphe and Eiffel Tower.
Day 2: Notre Dame Cathedral, Sainte-Chapelle Cathedral, Ile de le Cite and Ile St. Louis, and dinner cruise on the Seine.
Day 3: Musee d'Orsay, Sacre Coeur and Montmartre, Centre Pompidou.
Day 4: Train to Nice. Promenade des Anglais and Vieux Nice.
Day 5: Cours Saleya Flower Market, Matisse Museum, Nice Archaeology Museum and Roman ruins, and Rue de France Pedestrian Zone.
Day 6: Day trip to Cannes.
Day 7: Scenic train to Digne, Theatre de la Photographie et de l'Image, Russian cathedral.
Day 8: Day trip to Monaco.
Day 9: Train to Paris. Louvre museum.
Day 10: Day trip to Champagne.
Day 11: Versailles and Champs-Elysee (and other area shopping).
Day 12: Day trip to Loire Valley.
Day 13: Disneyland Paris ('course I gotta squeeze it in if I can!) or free day in Paris.
Day 14: Fly home. :(

I'm thinking of moving either Champagne or the Loire to the front of the trip, but that would require moving our dinner cruise to another night (because it goes until late and we'll have to get up early for the day trip), so I'm undecided. Luckily we can't make train reservations for a little while, so there is no pressure to decide. There are a few other Paris attractions we'd like to see, but I haven't figured out where they'll fit in.

This itinerary actually looks quite tame. Any normal person (i.e. a non-overplanner) who saw the "real" itinerary (with timetables for everything, including all meals) would probably be scared. That's why we post only the normal stuff on the blog. :)

The joint checking account

Last night, B and I decided to figure out one topic we haven't yet fully addressed--the joint checking account.

Both of us are like-minded in that we believe we ought to have 3 checking accounts--one for him, one for me, and one for both of us. The joint checking account will obviously be used for purchases for both of us, and the purpose of the personal accounts is to allow ourselves the freedom to purchase items that we might otherwise feel guilty about if we purchased the items with funds from the joint account.

Originally, when we decided upon this plan, it seemed like it would be easy to determine what was a joint purchase and what wasn't, but it wasn't as clear as we thought it might be.

Obviously, all household bills, including food expenses, will be paid for with the joint checking account. And we decided that any activities that we're both involved in, such as dinner out for both of us, would come out of the joint account.

But then there are a lot of expenses that fall into a gray area, such as B's dry cleaning, golf, and lunches and M's haircuts, shopping, and girls' nights out. We didn't want to have a long list of Dos and Do Nots for the joint account and decided we needed an easy-to-remember rule for when an expense should come out of personal accounts.

We decided that anything that could reasonably fall into the "maintenance" category, including haircuts and dry cleaning, should come out of the joint account. Anything that falls into the "fun" category, including going out with friends solo or golfing solo, would use our personal accounts. Lunch out was a gray area, but we decided that since we always have adequate food for lunch at home, lunch was a non-maintenance item and therefore needed to come out of the fun fund.

Now that I'm writing this, I'm realizing that some of these rules are kind of silly, but when two people have spent close to 30 years managing their own finances, you can't expect that a financial merger (not that marriage is a financial merger, but that is certainly one of the outcomes) will go smoothly without a little bit of planning.

Going it alone?

Recently I was reading the blog of another engaged woman, and I was a bit taken aback by one of her complaints. Let it first be known that I've never met this woman, and yes, I think it's a little weird that I was reading the blog of a stranger. It's like watching reality television but there are fewer train wrecks.

Anyway, the post that surprised me most was a light rant in which she noted that she was planning her entire wedding by herself because her maid of honor lived in another town and her bridesmaids were totally uninterested and her mother was three states away. Interestingly, many women responded to the post and said they were all in the same boat and they sympathized with her greatly.

Interestingly, very few women mentioned their husbands to be in their rants.

At first, I didn't understand what the big deal was--I know that a lot of people complain about wedding plans and how difficult weddings are and how much time it takes to plan a wedding, but that just has not been the case for us. The major details of our wedding were planned within a month of our engagement (and not because I had everything planned in my head beforehand--not that there's anything wrong with that--but I didn't).

I realized that the critical factor in our quick planning was B's active involvement. All of the advice he received was in the vein of, "You can have an opinion, but you're not allowed to voice it, and you should stay out of everything entirely." I definitely have my control-freak moments, but the thought of planning our wedding without B's active assistance never crossed my mind. And I, unlike some of the other girls, have also had the active assitance of my mother, which has been so nice.

My conclusion is that girls who feel like they're alone in their wedding planning need to recruit the assistance of the most obvious person--the other person who will be getting married that day.

