A Pretty Party Dress

I've been dreaming of owning a beautiful and festive/formal party dress for years. David's work puts on a formal Christmas party every year and formal dress is encouraged. It's definitely not prom-dress formal - but it's a step above Sunday dress. I've kept my eyes open for the perfect dress, but haven't been able to find one with an acceptable price tag. This year I was especially dreaming of a new dress. It's been 18 months and I can still barely stomach wearing the dresses that I wore while I was pregnant (no pun intended). Unfortunately, that is the majority of my dress wardrobe. I've wanted to get a new dress - but I couldn't find one that was what I wanted and was still nursing friendly. However, Lydia is weaned now and one day when I mentioned to David my secret desire to have a really pretty new dress to wear to his Christmas Party, he surprised me with some extra money that he'd been saving for something special. This sweet boy has been hanging onto this money in hopes that he would find something to surprise me with. He told me that he could try to buy a dress for me, but that he'd rather I find one that I love and buy it myself. 

Even just thinking about how sweet David is makes me tear up. 

So the hunt was on! I wanted something glittery and fancy, but I knew that it didn't make as much sense to buy a dress I could only wear once a year. I'd been eyeing a dress from Mikarose for years. (Like I tried to get Jenna to have this dress, in purple, as her bridesmaid dresses for her wedding.) It is pretty and formal and I figured that I could dress it up nicely. It's definitely more practical, as I could still wear it to church and other events. 

However, I still had in my secret heart that I wanted a very pretty, glitzy, party dress. So Lydia and I went dress shopping. I tried on lots of Christmas Party dresses, and found a couple that I liked - but nothing that I absolutely loved. I'm glad that I went shopping at that point - because it helped me realize that what I actually needed was a nice formal dress that could be used for many different things. My mind went back to the Mikarose dress that I loved. As I was heading out of the mall I stopped at Payless just to see what was there and found a pair of red shoes (with just a hint of pink in them) on sale for $15. I decided that I could bring them back if I decided to go a different direction, but knew that they would be perfect for the blue dress and I snatched them up! 

My only hesitation with this dress is that it was online. How would I know what size it was? What if I didn't like it? Etc... I expressed my situation and concerns with my sweet friend Ashley and she said that she would come with me to the Mikarose store in Provo so I could try it on. Uh, what? A Mikarose store so close to me? Yes please! So we decided to make a day of it and head down to try the dress on. Ashley let Lydia and I jump in her car and she drove us down there. If that's not a great friend- I don't know what is.

( I love these girls and I love their matching carseats!)

I tried on the dress and loved it. It wasn't quite as formal as I was hoping that it would be - but I decided that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. It would be great to be able to wear more often, plus it really is very comfortable and very pretty! (I tried to get a picture of me in it - but this was the best that I got.) 

I am really happy with this dress (and new shoes). I love love love it! However, there was this small part of myself that was a little sad to be letting go of my chance to buy that pretty sparkly Christmas Party dress. Then on Black Friday, we were at JC Penny and I saw a couple of dresses that were on a killer sale. I asked David if I could try them on. There was a black one with a pretty ruffle down the side, a red christmas-y one, and a purple sequined dress. I tried them on and as soon as I put on the purple one, I fell in love. It was perfect. Exactly what I was looking for. Pretty, sparkly, fancy. Plus, because of the major sale it was like 70% off or something. It was only $30 dollars. David saw how much I loved it and we left the store one purple sequined dress richer. 

I still can't believe that I own such a pretty dress. I wore it to David's work party and felt beautiful and so happy. (Although, we did have to drive all the way to Davis county through a major snowstorm and it probably would have been more weather-appropriate to wear my navy dress and black boots. The snow is also the reason for no picture. I forgot before we left and it was too darn cold after that.) I seriously love this dress and am looking for another place that I can wear it soon. Or maybe I'll have to convince David to go on a cruise so I can wear this on the formal night. Or more realistically I will just have to wait for David's Christmas party next year.

I know that its silly to blog about a couple of dresses. I realize that. But it's kind of a big deal for me. The dresses are a big deal. The thoughtfulness of Ashley to come dress shopping with me and my craziness is a big deal. The kind heartedness of my David is a big deal. I'm very lucky and very grateful.