We kicked off the day at the same shop where Alex got her wedding dress, partly because it was only a few blocks from Alex’s house and partly because it was such a great experience the first time around. I had a huge cinnamon roll for breakfast because hey! I didn’t have to try on dresses. 😂 And I didn’t mean to wear a white shirt and match Paige’s dress, I just didn’t bring much from home and it was my only option. Anyway, as you can see…the smile on my face says it all. What a happy day! I’m so happy for Paige.

It takes awhile to look through the myriad options at a wedding dress shop, and but fortunately Paige had a pretty good idea of what she didn’t want (sparkles, sleeves, or appliqué), which sometimes is just as helpful as trying to figure out what one does want. But there are so many options and directions! Lace or no lace, strapless or straps or sleeves, low back or high back, white or ivory, bows or no bows…it’s overwhelming, but a good kind of overwhelming. There’s nothing more gorgeous than a bunch of wedding dresses hanging together!

We moved on to the second spot after Paige tried on many, many gorgeous gowns, and we had to snap a mirror selfie! Paige had invited David’s mom and sister, and we all had the best day together. It was a big of a crash course in getting to know one another since we’d only met a couple of times before, but it was such a fun, natural vibe…and Heather, David’s mom, is hilarious and laughs at herself just like I do, so we were equally awkward all day! 😂 But seriously, how wonderful that Paige will be gaining another mom and sister. What a blessing.

I need to say that I am typically not a day drinker. I don’t like how it derails my whole day and I always want to get work done while I have my wits about me and save the booze for eveningtime. But it was Saturday, I didn’t have any work to do apart from taking pics and videos of the dresses Paige tried on…so I went ahead and had a glass or three. I didn’t want to be rude and say no, and Alex couldn’t have any because she’s expecting a baby. So day drinking it was!!

After a third stop and several more dresses, we returned to our original spot. Incidentally, we counted: would you like to know how many dresses Paige tried on during the course of our three visits? I should let you know that before we started, David’s mom and I placed bets as to how many dresses Paige would try on throughout the day. One of us said eight, one of us said twenty-two. The grand total? FORTY! Forty whole dresses. Fortunately, she moved at lightning speed and only lingered on the ones she knew she loved. I have a feeling forty dresses isn’t that unusual, but I would have been exhausted if I’d had to get zipped up that many times. But in the end…

My second child wound up finding the dress of her dreams. I can’t show you the dress right now for obvious reasons, and in order to preserve the wedding dress magic, I’m also not sharing the forty she tried on. But I PROMISE you that the week after the wedding next May, I will post a gallery of every single contender. It was such a fun fashion show and I would love to dig into all the options and details and share what I learned. For now, I’m just so thrilled for Paige that she found a dress that she absolutely loves and that she feels is right for her. That’s the whole point! (Maybe David’s mom and I will take you all shopping with us as we shop for our mother-of-the-bride/groom dresses. We’ll definitely need some champagne for that!!)