The power of 10

Mark is moving in with the kids and me next month.

The decision was made after careful consideration. We weighed our options and being the practical folks we are, we decided to shack up and then hunker down to save, save, save. Together we can put away well over $1,000/month, which we'll use for the wedding and a down payment on a house.

I know that living together before marriage is frowned upon by many. And I'm sure that living together, before marriage and with kids is frowned upon by many more. But, we're both very committed to each other and are in this for the long haul. And this savings strategy will enable us to make our next move our last move, which'll be easier on everyone - kids included.

(Quick aside - This is one of my favorite articles from The Onion:
Live-In Boyfriend Like The Deadbeat Dad Kids Never Had
It's totally wrong, but I love it anyway.)

Anyhow, I've got about 30 days to clear the path for Mark and his dogs to move in.

I've decided to take it in stages. This weekend, I'm focusing on my room, namely closets and dressers. Next weekend will be the kitchen and then I'll focus on bathrooms. Most of his stuff will end up in storage until the move into our house, which'll be sometime next summer.

For a 3-bedroom townhouse, I've got a lot of closet space - two double closets in my room alone, in fact. But sadly, I've also got a ton of clothes I never wear filling them. So, today I decided to get real, and pare down my stuff.

A lot of the clothes that made the Goodwill pile were somewhat outdated or too small. But, I also got rid of clothes that I don't particularly care for anymore or haven't worn in over a year. Piece by piece, I'd check the pockets (didn't find anything), fold it carefully, and then add it to the donation pile.

Eventually I came across one of my favorite dresses of all time. It was a copper-colored sheath dress with green and mauve details. The last time I wore it was to a wedding in 1997. I remembered that night and how I looked and felt in the dress. It fit me like a glove and I felt drop-dead gorgeous. The only time in my life that I ever actually turned heads when walking into a room, was in that dress.

I held it out and looked at the label. Size 7. Ugh.

Now, I've lost some weight recently and have been feeling good - but I'm currently size 10. I wondered if I could get down more to squeeze into the dress again. Who knows? Maybe if I cut out starches for, like a year or two...

I slipped off my shorts and slipped on the dress. I could get it up past my hips (awesome!) and slip my arms through the sleeves. (Woo hoo! Sleeveless!) When I got the straps up onto my shoulders, I realized that I have something I didn't have in 1997. Boobs. I tried to cram the girls into the front of the dress and, after a minute or two, actually succeeded. Holding my breath, I tried the zipper.

Not a chance.

Eleven years and three kids have made size 7 completely and utterly impossible. Defeated, I slipped out of the dress and, after a hearty exhale, gently folded it and laid it on the pile.

I feel sad about giving it away, but to keep it would be silly. Besides, how awesome would it be if someone else could find it, buy it and feel as amazing as I did in it?

At the end of the day, I made significant progress in my room and Mark will have a nice, big closet to call his own. While I may never lose enough weight to get back down to a size 7, what I've gained (and continue to gain) has been well worth it. I don't miss being a 7, not when my life now includes my little guy, my girls (the twins) and the girls (my bosom).

Nope, I wouldn't trade any of it for the world -- not even on a bad day.