Yearbook Yourself!

What would I have looked like as a high school senior in 1976? Now you don't have to wonder! (Thanks Molly!) Enjoy my pictorial time warp and then Yearbook Yourself.

Class of 1952

Class of 1960

Class of 1968

Class of 1976

Class of 1980

Class of 1994

Class of 1998
(MY senior year!)

The Mom Section

I hate shopping...again.

I'm sorry to rail against the retail industry in yet another post, but I spent yesterday afternoon shopping for swimming suits and bras. Need I say more?

I guess I'll just never get used to shopping in the "mom" section. What's the mom section, you ask? Well, it's that special place in every clothing department designed for women who've had babies and thus value coverage and support — two things that apparently are in direct conflict with cuteness. It's where swimming suits have obnoxious jungle prints and wide, clingy skirts. It's where the bras come in only beige or brown and have straps an inch wide. It's that section you used to see as a teenager and think, "Who on earth would buy that ugly crap?"

I gave up on the swimming suit quest almost immediately. I just wasn’t in a good enough mood to put up with it. I had nearly surrendered my bra quest, too, when I reached Nordstrom intimates. They have great fitters (the gals who measure and manhandle you) and a fairly decent selection of cute bras in a variety of sizes. Oh, and my fitter asked how old I was because she thought I was a teenage mother. Maybe I should have been offended. It made my day.

-Angie
(Who plans to post about our earlier summer adventures this week. I have to get caught up before we leave for our next vacation this Saturday!)

Newsflash, Designers: I’m Not Pregnant

I hate shopping.

It’s not because I’m one of those “question consumption” hipsters who believes that malls are evil (although I do aspire to be that cool one day). No, I hate shopping because once I find styles that flatter me, the fickle fashion winds change — often blowing in a bad bad direction.

Case in point: the empire-waist shirt.

Seriously, how long will this trend last? No sooner had I popped out Rowan than the fashion world began dressing every woman in maternity clothes.

The "tight around the chest, loose around the belly" silhouette is not flattering on most women, and it’s causing countless avoidable faux pas. (When are you due?) Even the size-zero model pictured above looks like she's sporting a bump.

As a woman who has been pregnant — and has thus seen irreversible changes to her waistline ― the last thing I want is excess volume around my middle. So please, let’s just stop this trend right now.

-Angie
(Who is oh so disheartened by the empire-waist sweaters she’s seen for fall. Seriously? They’re adding bulky fabric to the mix now?)