Pros and cons of a new dishwasher

It was bound to happen. Our dishwasher broke. It was 12 and a half years old, and more than likely it was the cheapest dishwasher ever made at the time. We were lucky it lasted that long. When it broke I was lucky enough that Travis was able to get a new one shortly afterwards, but it was about 5 days until the people at Best Buy could install it. So I had to hand wash. You may ask me, " What is this thing called handwashing, Shawna?". Well, it's this painfully old concept that gets your dishes clean, but it requires you to lay all your dishes on the countertop, taking up all your counter space. And then after they dry you have to shine the dishes because air-drying *another novel and old concept not seen since I carried a Holly Hobby lunch pail* leaves horrid water marks on dishes. Oh, and I forgot the best part: dish-pan hands.

I finally got my new dishwasher today. I might as well been given a new kidney because I am a very happy housewife. And it's digital! Whoa, a digital dishwasher? It counts down the minutes of the wash cycle. What will they think of next, portable phones?!? Oh, and it even came with a big bottle of Jet Dry. Any of you who have ever bought Jet Dry know how expensive that stuff is, so that was a huge bonus!

So now my dilema is this: For years now I have always told ( read: taught) Travis that one does not gift an appliance to a woman for any reason because we are NOT turned on by toasters, vacuums or skillets. We require perfume, jewelry and trips to the day spa. He knows that if I ever open a present and inside is something that has to be used for a chore that I will not be happy. "Here honey, here's a new electric skillet for you to use to cook us all a nice dinner! Enjoy! and after you're done cooking go handwash all those dishes"...nope, no thanks.

But I'm having a problem here, because although this new dishwasher isn't necessarily a gift, I am quite excited about it, and it goes against everything I ever believed in. If I even give the slightest hint that I love my new dishwasher will I soon find myself the benefactor of a new toaster for Xmas, a new stove for Mother's Day? Will my Christmas stocking no longer be filled with earings, lotions and beef jerkey, but will be replaced with bottles of Jet Dry and Palmolive? I don't know how to deal with this situation. Travis knows how grateful I am, but I think I should downplay it for awhile, don't you?