My children are fashion plates but me? I have nothing...

I just got back from summer clothes shopping for my children. I spent $237 for the three of them and I am not even done yet. Way back when we were childless I never would have spent that much for clothes in one day for me. Never. I would hem and haw over spending $25 for a single item, change my mind eight times before I got to the register, buy it anyway, take it home and still fret about it for a couple of days. But today, while shopping for the kiddos I was buying and buying and buying, filling up my bag with abandon. Because it was for them and because it was a necessity.

I have not really gone shopping for myself since the boys were born 3 years ago. I have picked up a t-shirt here, some jeans there but not a whole lot. And certainly nothing "dressy". Those days are long gone. I have no need of dressy stuff. Except for the three First Communions we have in the family this year. The first was a couple of weeks ago and it was chilly so I could get away with wearing a sweater I wore for Christmas. The next two will surely require something a little more suited to the warmer weather we've been having.

Communion #2 is today and you think I would have picked something up for myself when I was shopping for the kids this morning. But no, I can only concentrate on one thing at a time and I was trying to keep track of what I bought who. So now I am scrambling through my drawers and closet to find something that looks like I put a little effort into dressing for the event. I finally find a short sleeve sweater from my teaching days that miraculously still fits. Hooray! But wait...what's that? There is a little stain near the shoulder. I try dabbing it with some stain remover and water but God knows what it is and how long it's been there. I rummage through my clothes again and find nothing. Nothing. I want to cry. And then I have to make a decision. Will I wear it anyway? What else can I do? A plan starts to form in my mind... I know! I will carry the baby into the party so she is covering up the stain. I will say my hellos and people can make eyes at her. She will smile and inevitably turn her head into my shoulder. When someone takes her from me (as they most certainly will within 5 minutes of us being there) I can exclaim "Oh look! She must have spit up a little on me. What a day to give her blueberries! Let me run to the bathroom and see if I can get it out."

Hahahaha. No one will ever be the wiser.