This past weekend, while enjoying a surprise visit from our youngest Sprout, we sat together and chatted over a cup of coffee. It’s so fun to catch up in-person. I love social media for daily – what’s up with you kind of moments. But, in-person visits are way more fun.
After we caught up about what was going on in her life, we talked about my hobby of blogging and the changes in me that will come later this month. Oh, and the kitchen revival, of course, it’s hard not to notice that! It felt strange and nice at the same time to have her interested in what I’ve been doing too. Adult conversations with kids. I’m loving them, that’s for sure.
While I had her there, as a captive audience, I couldn’t resist sharing with her the contents of a bag of clothes I had bought on a shopping trip earlier in October. They have been tucked away next to my closet clear-out pile that I’ll donate at the end of the month.
Sadly, the items hadn’t officially made it into my closet yet. I felt the need for someone else’s approval before accepting them into the folds of dust in my closet. And I need to part with old stuff too (aka, #MinsGame – 18 pair of socks included!).
When I picked the new items out at the store, (at H&M…by the way, that store has to die for options that all color coordinate!) I hadn’t Snapchatted or texted photos to my daughters (aka, advisors) while I shopped.
I winged it all alone in the dressing room with the ‘it makes me look skinnier mirror’. The next door down was my friend who was doing the same thing. We were both buying new clothes. For ourselves. Retail therapy in an empty nest is grand. And scary. It felt creepy in a way – we’ve always done fall shopping with the kids who needed new clothes each year as they grew. For so many years, we took a back burner by wearing the same old clothes. Now, it felt like cheating by treating ourselves to new clothes.
The only thing that was consistent with shopping back in the day with our kids and our trip that day was the need to stop at the bathrooms! 😉
Two things surprised me about that conversation with my daughter. First, it was how mature and grown-up our little Sprout has become since moving out from under our wings, and secondly, it was that I guess I had grown-up some too.
I remember telling her when she was young and we were shopping for school clothes at the store.
“You look great in that, you should get it.”
“That’s a tad short, are you sure…but yeah, you look great in it!”
“You’re growing up so fast…you look so ready for college. I’m so proud of you.”
Now it was her telling me…
“Mom I’m so proud of you, it all goes together so well.”
“Mom, you’re killing it with that outfit – see you don’t need me to shop with you, you did great!”
Am I ready to wear the new outfits out in public? We’ll see…
Post Inspiration: Senior Salon #45 (thanks to Hugh’s guest post, I’ve joined in on the fun with Esme and the other fun bloggers who share their worlds with us! Rules here – check it out!)
PS – Have you shopped for clothes that are out of your comfort zone recently? Do tell…how did it feel, how long did it take you to wear them? What is your favorite compliment you tell your loved one when they try out a new style? Do you buy new shoes to go with the outfit too?! How often do you take the items back?
“…buy new shoes to go with the outfit too?” This is not something I understand. I have black shoes and brown shoes…do I need more?
LOL – Ask Faith, she’ll guide you in the right direction ;-)! I did buy a new pair, and Mr. said, “You bought another pair of shoes?!”
I am not inclined to shop much in my retiree years. I focus on comfort which means sweats at home during the winter months. It is all about staying warm. It is problematic when I need to go somewhere ‘fancy’ and I have nothing to wear. Good for you, though!
I’m with you on the sweats and comfort. I’d stay home all winter long if I could. So an outfit will force me to go to that meeting or to visit someone. Maybe… Thank you for the encouragement!!
Shopping for clothes has never been something I enjoyed very much – mostly because I need a “tall” size and stores don’t carry those. I’d much rather help someone else look for clothes (and then go out to eat afterwards). The best compliment – “that look is very you!” or “I like that on you.” Shoes? Only a few pairs needed. Your excursion sounds like fun though.
Sweet photos of your daughters 🙂
It’d be fun shopping with you – I’m on the short side, just on the edge of too tall for petites and too short for regulars. I could cut off the excess and give to you? I like your compliments! I’m a sucker for shoes that I only wear once. My mom taught me that well. Thanks, of course, I agree on my daughters looking sweet. It was fun watching them find their ‘look’ back then, while complying with dress code at one school and the freedom of not having one at the other.
It is always more fun shopping with a friend or a daughter. 🙂
And a mirror that makes us look skinny!
Fun times shopping with your daughter…one of my favorites too. I don’t shop as much as I used to, mostly because I don’t need as many clothes and I do more online. A big day in the mall is pretty much a thing of the past for me. We have a new and lovely department store nearby and I haven’t even set foot in it in the month it’s been open. Unheard of in the past! Maybe I’ll stop by for Christmas shopping. Of course, I always find something I want to try on, so there is that. Ha!