A weekend of debauchery

The bachelorette party is an interesting concept. Its roots are in the bachelor party, which used to be a night of testosterone-y debauchery. I suspect the girls realized that it wasn't fair for the boys to have all the fun and wanted to get in on the action.

This weekend I am attending a bachelorette party for a fellow engaged gal pal, but I suspect debauchery will not be an issue. Consider the following: When we were out for a girls' night at a piano bar, we were mocked by the performers for being too quiet (in our defense, it was early in the night, and we didn't each have a gigantic pitcher of "punch" in front of us like the "ladies" at the table next to us did). Then the performers sang, "I'm too sexy" for/about us, substituting, "I'm too sexy for my glasses" for one of the verses. Nothing says wild like 4 girls in glasses.

Anyway, we're going to a casino and staying over at a nearby hotel to make a partial weekend of the event. We have dinner reservations at 9 PM, which is far later than any of us regularly eat, and I have concerns about us falling asleep in our risotto. Normally, caffeine would be the solution, but 4 of us cannot or do not drink caffeine, so I'm not sure what we'll do--perhaps we can all schedule naps before we leave. I'm really painting a wild picture here, aren't I...

I would say that I'll have a full update of the weekend on Monday, but there is that rule--what happens at the bachelorette party stays at the bachelorette party. :)

The post about nothing

I haven't had a lot to say in the blog this week quite simply because there isn't much going on in the way of wedding plans--and not because I've been sitting around eating bonbons and ignoring pressing demands. Well, I haven't been doing the latter, anyway. There simply isn't much work to be done. We've finished all of the big stuff, and now we just have to think about the smaller stuff, and some of those tasks can't even be done yet. For instance, we need to figure out our favors/placecard holders, but it's hardly a pressing demand. And we need to do the sticks/centerpiece prototype, but if we paint all of the sticks now, we risk that the paint and glitter will fall off before the big day. We still have to decide on the types of cupcakes we want and the music we want played, but we don't have to make those decisions until a month or so before the wedding.

The most challenging assignment so far has been deciding upon the readings for the wedding. We were hoping to find something from the world of fiction, but so far, we're having trouble finding anything appropriate. If you have any ideas, please send them along.

Oh--I haven't been slacking off entirely--I've been planning our honeymoon! I'm currently working on the itinerary for Paris. I read that grape harvests for wine usually take place during September (though it can vary depending on weather conditions that year), so I'm trying to figure out a way to fit in a visit to a vineyard. The Champagne region is day-trippable from Paris, and several vineyards are within walking distance of train stations. I was concerned that with our trip focusing primarily on Paris and Nice (two cities), we would miss out on the opportunity to see the countryside--day trips to the rescue!

Trousseau shopping?

B and I have a one-page checklist (nabbed from one of my bridal magazines) hanging on the fridge, and we've been checking off items as we complete them. The list isn't comprehensive--for instance, "Cut sticks from your parents' yard" is noticeably absent, as is "Paint said sticks and assemble prototype centerpiece to make sure it doesn't look like garbage." And there are a few extra items, like "Hire a videographer" that don't apply since we're scared of what we might look like while dancing and would rather assume the best than know the worst. But overall, it's been helpful and useful and reassuring--we know that we won't forget anything big.

Most of the items on the list are self explanatory, like "Buy your wedding gown" and "Order your cake," but there is one item in particular that has me stumped--"Begin shopping for your trousseau." I've heard the word "trousseau" before, but I assumed it was one of those things that had fallen out of fashion, like corsets and hoop skirts. In fact, I wasn't even sure of the exact definition, so I checked m-w.com, and here's what I found:

"The personal possessions of a bride usually including clothes, accessories, and household linens and wares."

Knowing the definition has not helped me understand the necessity of having this item on a wedding checklist--it seems sexist. Why is the bride's wardrobe, which is obviously perfectly adequate for her work life and personal life (and likely played a role in attracting her future husband), suddenly no longer acceptable for a married woman? And why is the bride responsible for fitting the house with household linens and wares? I'm not sure if I even know what a "ware" is.

I don't get it, but I think the trousseau checklist item is getting a big black line through it.

Bands of gold

Tomorrow, B and I are going shopping for 2 critical elements for our wedding--our wedding rings.

One of the justices of the peace we met asked if we wanted to do ring exchanges during the ceremony. We both hesitated before responding because we weren't sure if there was some other ring element (besides the obvious one) to the ceremony that we didn't know about. But no, she was talking about the traditional ring exchange, as if it is an optional component. (It isn't.)

I looked at www.bluenile.com to get an idea of what different size platinum bands cost, but there is a sizable difference in price between "regular" bands and "comfort fit" bands. The bands look almost identical, but the comfort fit rings have a smoother curve between the metal that touches your finger and the metal that is on display to the rest of the world. But surely there must be more of a difference to justify the large price difference. (Or is it yet another unnecessarily large wedding price mark-up? You never know...)

