My four-year-old niece stayed overnight on Friday and amused us all evening with her firm opinions about everything she encountered. Most of her observations are delivered at top volume these days; her parents are going to have to really work on the concept of "indoor voice" before her baby brother arrives next spring.
On Saturday, my sister came over and we headed to the local giganto-mall so I could buy a fancy dress for my trip to Las Vegas next week. In my mind’s eye, the ideal dress was flashy, tacky, cocktail length and preferably red. Also in my mind’s eye, I hadn’t gained an extra 10 pounds over the past few months. What are you gonna do?
My niece insisted on barging into the dressing room while I tried on dresses. The first couple of dresses I tried were drapy, gauzy numbers that fit me like sausage casings. My sister tried to convince me that they would look better with different undergarments. My response, "But I’ll still be fat – the trip’s next week!"
I had much better luck at the next store. Of the four dresses I tried, all were pretty good and two were particularly flattering. When I tried on my favorite, I called out to my sister in the hallway, "I think this one looks really nice."
My niece piped up, "But you’re still fat!"
I burst out laughing at hearing my own words thrown back at me and my niece tried to backpedal and say she was "just joking" as I repeated the whole exchange to my sister. I realized I need to do a much better job of watching what I say if I want to send positive messages about body image to my little relation.
The dress I bought is black, evening length and covered with so many beads and sparklies that it’s actually heavy. It’s way classier than what I’d originally envisioned, but it minimized all of my figure flaws, so it was the winner. I figure I’ll let Elvis handle the kitsch at our renewal of vows ceremony and I’ll take the more elegant route so I’ll look good in the pictures.
First, though, I have a three-day business trip to the opposite end of the country and one work day at home in between. What a week!
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