Shopping spree

I couldn't stand it one moment longer; I had to get out of the house and breathe some real air. Besides, the girls needed Easter dresses. So I took Martha with me (she was The Crab Queen this morning and I figured she probably needed out as much as I did) and we went to the mall. First things first... I have put off having my hair colored & cut for, oh, a couple of months now. It was looking a little tired. So while I had my hair "did", I let Martha get a manicure. I love this little salon I've been going to; it's in an obscure corner of the mall and every stylist in there has always been terrific. They're not the cheapest place in town, but I'm tired of the McHaircut that you get at the cheapie places. I don't treat myself often, but I feel like I need to look like I care about my appearance now that I'm in the career-woman position... not to mention that I'm on a stage under lights nearly every weekend in front of about 700 people. It's my one real splurge on myself -- I have my hair highlighted AND lowlighted, and I'm incredibly pleased with the results. No-one ever notices that I've been "streaked", but they DO seem to have lots of compliments for it. Worth the money, I'd say.

The stylists there are all Korean except for one Caucasian guy. The owner, Mak, a Korean woman, remembers me because the first time I came in there, I had Alice with me. Now, every time I go in, Mak wants to talk about adoption and Korea and Alice's disabilities, etc. This time, while she was foiling me, she wanted to talk about Terri Schiavo. Mak is a Buddhist, I found out, and has a difficult time understanding our culture's reaction to the situation. I spoke with her a little about the value of life and the finality of death, neither of which is a feature of Buddhism (or at least her interpretation of it). I look forward to more conversations with her. I may see if I can get a Hangul Bible from one of my Korean Christian friends and share the Gospel with her.

After the hairstyle, Martha and I went to browse at Limited Too and GapKids. I chose a couple of very sweet dresses at Gap; pink for Alice and purple for Martha, with matching cardigans but different dresses. We picked out shoes at Payless; for Alice, I have to get something with a Maryjane strap across the top because she can't keep them on otherwise. Martha chose some mega-chunky-heel sandals. I reminded her that it would probably be freezing, and she said, "I can take it." What a woman will do for the sake of fashion.

At home, Isaac was in tears. "Where's MY new clothes?" he moaned. Oh, good grief... I've got a stylin' son. "Okay, Buddy-boy, after supper we'll go see if we can find you a new shirt to wear on Sunday."

Got him a very cool Claiborne button-down with a palm-tree pattern to it. With a pair of sharp khakis, he and his bad self will be lookin' REAL good. While I was out this time, I decided that Rick needed a clothing update too. I got him some shirts (with ties -- he hasn't had a new tie in probably ten years, and as much as I loved those Rush Limbaugh ties, they're definitely out-of-date now) and some slacks.

No, I didn't get myself a thing. I tend to collect things for myself little by little rather than all in one big spree. I'll be on stage, so I don't want to look too out-there or frumpy or dressed-up; I don't want to be too noticeable. I'm up there to lead people to worship GOD, not me.

I did get my issue of InStyle in the mail today... WOOT!! I love thumbing through that mag -- it's the coolest.