I was not looking forward to the task at hand this morning.
A couple of weeks ago, I pulled out the totes containing my old maternity clothes. I thought I remembered having some "cute" clothes for pregnancy, but I was obviously wrong. So I pulled a few things out and left most in the totes. I really can't wear my regular pants anymore, but I can still wear most of my tops and even dresses. So it isn't a big deal. I'd already decided I wasn't going to invest in any new maternity clothes this time unless it became absolutely necessary. And I really don't think it will. But I did have my mind set on a new dress to wear for Easter. We also have two other very special occasions coming up during the next month that I need to "dress" for so my plan was to buy one dress and wear it for all three. I was under the impression that "cute" maternity clothes, dresses in particular, do exist. A trip to my local maternity clothing store a couple of weeks ago proved me wrong. I walked out disgusted and discouraged.
So then I began searching the internet. I some some "cute" maternity dresses all right . . . if you think spending $185 or more for one dress is cute. I don't even spend that much on regular clothes, much less maternity clothes. I was lamenting my position to my bestie, and she even spent part of my birthday day searching online and texting me pics of options she thought I might like. All of the ones I liked were either sold out or not available in my size. Go figure.
So since we've been cooped up inside the past three days because of the rainy weather, I decided it was time for us to head out today, thinking it may perk me up a bit. Besides, I thought perhaps I'd been a little harsh during my first trip to the maternity clothing store. So I decided to give it another chance.
As soon as I got there, the very chipper store manager greeted me and asked what I was looking for. I usually prefer to browse on my own, but I decided I would give her a chance. So I told her I was looking for a dress to wear on Easter and two other occasions, and I gave her my list of "requirements." The first dress she pulled for me broke the first two rules. It was $167 (oh, just divide that by the number of times you wear it she gushed). No, thank you. It's $167 no matter how many times I wear it. And not only that, it was the exact style I told her I did not want. Problem solved anyway when they only had a medium in stock, which was too big for me. I tried on three other dresses, none of which I liked and all of which were hideous. Or, maybe it wasn't the dresses themselves that were hideous, but me! By this time, the store manager isn't quite as chipper anymore (although she insists she'll call me when they get a small in the dress she really thinks I should buy, even when I tell her I'm still not going to buy it) and offers me bottled water as a consolation, I guess. By this time, I just want to leave the store and go buy a tent to wear.
As I'm pushing Connor's stroller to the front of the store, he starts yelling, "Baby! Baby!" I don't hear any babies. I look around, and I don't see any babies. I even begin to look for products with pictures of babies on them because by this time he's very insistent that I, too, see the "baby." And then I realize . . . just in front of us is another expectant mother. A VERY expectant mother. And Connor is still yelling, "Baby!" all the while pointing to her belly! I couldn't help it. I laughed. And that would be right about the time she realized what Connor was talking about. I think the look in my eyes gave her an apology, but she just laughed, too.
So I realize that I now have three options for said dress. I can, like I mentioned earlier, wear a tent. I could probably sew my own dress. How hard could it be? I just need a lot of fabric. Pretty fabric. Or I could find a non-maternity dress that I could make work for now and then be able to wear it once I'm not pregnant. Somehow that sounds like the best option to me.
I DO want to forget the whole experience of shopping for maternity clothes.
Today was a big day for Mason. He'd been invited to spend the night with a friend. This will be the very first time he's spent the night away from home with someone other than his MawMaw or Aunt Ashley. When I told him about it earlier in the week, he thought about it for a minute and then asked if Hannah Kate was going, too. I explained that his friend had invited him over because Mason is his friend, not Hannah Kate. So he was pretty excited about it. But I think he was a little nervous, too. After he got home from school, I took him to his friend's house. Later, I got this picture:
I'm fairly certain he's having a good time! And, just in case you can't tell, Mason is the muddy boy on the right. I'm not sure what it is with the hand signals though. Lately I can't take a picture of him without making him drop the hand signals.My friend told me that Mason came to her at 7:40 and told her he thought he should go to bed. When she asked him why, he explained that 7:30 is his bedtime, and he didn't want me getting upset that it was past his bedtime, and he wasn't in bed yet. So Samantha told him that it was okay because it wasn't a school night, which meant he could stay up later than 7:30. A little bit later they settled in to watch a movie, and Samantha told the kids they could have ice cream. Mason told her he didn't think he should have any because it was really late, and I might not let him. So she explained to him that since he was at a sleepover, it was okay to eat ice cream late and that I wouldn't mind at all. I think it's so sweet that he thinks of his Mama and how I might feel about the decisions he makes. I hope he'll always be that way! I don't want to forget how sweet and thoughtful Mason is to me.
In the meantime, I had to take a picture of this little princess and her new bow. Think it's big enough?
This girl is something else! This conversation didn't happen today, but it's so funny to me, and I don't want to forget it.
This girl is something else! This conversation didn't happen today, but it's so funny to me, and I don't want to forget it.We were browsing the latest American Girl catalog. She turned to the page with the pets, about 5 or 6 little doggies of different breeds and colors that you can purchase for your American Girl. Each dog has a name. Hannah Kate told me that she couldn't remember their names so I was going to remind her of each one. Before I could do that, she pointed to one in particular and was about to say the name, but before she could say it, I did. Praline. She gave me a really funny look. "Praline," I said again. And then I realized where this was going. Let me give you a quick lesson in phonics.
Praline (PRAY - leen)
Now, that would be how I've always pronounced the word. And I'll bet you've always pronounced it that way too. Unless you're from Louisiana. In that case, it's praline (PRAW - leen). I know what you're thinking, but let's not go there. Just take my word for it.
So, needless to say, most people do not know what I'm talking about when I say praline, and then they usually end up laughing at me. That's fine. So back to this little American Girl doggie named Praline. I knew Hannah Kate and her MawMaw had looked the catalog over days earlier, and I pretty much figured out that her MawMaw had already told her the names of the doggies, including "praw-leen."
Hannah Kate looks at me and says, "No, Mama. It's puh-puh-puh . . . raw . . . AW AW AW AW . . . leen. You know, the aaawwwwww sound, Mama."
After weeks and weeks of working on phonics with Mason, long vowels and short vowels and letter sounds . . . that sometimes I might take a little too far when coaxing Mason to recognize different letter sounds and blends . . . she is obviously picking up on it, too, and giving me my own lesson.