Sweet Innocence

Today, while I was brushing Savanna's hair, I smelled something just a little off.

Me: Savanna, did you pee your pants?
Savanna: No.
Me: Are you sure?
Savanna: (nods her head.)
Me: Savanna, I smell pee. (I bend down a little closer to the source, and sniff.)
Savanna: It wasn't me.
Me: It wasn't you? Bryan, are you hearing this?
Bryan: (nodding, trying to keep a straight face.)
Savanna: (sweet, innocent face) It wasn't me. It must have been someone else.

Too Short to Be Tall, Too Tall to Be Short

Ever since I stopped growing taller (age 13-ish), I've struggled to find pants that fit properly. If I get pants that are long enough, they are usually too big in the waist and hips. If I get pants that fit my waist and hips, the pants are usually too short. Just ever so slightly--too short. When I was in high school, and the style was to "sag" your pants, there was no problem.

But as I've gotten older, and my body has been through numerous changes, I find that comfort is a much more important factor than it was when I was young and hot (okay, so I was never actually hot). And my tastes have changed. (The other day I was in the store looking at clothes. Some young girls picked up this hideous jacket and confirmed to each other that it was super cute. I realized that I cannot and will not keep up with the trends anymore.)

So I got a recommendation to try Old Navy jeans because you can get them in "Tall" sizes. I have never considered myself "tall," so I had never considered trying the tall sizes. When I got to the store, they did not carry the tall sizes. So I tried on the regular size just to match the fit in the waist and hips. Armed with this knowledge, and a really cute clearance dress, I decided to shop online.

When I got to the website, I checked out the sizing charts, just to be sure. This is where I ran into trouble.


Petite sizes are for women 5'4" and under. Tall sizes are for women 5'10" and up. The assumption is that regular sizes are for women who fall between these heights, right? I am 5'6.25".

The inseam for regular sizes is 32". The tall sizes have an inseam of 36" inches. My inseam is 33". In other words, the regular pants are one inch too short, and the tall pants are 3 inches too long. Okay, so you would probably recommend I buy tall pants and hem them to fit. Which might work, if they didn't sew the knee at a different length in the tall pants. I fear that I would buy the tall pants and the knee wouldn't sit right.

In my limited research, I have found the same sizings at other stores. So the mystery is solved as to why I have difficulty finding pants that fit. Not all stores even sell tall sizes. If you are one of my tall friends, please advise.

Until then, I guess I could order a pair and return it if it doesn't fit. Life couldn't be easy, could it?

Dresses

Wanna hear a story? When I joined the local choir, I was given an old pattern and a swatch of fabric. The pattern is out of print; that is how old it is. But to match the rest of the ladies in the choir, I needed to comply and make the dress. In the process, I heard many complaints from the veteran members of the choir about their strong distaste for the dress. It was frequently called "the trash bag" and "the black shroud of death." The pattern was hideous and unflattering, and the fabric was unforgiving, stiff, and baggy.

My mom, a professional-grade seamstress (she made my wedding dress), sewed the dress to my exact measurements. We hoped that perhaps mine might turn out better than the others. It didn't:
So, I embarked on a journey to promote the change that I observed (almost) everyone wanted. About a year ago, I printed a few copies of a petition, and nervously and anonymously sent it around the choir during rehearsal. The first week, only about half the women signed; the other half were afraid of rocking the boat. Several men also signed the petition. The following week, we gained a few more signatures as the women got braver. My friends and I decided that we had enough of a majority to press forward. The choir's Executive Committee discussed the petition and allowed a "Dress Committee" to be formed. I was invited to be on the Dress Committee; we met several times and spent several hours determining which styles of dress would flatter most people, would be comfortable, and would be acceptable to most of the women. We ordered several dresses to try on, we took lots of pictures, and a slideshow was shown to the Executive Committee. We were given the green light to move forward; we chose several styles and held a fashion show for the women to view and touch the options. The women voted, and a huge majority voted on this dress:

I am fond of the two-piece idea because: how often does a woman wear the same size on top as on bottom? My friend and fellow Dress Committee member Kami is shaped exactly opposite from me, so we agreed on this matter. The entire Dress Committee also agreed on the 3/4 length sleeves because they cover the parts of our arms that might make us self-conscious; but they also won't get in the way of holding the music. I don't love velvet, and I don't love having two options for necklines (cowl and boat); but they are still more flattering than the old dress. I adore the two-layer skirt and the sparklies; I would definitely wear it for occasions other than choir concerts. I don't love that we can't wash the skirt, but is probably okay as long as I don't hold babies while I wear it. I do love that I can wash the shirt, which does tend to get sweaty under the hot lights.

