Retail Therapy?!

Yesterday I found myself with a few hours to spare and in the general vicinity of the Houston Galleria.  I decided to treat myself to a little retail therapy after my long hiatus from shopping.  I don't get to the Galleria very often, it is not near my house and the traffic surrounding the mall is insane!  Anyway, I braved the traffic and the snooty people and tourists who usually shop there and headed into the retail mecca.

Since my daughter is getting married in seven months I figured I would start the job of finding that elusive mother-of-the-bride dress.  You know the one.... not too matronly, not too risque, not too big, not too small, not too bright, not too drab, not too cheap, not too expensive, the dress that makes you look like a million bucks but doesn't cost a million bucks....you know...the perfect dress!   They should have dresses I would not normally find in suburbia, right?  I ended up at one of the high end department stores that begins with "N" in their bridal/formal department.  I am sure I looked a bit like a deer in the headlights.  So many pretty dresses!  I began my search and noticed when I picked up my normal size dress they looked a bit small.  I would hold the dress up to my body and think, "there is now way this is going to fit!".  I chose about 20 dresses in "my" size and the next size up, because they really did look a bit small to me. Apparently in the designer section, size 6 is the new size 2 and size 12 is the new size 6!  Who are these dresses made for?!  When I say they were small I mean...tiny!  I am not a tiny person but I am not a Neanderthal either!  Keep your opinions to yourself here.

I know we are not supposed to worry about the number, just the fit.  But seriously?  I was forced into choosing sizes I have never brought into a dressing room before. I don't remember gaining ten pounds over the summer. I want to see the skeleton who fits into their size 0....of which there were at least four on the rack in each dress style...because 8 year olds do not shop in this department!  There were very few Neanderthal size dresses available...possibly because they had all been bought up by all the normal size women.

I left my retail therapy session needing some serious mental therapy, my ego had taken a huge blow. At this rate it will take me every one of the seven months between now and the wedding to find a dress.  I'm going on a diet....tomorrow!