I do have a sweater I bought on vacation last year that I have yet to wear. It’s a bit out of my comfort zone, but I’m thinking of wearing it for Thanksgiving dinner. We’ll see….
I have so many happy memories of shopping with our kids. We have a tradition to go Black Friday shopping – they are both excited and I’m hoping to catch some birthday deals since it’ll be my birthday that day.
LOL – we have so many stores that I haven’t visited yet, sometimes they close before I even get a chance to shop there.
Yes – that’s the day I’m going to wear my new outfit too. Hopefully it’ll fit before, during, and after the meal! 😉 Share a picture on Instagram of your sweater when you wear it! 😉
Definitely good to have a little stretch in the clothing that day. Not sure if I will share a pic…haha. It would have to be pre-eating.
Yes, indeed. I may need to change my idea of what outfit to wear now that you mention that point. Oh, dear…
Well I loved clothes, shoes/accessories shopping when I worked on site – now I don’t buy much new, a couple of warm hats for the Winter and new gloves and that was about it for this year, sorry to say.
My daughter teases me some days – “Mom, you can still dress up for work even if you don’t go out.” She works from home too – and I catch her on Skype calls wearing her robe still. 😉 I need to get a hat so I can walk outside. I’ve never been a hat person – but I think it’s time.
I wore hats for years as I took the bus so had to wait on the bus going or coming home from work. I always had long hair so would tuck it up inside. I really put a lot of effort into going to work; it felt kind of nice to not do anything after years of fussing with my hair, my makeup, clothes/accessories. But that is not necessarily good either, but I figure, why do the whole nine yards to sit here?
I’m at the point where I think my skin is appreciating the lack of chemicals on it! Plus, the squirrels don’t mind the natural look!
That’s right – a heck of a lot cheaper too – my skin was always oily in the T-zone, even my eyelids, so I had primer I put in those two spots to control the oil, blotting papers, and then the makeup to make you look natural – it was a lot of bother and now my skin, although still oily, is very clear. I still get the highlights, though now they are highlights/lowlights as I have some sprigs of gray and my hair is light brown.
Yes, indeed – a lot cheaper! Just think of the money you’d save by letting that gray sparkle. (I know…it’s not for everyone, I just can’t resist razzing people while I respect their choices!) 🙂
Well your hair is curly so that makes a difference – the new wiry gray hairs can blend right in with your curly hair. My hair is straight which I don’t like at all, so I have it layered and curl it the ends … so those gray hairs are wiry and stick out of my hair like a sore thumb, even though 99% of the time I wear it up in a high ponytail. 🙂
You should see me now, dear. Don King would be proud!! LOL!
Ha ha – a friend of the family give me a perm my last year of high school. It was not a Toni because she was a hairdresser and brought everything along that she would use in a shop … hmm. I had frizzed out wild hair on one side and no curl on the other side and was mad. What I had to go through to make both sides look identical is beyond the imagination.
Yikes, that’s horrible – the things we do for hair that is different from what we’re born with amaze me. I’m thankful to be done with that stuff. But…there are days when Don King shows up in the mirror and I wonder, WTH am I doing? I need to get a cute hat or beanie?
See, my hair does the opposite – it will not hold a curl if it is humid, and that’s why I wear it in a bun when I am walking or running errands all Spring and Summer. Otherwise, the pineapple ponytail will stick out every which way or flop over (think Squiggy from Lavern and Shirley) and look silly. I have this doodad I bought at a craft show one time. It is two pieces of cloth-covered wires and you put your hair in between and roll it and twist it – it will not hurt your hair and it holds it in place, which is great as I have long layers, so it “traps” all the hair neatly. I also have one in velour which I keep for Fall as it works even better but it too heavy on a hot/humid day. I used to have bangs and when it was humid or it rained, my bangs would stick out straight. I liked the look of bangs, but could not control them – I would have a butane curling iron in my tote bag at all times … so I just grew them out for the last time, even though they were more flattering and a softer look. My hair stylist even warned me – she said, “you’ll need a spot perm on your bangs or need a lot of styling product” – she was right!
Ah, yes, hair woes – the things we do to ‘control’ it amaze me! I think you’ve done well finding what works for you!
What fun! Good for you!
Thank you, Rebecca!
Dear Shelley. Thank you so much for the link and sharing and participation at #senisal. I hope that all your readers will also come and join us weekly for this fun linkup as its a great way to meet new blogging buddies.
Thank you, Esme, I appreciate the opportunity to join in. I hope they all head on over to see what the weekly fun is all about too!