Adding Some Color to My Life

                                              

Last weekend, I took the kids to see P-Momma.  We hadn't seen her in TOO long, and we were WAY overdue for a visit.  The kids had been harping on me for a few weeks about when we were going to go see her, because that's one place they do enjoy going.  Especially Jelly.  She sure does love her "grammy" and is constantly asking me if she can go over to spend the night.

I, also, love going over to see P-Momma.  We can talk for hours, and never seem to run out of stuff to talk about.

It's probably what sparked the blog posts I wrote this week about a certain subject I'm not going to go much in to.  But, after spending a day with P-Momma, her asking me how life is going for me, her being genuinely interested in stuff that's happening in my classroom, and my life, it's no wonder the feelings started emerging that I shared this week.

But, anywho, not going in to all that again.

We went to P-Momma's, and we were talking.  She was telling me all about how stuff had been going for her, her job, and life in general, when she realized that she had something she wanted to share with me:  A few catalogs that she'd been recently shopping from to buy clothes.

Now, I will say right off the bat that I HATE clothes shopping.  I've said it many times, actually.  I'm a large girl, and I hate that about myself, and I can never find clothes I like when I go out shopping for myself.  Everything is always too frumpy, or doesn't fit right, or is made to make me look like a couch rather than a woman with "curves".  The one store that's designed for people like me (Lane Bryant) sell amazingly cute clothes, but I have to get a second mortgage on my house just to buy a few outfits from them.

That's another thing I have a problem with, spending a lot of money on clothes.  I just won't.  Apart of that stems from the fact that I keep telling myself that I won't be this fat forever, and spending exorbitant amounts of money on clothes just doesn't fly with me.  When I do buy clothes, they are to wear for a while... unless they are cheap, and then I don't mind so much.  I still own clothes that I wore back when I worked for Walmart.  That was about 8 years ago.  So.  Yeah.  As you can see, I make a "long term investment" when I buy clothes for myself.

Plus, my weight does fluctuate quite a bit.  I go through spurts where I can drop a dress size or two and then end up gaining the weight back, so I need variety in my clothing size selections.  Thankfully, I own several storage totes for my sporadic fluctuations.  

Anywho, P-Momma gave me a few catalogs to look through that she had received that sold clothes for women with curves.  Woman Within.  Think Lane Bryant for women that live on a tight budget.  I'd never heard of them, but I thought I'd give the catalogs a looksy. I honestly didn't expect to really do much.  I mean, it's hard enough to get me to buy clothes from a store let alone a catalog.  Simply because I like to try clothes on, and see how they fit and what they look like on me before I buy.  

But, as I started to look through the catalogs I noticed that there were a LOT of really cute clothes and the prices were REALLY reasonable.  I was still a little hesitant, though.  One thing I noticed about all of the clothes were the colors.  

Let me say, before I go on, I have three main colors currently hanging in my closet: Black, brown, and gray.  I have a couple of dark pink shirts, one or two dark purple shirts, and a couple of dark blue dresses.  

My closet is dark.  And I'm not talking about the lighting.  I just favor dark colors, and always have.

Several weeks ago, I went shopping with E.  She talked me in to buying a white dress with green chevron print, and I bought a white translucent cardigan to go over it.  It was WAY out of my comfort zone, but she twisted my arm to give it a try.  I wore that dress on the first day of spring and received TONS of compliments about how nice I looked with a little color on me.  

So, I've been thinking about getting some items that are a little more colorful now that the weather is getting nicer, and I'm getting a little spring fever.

So, back to looking through the catalogs.  TONS of spring colors were spread across the pages.  Bright pinks, blues, greens, yellows, reds... a rainbow of clothing.  But, it wasn't the colors that JUST caught my eye, it was the prices.  

I couldn't believe some of the prices I was seeing.  $6.99 tunic shirts, $9.99 capris and jeans, $17.99 dresses.  I was shocked.  Surely this was some special sale going on, and it was, but apparently they are ALWAYS having sales like the one I was looking at.

I decided right there and then that I'd give them a go.  I'd order a couple of things and see how it went.  If I liked the stuff, I might order more, but being that I was buying from a catalog, I wanted to be cautious.  

