Shopping Success

I have a big fancy work party next weekend and need a new dress.  Kat needs new shoes.  So I decided to be daring and conquer both tasks with a single mall trip.

Sure - this might not sound daring to you... but unlike many women, shopping is not one of my hobbies.  I  try to avoid the mall if at all possible.  And usually, finding a dress is about as challenging as establishing a colony on the moon.  For this occasion, my ideal dress allows me to wear a full-support bra (thank you breastfeeding), isn't too clingy (giant mommy pooch), is modest enough to wear around colleagues but still flattering, and maybe a color other than black.  And if that wasn't enough, since I was going to get Kat new shoes, she would have to come with me.

I prepared for this adventure by planning a crock-pot dinner (Chicken Curry) and throwing it all together to start cooking at lunch time.  Since dinner was hands-off, I wouldn't have to worry about rushing home.  And I decided that leaving just after her nap would give me optimal Kat cooperativeness.  During naptime, I pumped so that NerdDad would have milk to feed Buddy while I was gone.  And just before we left, I snuck a pack of fruit snacks into my purse.

The store where we got Kat's last pair of shoes no longer carries her size (what's up with that?!).  She has wide feet, so the pickings were pretty slim already.  Since find a dress had a more concrete deadline, we moved on to that.  And somehow we made it past the kid play area with minimal whining.  Score!

When we get into the first department store, Kat announced that she had had enough of the stroller and wanted to "walk myself".  So we played "Follow Mommy", which surprisingly worked perfectly! She very obediently followed me around while I browsed each rack and picked out four dresses to try on.

And now here is the most amazing part of this story...  The first wasn't bad, but a little too casual for this party.  And the second was AMAZING!  In fact, it was so amazing, that I didn't even both trying on the other two dresses! The dress met all of my criteria AND it was only $60!  Thank you shopping gods!  Check back after this weekend; I'll post pics.

P.S. The rest of the trip was a success too: Kat got new shoes and sunglasses, Buddy was napping when we got home, and dinner was ready!