I think it’s time to clean off the high chair and retire it to basement storage. Isabella has decided she wants to sit at the table with mommy and daddy. She was so insistent about sitting in the chairs, and we were worried about her falling off the kitchen chairs which are bar stool height, that on Friday I went out and bought a booster seat. It took a little while before she got used to the idea, having spoiled her a bit by letting her sit in the chairs without the seat, she was reluctant to be strapped in again. Finally, however, I think she realized the booster seat makes it easier for her to reach the table top. And so now Bella proudly eats her meals at the table with us. It’s rather nice to look up at dinner and see my daughter’s smiling face across from me.
And Hello, utensils, as well!
She’s also finally learning to manage a spoon! Last night she got in several bites of cottage cheese properly with the spoon before she gave up and resorted to shoveling with her fingers. I praised her profusely when I noticed that she was using the spoon rather than just waving it around, hoping to further encourage such proper table manners. It will be very nice when she masters this necessary skill.
One other point, as a woman who worked for years at Neiman Marcus, most designers are gay men. I think that right there skews their vision. They are into art, not function.
Melanie,
I’m sympathetic with you and the original poster. I tried over and over again to find maternity clothes I liked that we modest and respectful and feminine but all I found were plunging necklines to show off the growing cleavage, sleeveless and mini-skirts. Finally I gave up and simply made my maternity wardrobe out of extra large regular clothing. I bought ankle-length skirts and wear the waist high.
Generally my preferred stores to shop are L.L. Bean, Eddie Bauer, and Coldwater Creek (gorgeous skirts just not cheap). But that brings me to another point….does it seem to anyone but me that the sleazier clothes are cheaper (financially-speaking) whereas the more modest clothes are more expensive? Or is it just where I shop?
“whereas the more modest clothes are more expensive”
That’s actually one of my biggest gripes. It seems like every time I trot out this topic someone points me to catalogs and websites with modest, well-made clothing… that are way out of my price range.
As one of four kids, I grew up on hand-me-downs and thrift store shopping. I’m cheap and always on the look-out for bargains. I pretty much refuse to pay full price for anything. I don’t really like clothing shopping anyway.I’m not a clothes horse. I prefer to spend my money on books—at Half Price Books, unless I absolutely can’t find them elsewhere.
I know the argument that the more expensive clothes are better quality and last much longer and are therefore worth the money. But then I come back to the whole problem of fit. I don’t have good luck with clothes from a catalog because I can’t try them on first. In fact, I don’t even have very good luck on clothes I try on in the store. I went shopping at the beginning of the summer and spent more money than I should have, came home with three pairs of very cute capris. And of those three which looked good in the store I actually wore one of them all the time because they were comfortable. The others looked ok; but I’d pass over them in the closet because after a few wears they didn’t pass the comfort test. Part of the problem may be my expanding waist; but in general I find that about 50% of my purchases that seemed like a good idea in the store don’t end up working very well in real life. And I haven’t found that the amount of money I spend on an article necessarily tracks with it’s real-life workability.
I don’t like to spend an inordinate amount of time and money on clothing but I do like to have nice clothes. I just want the clothes elves to come one night and stock my closet with beautiful, well-made clothing that fits like a dream, flatters my figure, and that doesn’t cost me a penny.
Maybe it’s because immodest clothing has less material in it.
I’ve managed to find things I like at Sears—skirts and the like. Not too expensive, either.
Maternity, on the other hand, is an entity unto itself—it’s some combination of ugly, unflattering, immodest, or expensive, if not all of the above. Maybe it’s because they don’t have as many gay men designing for it.
Melanie,
the best I’ve been able to find of not-too-expensive modest clothing is at Eddie bauer Outlet Stores. Our nearest one is near Baltimore, so we don’t get there too often, but the last time we went I think between DH and I we bought 8 or 10 shirts for about $120 total (and the vast majority of those were for me – I think James got 2). Otherwise I scrounge at Target and Walmart but their immodesty has gotten as bad as most places.
Dom,
Lol, I’d buy that argument about silk, but not much else.
I tried shopping for pants on Sunday. Exhausting and not fruitful at all. Pants seem to be the worst. I’m 5 foot 5 and petites are too long!!! And a woman with ample butt and hips and short legs doesn’t do well with wide leg pants …