Since everyone else is confessing...

...then I guess it is my turn. I am so embarrassed by this one that I haven't even told my husband. He will read this just like everyone else.

Say a prayer for me, girls.

Loulabelle is turning four at the end of this month. We are planning a CandyLand party to celebrate our sweet lollipop of a girl. Everyone is really excited for a party with tons of candy and a chocolate fountain. It should be loads of fun.

Anyway, the big dilemma (for me) has been what Lou will wear. Does she want to be Queen Frostine? Princess Lolly? Plumpy? Everyday we change our mind and now it is go time. I need to know.

Today she said she just wanted to be the girl on the gameboard. The sweet little blonde girl with overalls and red/white tights. Very sweet. Somewhat easy.

So I thought.

Nary a website had cute little red and white tights. On a whim, I started flipping through a Hannah Andersson catalog when I saw these leggings. Very possible, but I would need the Hannah dress to go along with it. I just don't see her wearing red and white striped tights without the whole ensemble.

By now I am bored out of my mind looking at this catalog.

Yeah, right. I was DROOLING over all the pages. I think I actually digested some of them. Like this and this. This dress actually made my womb open and make room for triplets.

After getting over that cute little cable knit dress, I found this. Cue the lights. Cue music. THE. PERFECT. DRESS for a CandyLand party. The perfect dress for a lollipop girl like Loulabelle.

I needed an intervention right then. Right there. I called Shelley to have her talk me through the rest of the catalog and then support me while I threw it in the trash. Well, talking with her was like calling Hannah Andersson and chatting with a customer service rep. She offered me NO backbone. NONE. In fact, she pointed out all the wonderful features of the Hannah Andersson day dress. Supposedly, these dresses will last 10 years and they clean themselves.

My day went on and I did my best to get this dress out of my mind. I tried to ignore Shelley. Then I talked to Sonja. She said, "YOU HAVE TO GET THIS!!" She also went on to say that it will last for years. I wonder if both my friends get a kickback from Hannah herself.

Since I easily cave to peer pressure, I called the company just to "ask a question" about the dress.

Will it arrive in time for her party? YES.
Does it last 10 years? YES.
Does it clean itself? YES. YES and YES.

I am weak. I bought the outfit. I did. It was the most I have ever spent on clothing for my kids. But since it has a shelf life of 10+ years, it should pay for itself.

So really, it's a bargain at a mere $6 a year.

Deep Dark Confession

I have a confession to make. One that might send a few of my friends into severe anxiety. I am not a shopper. I have lost my love for shopping. There I said it.

Jen, are you OK? Sarah?

There was a time (Before Kids) that I loved to leisurely stroll from store to store and buy the cutest clothes for Skip and I. There was a time when shopping for my house was a dream come true. The most perfect day would have been antiquing at a variety of favorite flea markets then coming home to decorate with my new finds.

I really don't know what happened to me. I still like to be cute. I still love beautiful home goodies. I still love children's clothes and shoes. But I don't love the process. Maybe it's Skip's mantra that he has drilled into my head the past 11 years. "Good bye. I love you. Don't spend any money."

His idea of a "budget" must be paying off because I just spent a lovely day in local BIG city (ha!) and my idea of a good find was my library book. There was not one thing I wanted to buy at the beautiful home store. There was not one clothing store that I HAD to go to. Even when I do, I hear him in the back of my head saying "DON'T SPEND ANY MONEY."

What has happened to me?

I guess the genetic gene pool in which we created our children holds the same shopping aversion. Yesterday I was taking Z to buy school supplies. By the second store, he informed me that he was getting "store sick". I begged him to tough it out because it was stuff for HIM. He told me that I had 10 minutes.

Don't think I didn't fast forward his life in 40 plus years. He will be the grumpy husband sitting outside the store waiting impatiently for his wife. Because he will be "store sick".

What is the cure? I really don't want to be "store sick" the rest of my life. I guess in the meantime I will be sitting here NOT SPENDING ANY MONEY and wearing my clothes from the Y2K collection.