That same night, I sat down in front of my laptop and started doing some shopping.  The next thing I know, I had picked out 6 shirts, 5 pairs of capris, a maxi-dress, and a two piece capri suit.  I was just SURE that I was going to have to take some things off, because the final price would be WAY more than I was willing to spend.

Want to know what the grand total was for ALL of that?  $197.  WHAT THE WHAT???

Two hundred dollars for 13 items?  That can't be right, can it?  But, I checked and went through everything, and sure enough it was indeed correct.  

I was shocked, and extremely excited.  I decided to go ahead and keep everything in my basket, because that's basically an entirely new wardrobe (for me) for $200.  The colors I picked were mix-n-matchable, so there would be tons of different ways I could wear the items together.  

The next day, I received an email offering me a FREE luggage set (a $50 value) if I spend another $25.  Now, as a teacher, one thing I can never be in short supply of is large bags.  The set included an oversized weekend bag, a purse, and an insulated lunch box.  Did I need any of those things?  Nope.  Did I want them?  Absolutely.  

So, that night, back to the laptop I went.

I ended up spending another $100 but ended up with 2 pairs of jean capris, a pair of cargo capris, a pair of boot cut yoga pants, a dress, and a cute pair of summer shoes that look a lot like Toms.  So, another 6 items for $100.  And, of course, the $50 luggage set that I was now getting free.  

I honestly don't think $300 for 19 items that will basically replace my ENTIRE wardrobe is unreasonable.  I will be able to box up or get rid of basically every bit of "spring/summer" clothing I own.  

Yesterday, my first order arrived.  Just four days after originally placing the order - and I didn't have to pay for shipping, by the way.  

Last night, I put on a mini fashion show for Hubby and the kids.  I was floored at how comfortable the clothes were, how well they fit, and how light and "springy" they felt.  I was so happy that I had gone ahead and taken the risk of ordering so much.  And, now I can't wait for the next order to arrive.

I texted P-Momma last night to thank her for the suggestion, and she immediately called me wanting to hear about all the goodies I'd bought.  She was so excited to hear about all of the different colors I'd selected and told me that she couldn't wait to see me get away from the dark colors I'm always wearing.  

Not a single item felt bad on me.  The shirts are all long enough to wear with capris or leggings, which is important to me.  I hate buying shirts that are too short.  I want to cover my waist, not highlight it.  The capris were all lose and comfy, but not too lose to look frumpy or make me look 4 sizes bigger than I actually am.  The dress was floor length, but so comfortable.  It didn't cling to my waist, but didn't look like a moo-moo either.  Actually, I think I might need a couple more of them, because I LOVE wearing comfy dresses to work.  

I feel like a kid on Christmas morning!!

I'm so excited, in fact, that I've decided to spend this morning completely cleaning out my closet and getting all my new items in their rightful place.  In fact, I'm going to clean out my ENTIRE bedroom, and emptying out some of the totes that are just taking up space and are long overdue to be let go.  

After a day of cleaning, I've decided to take the kids to the park for some family time together.  We're going to have some activity time.  Walking the track, playing in the park, playing some volleyball.  Jelly can take her bike along and ride for a while.  Just some movement for all of us, on a beautiful spring day.

I feel happy.  I am happy.  And I'm embracing the happy.  

I've had so many wonderful words of kindness and support sent my way this week, and I want to take this opportunity to thank ALL of you that care.  But, I also want to assure you that I'm perfectly happy and content.  When life throws me lemons, not only do I make lemonade.. but I make lemon squares, lemon pie, lemon cake. There's always TONS of stuff to do with lemons.

What I've also realized this week is that I'm FAR from being lonely or in need of people to talk to.  P-Momma is ALWAYS a phone call or text away.  My friends at work are always there for me.  My kids are always here for me to brighten my day and keep me on my toes.  

I really need to remember to focus on the good, and get rid of any bad.  Not dwell on it.  Live life to the fullest and enjoy every moment.  

All I need is some color in my life.  And I've realized that I'm surrounded by color... always.  So, it's time to now wear those colors with pride.

Have a great Saturday, everyone!!