I saw my reflection in the window…

Yesterday I had one hour that I could run out alone and do some shopping therapy. I admit I ended up only being in children clothing stores…but still it was a therapy!!

If you are a woman and really honest with yourself, you will admit that it is THE BEST type of therapy…yes you will feel a pain when the credit card’s invoice knocks your door later, or maybe you are the guilt feeling type – like me- and feel the pain past midnight….but at least you had your absolute therapy during the bliss of shopping.

I don’t have my regular visits to this therapist since I am a mother and especially since I am a mother of a toddler. Let’s face it, shopping with a toddler is the equivalent of taking a giant elephant to a china store….after such a trip I will for sure need a real therapy!

So me, the mother, blissfully ran out the door the moment that him, the father, walked in from work…I was happy to see my two men getting ready to go for a stroll around the neighborhood in what was a grate weather…I drove and got to the mall (still blissful) and parked the car and toddled toward the door....when I saw someone’s reflection in the glass door...OH IT WAS ME!

For the love of God, What the heck was I wearing?

Don’t worry it was not a PJ or a track suit – which I heard is the Mother’s uniform!- but come on….

I had a brown pants and a pink sweater and had a brown shoes and a brown purse…I guess I can say color coordination comes to me naturally even when I am walking in a daze!

But the look of it…it was hanging from my body. My hair was in a bundle on top of my head – I need a haircut like yesterday, but I can not get a free time yet…so for now this boring hairdo is what my curly hair can handle…

I did not have any make up on– which is not that unusual for me as I rarely put on any make up. My mother used to constantly remind me that AT LEAST I could have a lipstick on my lips….Which one day I found the magic of lip gloss and that became part of my routine…but in this particular day I did not have ANYTHING!

In my saving grace, I did have a shower and I smelled really good (which even in the worst situation I smell very good because I am extra sensitive on the nose department!)

So let’s go to the point: I looked BORING! Make it capital and underline.

I even had that boring ugly walk… I was toddling with shoulders forward…you know what I mean? No gliding, no grace in the steps…blah blah blah….

I was shocked. I had so many nice things to wear in my closet. I can say honestly I do fit in almost all of them as I got back to my pre-pregnancy weight within four weeks after the delivery with no extra effort other than sleep deprivation and breast feeding!!!

I don’t have a body of a model but I have a one that can carry a suitable outfit nicely…

And then running after a toddler helps you to be in an OK shape, up and down a little in the weight department…except for my arms of course that now have muscles thanks to carrying my little one here and there…so little tights on my usual sleeves!

So how come I became like this? When did I stop caring?
Because if one looks at my closet, it is very obvious that I did care about what I ware… what accessories I put on and how to be out and about?

I always used to dress up comfortably but elegant. I mean my personality does not sacrifice comfort for beauty…but during the years I found a place on the fashion map that has both elements….Especially I love accessories and used them a lot…notice the verb there: “USED”

It is very obvious to any observer – they don’t even need to be a fashion consultant- that these days I put on clothes just to cross something off my “to do list”!

Majority of my friends are mothers to the preschooler and first grader – which means they will have more time for shower and the rest of the hoopla!

They look OK and sometimes nice. I have particularly a very good and close friend that looks AMAZING… ALWAYS. She is what the term Yummy Mummy was created for….and she looked like that even when she had a newborn and a preschooler at the same time!

I mean no matter what time of day or night you go to her house and no matter whether you called first or just knock her door; she opens the door as if she came out of a fashion magazine. For crying out loud, even her track suit is gorgeous!

And let's be clear here: she does almost everything by herself. She does not have a nanny and cook all the ingredient from the scratch - what can I say, I am friend with the superwoman:):)

We travel together once or twice a year for our work and I spend day and night with her for 7 -8 days…those times I am amazed of the simplicity and yet absolute elegancy of her wardrobe…. and more important than that of how artistic she is in her make up application and how quick she puts on her makeup even while she is driving! Truly less than 3 minutes!

God knows in order for me to put on any make up, I need a meditation of some sort just to be able to not mess it up!

How come it takes many many many minutes for me to put on make up…and the result is not as gorgeous as hers?

In last 18 months, every time I come back from those trips I pay little more attention to “how I carry myself” – which is her sentence…

I pay attention to what I wear and make sure I have an accessory for the occasion, a nice shoes and a nice purse…and I have to admit majority of my supply in my make up drawer comes from the inspirational shopping after those trips….

And then within a month I am back to where I was…a boring looking woman….then she gives me her usual pep talks that looking nice makes one feel happier (and I admit she is right)…and that it is easy and absolutely OK to include little “me time” in my daily schedule (which I whole heartedly agree if only I knew when and how to include it)…and even once in every season she tries to take me out for shopping trips (which are only fun to watch her because with every pick I shake my head that “when am I going to put this on?” or “it will not be comfortable enough to run after my little one”…and then she will shake her beautiful head that “grow up girl, a woman needs beauty not comfort…and you can have comfort in your PJ’s”….which let’s drop this note here, in my expert opinion in comfort, her PJ is much more beautiful than comfortable!...she laughs so loud and proud when I tell her this!)

I mean I don't want to be like her...my personality was not, is not and will not be like that...I just want to be little less boring, little more gracious.

So I am here, in my blog, crying out to the world….how can people do it? Because there are people that do this…dress nice, look nice, carry all the baby stuff nicely and elegantly, walk beautifully and have that "interested about the world" look when they walk...and still manage even a busier schedule than mine.

How can they do it?

Other than defective “friendship Gene” do I have also defective “looking elegant” gene?
OK, I gave up!