Thank you for letting me share this story; I never got credit for the change anywhere else.

Following Isaac Around

Other Costumes

I still never got a picture of me wearing the WALL-E costume, but here is a picture of the costume on a smaller body.

Also, Caleb made another costume to wear to school. Think Star Wars. Think Han Solo. Think "carbonite."

Halloween Costumes

For your viewing pleasure:

Bryan as Superman

Savanna as Cinderella

Isaac as a puppy

Caleb as Commander Cody (sort of like a Stormtrooper)

Joseph as Buzz Lightyear

I was Wall-E, but somehow we missed getting a picture.

One Man's Treasure...

is another man's JUNK.

I know I've told you all about Lose 200 Lbs. This Weekend and Make Your House Do the Housework. You probably think I'm pretty crazy by now, but I decided to check out some of Don Aslett's other books. And then I lost somewhere between 1000 and 2000 lbs. last weekend; and now my house is starting to do the housework.

The other books, which I HIGHLY recommend to you, are Clutter's Last Stand and Not for Packrats Only.

The premise behind both of these books is that we invest so much in our junk. Time is a big investment here, since we spend most of our housecleaning time moving stuff from one place to another; which must be done before you can actually clean anything. Money is another investment--how much money have you spent buying, maintaining, protecting, moving, storing, and insuring junk?

Okay, so you ask, what is junk? Well, start by asking yourself these questions:

1. Why do I own it? Do I love it, or is it useful to me [right now]?
2. Does it irritate me?
3. Does it have a home in my home? (A place for everything, and everything in it's place.)
4. Am I really going to use it again someday? And if so, is it really saving me money to hold onto it now? And if so, am I going to be able to find it when I need it again?
5. Do I really need more than one?
6. What are my emotional reasons for holding onto it, and are they really valid reasons?

Once you can start judging your own junk, here is a helpful way to handle it. Get three boxes. Stuff you love and use regularly, put it away in it's own place. Next, you will label the first box KEEP. This is stuff you know you will use again, but it's taking up space doing nothing right now; and it is worth it to you to hold onto (such as baby clothes if you plan to have more kids, or food storage [don't forget to rotate!--or it will just become junk]). The next box, you will label UNDECIDED. Whatever you put here, you will store for six months; don't peek. When you come back to it, don't open it. If you can't even remember what you put here, just take it to a charity drop off without looking. The third box, label CHARITY, and just take it directly to a charity drop off. Lastly, have a trash bag close by. If your junk is not useful to you, and it definitely won't be useful to someone else, give yourself permission to throw it out. I promise, it's okay!

Helpful hint: once you clear some space, don't be in a rush to fill it again. Empty space is nice to live in. Instead of the faulty thinking that you just need a bigger house, try to figure out how to make the space you have work for you (and not your junk). Food for thought: many house-fires blaze out of control, mainly because of the clutter they consume. You could also try something extreme: box up everything except the things you would take on an extended vacation. Then, take only the things out of the boxes that you need. See how little you can live with/on, and you may surprise yourself at how much extra you have but don't need.

Lastly, think on this: whatever stuff you have will stay with you until you die. It won't come with you to heaven. So...what does that mean for the loved ones you have left behind? They have to sort through/fight over your junk. How about instead, leave them a legacy of only the most meaningful things/love for you/love for each other?

Okay, so now, go read the books! It will change your life and how you do things and how you think about things. I'm quickly becoming an expert, so feel free to call or write if you want some extra help!