Dress shopping

My mom came into the city today, and we went wedding dress shopping. Last week, I popped into a bridal store by myself, thinking I could handle it on my own, and that's when I realized "I need MY MOMMY."

Dan doesn't get the concept of wedding dress shopping. When I told him my plans with my mom, he said: "Well, what if you find a dress already? Are you going to bring it here? Where are we going to keep it? You're going to show it to me, right?" It was cute, really. I guess guys really don't know about these things.

Mom and I went to three NYC bridal salons today, including the famous Kleinfeld Bridal. I have heard very mixed reviews of this place. Some people I know loved it and found their dream dress there; others told me to stay far, far away. Since my mom and I went to New Orleans, I have started watching TLC's Say Yes to the Dress, so I knew that I had to go for the experience. And I have to admit, I was kind of excited when show regular Nicole popped in during my appointment to tell me how great I am.

Yeah, that's right. If you are ever feeling down, just go shopping for your wedding dress. There, you will discover that you have a body that looks good in everything, that you are absolutely stunning, that the very dress you have on is TO DIE FOR, that congratulations, you are one beautiful bride. You will be requested to stand on a platform in front of the big mirror. People are called over to look at you. Everyone who walks by you will oooh and ahhh.

The over the top moment for me was when Ronnie, the co-owner of the entire joint, whom I actually recognized from the show but I acted totally cool, stopped by and asked if he could show me off in a gown to his two friends who were visiting the store. When I told Ronnie that the wedding was in New Orleans and a little about Dan, he said he was totally coming. Everyone loves New Orleans and Dan.

Another thing that Dan probably does not know about wedding dress shopping is that when you try on these wedding dresses, Kleinfeld and elsewhere, half the time, you are in a room in your underwear with a strange woman you just met and as if you are a child, she helps to dress you. Since most wedding dresses are massive, the sales woman will unzip the dress for you and fan it out over a platform, so you can dip one foot in. Then you awkwardly balance on that one leg, trying to get the other leg over the big dress and into the hole. This can be kind of wobbly experience, which may force you to grab onto the woman's shoulders, flinging your boobs into her face. Then she pulls the dress up. Most of the dresses--which are samples--are on the smaller side, so you just hope and pray that it goes all the way up. Lucky for me, it did most of the time, but there were definitely sticky moments of feeling stuck in a dress. And then you have to talk about how much it costs. It's a very emotional experience. Do you understand why I needed MY MOMMY?

P.S. No, I didn't find "the one." Well, maybe. I am still looking.