We won't be buying from bluenile, though--we're going to a jeweler. One reason to buy jewelry from a jeweler rather than an online source is the option to "upgrade" at a later date. When B bought my enagement ring, he was told that he could upgrade it at any time. I am opposed to the idea of an engagement ring upgrade, but I am ok with the idea of a wedding band upgrade, and I'm not sure why one upgrade is reasonable in my mind and the other seems out of the question. Maybe because I will be picking out (and paying for) my wedding band myself? I'm not sure.

Anyway, I am open to the idea of upgrading our rings at some point in the future (maybe our fifth wedding anniversary), but when I mentioned it to my friend LS, she couldn't imagine wanting to do such a thing. Is it weird to "upgrade" your wedding band? Does trading in your symbolic commitment to each other for a newer, shinier model say something about your level of commitment? Or is it simply a sign that you've reached a point where you're ready to get the bling-bling ring that wasn't a smart decision when there were so many other items to be purchased?

I think what will probably happen is we'll love our rings so much that we won't want to change them. Then again, the lure of diamonds is a powerful force... :)

Engagement photos are here!

They arrived in the mail tonight! Below is my favorite (so far--I'm sure my fav will change daily) and a few more are along the side. Can't wait to get them printed!

A problem no more

The hotel problem has been solved. I tried lots of configurations of points and dollars and decided that the best (or at least the easiest) option was to book only Starwood hotels (with cash reservations for the stays for which we don't have sufficient points yet) and to apply points to the hotel costs as soon as B earns them. This way, we're guaranteed rooms and can apply as many points as B accrues at any time before we leave. And, if he is close to the number we need for an additional night, we can always buy points (it's generally not cheaper to buy points rather than pay for the room straight-out, though depending on where the dollar goes, it might be an option to consider). For the hotel in Nice, we got a 50 percent discount off the rack rate for spending just 1,000 points (a no brainer), so even if we do end up paying cash for all 5 nights, it will still likely be cheaper than the 3 nights at the pricier hotel I booked in Paris (and now need to cancel).

In other honeymoon news, I received the Lonely Planet France guidebook in the mail yesterday and have already read most of the Paris section and a significant portion of the Cote d'Azur section. I'm amazed at the number of museums that are in each city. I'm not a big fan of museums (I get museum fatigue within 2 hours of setting foot in a museum), but they're a good way to fill a rainy day, and there are a few must-see museums that you can't not go to. I'm going to start on the itinerary soon but need to buy the Rick Steves France book first--his ratings of tourist attractions are much more helpful than LP's descriptions, which frequently don't even say what the attraction is.

Sad dollar, happy euro

The honeymoon reservation process has begun!

We'll be in France for 13 nights, and we're planning to spend the first 3 in Paris, the next 5 in Nice, and the final 5 in Paris. In France, there is always the risk that train workers will be striking, so it's best to include a cushion around all train travel--just in case.

Our plan is to use B's Starpoints (from Starwood hotels--Westin, Le Meridien, Sheraton, and similar) to pay for the 5 nights in Paris and the 5 nights in Nice, but that still leaves us 3 nights in Paris to figure out on our own. I found a top-rated (on tripadvisor) and not-eye-bulgingly-expensive Parisian hotel for the first 3 nights and booked it, a transatlantic telephone call involving one person speaking very bad French (moi) and one person speaking English with an incomplete understanding of subordinate conjunctions. I think we sorted out the details via email.

Almost immediately after I booked, I started rethinking the cost. With the dollar-to-euro conversion rate getting more and more desperate, I was concerned that we'd get stuck paying a huge sum of money for a not-that-great hotel. I decided more research was necessary.

I found a great deal on the Starwood website--for $60 and 4,000 Starpoints, you get one night's stay--perfect! Even if we had to buy Starpoints, we'd still come out ahead. Unfortunately, a telephone call to Starwood revealed that Starwood hotels in Paris aren't accepting that deal during our honeymoon. Swell. And further doom and gloom was revealed--the availability for the first three days at the hotel was limited already--no standard rooms, only suites available. Not good! I decided I had better book the other 5 days in Paris then and there, and shockingly enough, they let me, even though I didn't know B's Starwood number. Such tight security.

We can't book the Nice hotel until B earns a few more Starpoints, though that shouldn't be too difficult with all of his travel, and he's going to transfer his AmEx points to Starpoints, so we'll be there in no time.

I'm still trying to figure out what to do about the first 3 days...I've found some alternative hotels that are more reasonably priced but need to do further research on tripadvisor.