Shopping

For the past year I have been in a Bible study with 5 other women.  All of us are mamas and all of us have known each other (more or less) from our playgroup, although if you have ever been in a playgroup you will know that there isn't much time to have in depth conversations, so even though I have been seeing some of these mamas in playgroup every week for the last 4 years, I really didn't know them until we started meeting weekly without our children.

Before Christmas we finished reading, "War of Words" by Paul David Tripp (brother of Ted Tripp who wrote "Shepherding a Child's Heart" which incidentally I have never read...I started that one and got bored...can I still be a Presbyterian?), which was a wonderful book, but I cannot recommend it to anyone who can talk.  I suppose that rules out most of you.  If you can verbally speak, whatever you do, do not read this book, because if you read it you will have to change the way you talk...or at least you will have to think about changing the way you talk and I hate trying to change anything about myself, it is such a pain.

After Christmas we decided to do a "Beth Moore" study.  I have never in my life done one of these, and I was a little nervous.  I had heard good things about her, but let's be honest, videos?  Really?  I hate doing video studies.  And then there is the whole Texas thing, and the whole Baptist thing, come on you know what I am talking about, I was just worried.  Thankfully it has not been as bad as I thought it might be.  There are some moments on the video that are cheesy, but overall she has been wonderful to listen to and the study (Esther) has been interesting and challenging.

This past week, Beth said a funny thing on the video.  The title of the series is "Esther, It Is Tough Being a Woman", and she made a comment that sometimes she thinks she should have been born a man.  OK, I found it mildly amusing that this little, fiery lady from Texas, the ultimate Southern Belle wanted to be a man, but I catch her point.  Sometimes it is hard to be a leader when you are a woman, but actually though I entirely relate to that, I also think sometimes I should have been a man because I do not like shopping.  I like to go in, get it and get out.  Browsing and window shopping is not my style.  I remember vividly the last time I step foot in a store on the day after Thanksgiving.  It was 1998.  Yup.

So, the other day HC and I went out because I needed to find her a bathing suit for swim lessons and I was hoping to find a new little something to wear for True's baptism.  Oi vey.  Generally there is only ONE store that I buy clothes from, and that is, can you guess?  If you know me at all you would have said Ann Taylor, or Ann Taylor Loft.  And I had my trusty gift certificates in hand because both my mom and Dave's mom bought me gift certificates for Christmas.  Wouldn't you know, I could not get into anything they had in the store.  I am trying to think when that has EVER happened.  It might just be the colors of this season, but nothing was really working.

I felt lost.  So, we headed next door and I thought, let's give Banana Republic a try.  Well, have you ever gone into a store and everything you try on just seems wrong.  It was demoralizing.  I am not sure what went wrong, the style, or I just could not put an outfit together, and I left feeling dumpy.  First, why o why are the 80's back?  They were horrendous the first time around, why must I repeat them?  Thank God we are not having to peg pants, but there are so many clothes that just remind me of junior high and I really want to vomit when I think of that time.  I cannot go back!  Second, I left feeling like I'm not cute anymore, I'm the old, unstylish mama.  Boo.  And while that has always been slightly true.  I mean I am not a trendy person, I cannot pull off an eccentric look, but are there still clothes out there for me?

With a heavy heart I plodded into White House, Black Market.  My confidence was shot, but between HC encouraging me, and a wonderful sales lady who brought me out super cool heels (which I almost bought, but they were a size too big) to try on with my outfits, voila, I found something.  And I left feeling like I do indeed have a style, trendy it is not, you can keep your leggings and uggs for now, but at least it is a style!