Shopping....aahhhhh!!!

     There have been two recent shopping stints and both have come after basking in the pleasures of three restaurants.  Yup, three restaurants.  Last week, the girls (cousin in laws) and I went to PF Changs for dinner and not liking the dessert menu crossed the mall to The Cheesecake Factory.  That's the dream!!!  Eggrolls to tiramisu cheesecake with two mudslides to boot.  Anyway, after Carb Fest 2010 one of the girls and I, Sarah, went shopping.  This is always a great time to go shopping right?  After you've eaten everything in the restaurant twice. 

     I was on the brink of starting my diet after Memorial Day so I basically was on the lookout for clothes I could exercise in.  Couldn't find anything.  I wasn't surprised but at least I was with a person who could relate.  Sarah, is also tall, curvy and had always been that way.  You'd think that with, what is it now, 1 in 3 people being overweight the world of clothes would have more to offer.  Nope, apparently this statistic hasn't reached the fashion industry.  If it did they have assumed all fat people are short.  Shopping with Sarah was definitely fun and so much better than shopping alone.  Is this why girls shop together?  So you can laugh when you belly flat spills over the top of the jeans instead of hunting for Aunt Annie's?  

     I know how my body reacts to pants and my best best is the men's department.  I have average arms and legs with a big ole beer gut.  I don't drink beer.  I think after my C-sections all my fat cells conga lined up to my belly.  "Hey!  Look at all the room over here!"  You're probably shaking your head and saying, "Go to Lane Bryant."  YOU go to Lane Bryant!  Go to their website.  I'm willing to bet a woman wearing some large print type clothing pops up.  Lane Bryant is pushing animal and bold prints and that just isn't me.  What is me costs about $40 so an outfit could easily reach $100.  So what have we established?  I want affordable clothes for a tall, plus sized woman who is NOT into safari themes.   

     That being said, the next week (yesterday) my friend seemed to find a solution in stores.  Catherine's.  We sent our husbands off to an electronic store while we went shopping for clothes.  I basically need clothes but don't want to go through the grief of buying them for several reasons.  Trying them on will depress me.  I tend to want to ride out the clothes I have until my diet starts showing results.  Why buy a 3X if I won't be one long?  Especially at the prices the plus clothes sell for.  All my current clothes are either maternity, I built our house in them (2 years ago) or both. 

     Catherine's was pretty decent.  They are spinoff of Lane Bryant so I wonder if I can use my LB gift card there.  Catherine's however, provided an affordable top for exercise (got the shorts at Casual Male XL) and a dress.  I did manage to find a pair of capris.  Here's where it became the kind of experience I'm use to... I had to get a pair of capris bigger than I normally wear.  Why?  I tried on my normal size and the pants had a seam going from the bottom of the zipper around to the back.  The seam settled into the spot where my abdominal muscles use to connect.  Having 10-12 lb. babies will permanently separate them.  Long story short, I looked like I had a camel toe going to my belly button.  That was a new one...and there I was just expecting to deal with the muffin top phenomenon.