**Disclaimer: The following account may result in ulcers to the reader. I am not responsible for the sickness you may feel;)
With the blossoms in full swing, and a good friend building her photography portfolio, I thought it would be a fantastic time to have some spring portraits done of our little crew. Of course, that meant putting together some fun Easter outfits. I started on Wednesday with a general idea of a spring palate. Milo’s little Janie and Jack spring green layette was the last one in the store (on the clearance rack), and just his size. It was a good omen. I browsed through all my usual stores, not finding anything I absolutely loved for myself…until at the Banana Outlet I spotted a sunny yellow cotton dress wedged in between some cardigans and capris (on the clearance rack). It was the last one in the store, and just my size. Oh, destiny.
Thursday my friend Sheryl and I headed out to Leesburg, VA (an hour away) to some more outlets. We strolled and searched and had a lot of fun. I found a little lavender cardigan (on the clearance rack) at a J. Crew Outlet to complete my look, and cover my shoulders;) Dave’s shirt was on sale at one outlet store, his suit at another. Things were rolling along by now. Now I was searching for one last touch: the tie.
At every store I shopped, I browsed the ties. I wanted something springy, but that could be worn again. A sale price would be fantastic, but ties for a future lawyer are also long-term. The night before I had told Dave that I needed to find a tie that was the last one in the store…that way I would know it was perfect for him, just like Milo and my duds were perfect for us. After half the day I still had not found a tie that I loved. Until we stopped in at the Burberry outlet (usually just a jaw-drop stop) there on the tie table was a Striped Check tie in Lavender. Oooh. Uh oh. I fell in love. I called my little sister, who is quite a fashionista, to ask if she thought it would be too “designer” looking to have him in a fully obvious Burberry tie. She thought not, especially after I took the above photo and texted it to her. It was indeed perfect. All except for the price. $85 was a great savings from the retail $135, but I had found his whole suit for less than $100! I decided to look a few more places before I committed. So, I did. I almost found one I liked in Off 5th Avenue, but it was almost the same price, which was the tipping point I needed to just decide that I loved it, our outfits wouldn’t be perfect without it, and it would be fun for Dave (who really could care less) to have a really nice tie.
So, I bought it! Eighty-six-something dollars, and the sales woman put it in a little bag with the receipt. Done deal. I felt a little excited thrill as I hung the bag on the stroller with the rest of our bags. Whoopee! After two full days of dedicated shopping I had successfully assembled Easter outfits that I loved. We loaded everything in the car, then drove back to DC to eat a huge burger at Ray’s Hell Burger. Delish. I picked Dave up at the Metro and we made it home just after 9:00 pm. I was so excited to show Dave his new clothes, and especially his new tie! We began to unload the bags and baby. Hmm. There was something wrong. The J. Crew bags were there, the suit in its bag…no Burberry bag. WHAT? Okay, let’s look again. I dug through the whole car, under the seats, practically threw the stroller out onto the parking lot, and still, no bag. No tie. My emotion teetered in between feeling slightly hysterical and rationally confused. Eventually, hysterical won and I had a minor meltdown. For a few minutes I wanted to cancel pictures and cancel Easter until I figured out what happened and what I was supposed to do about it. I called the mall, but of course, everything was closed. Should I drive back out there now? Did I leave it in the store? Did it just drop off of the stroller? Did someone snag it as I looked the other way? It was just the bag, a tie and the receipt. An eighty-six-something dollar tie. The perfect eighty-six-something dollar tie.
After calling to vent to my sister, my other sister and my mom, I decided to follow their advice to call the photographer and postpone the photos until I either found the tie, or bought another one. So, at 10:30 pm the evening before we were to meet at 7:00 am I called, explained that I am slightly psychotic, and rescheduled for Saturday. Needless to say, I didn’t sleep much. I left for Leesburg about 8:45 am Thursday after calling Burberry as well as the two other stores we had stopped in before leaving. None of the stores had the bag or tie, but all offered to take down my information. I thought I should head out anyway, so I could retrace steps, and if all else failed, buy a replacement. I walked the whole mall, the parking lot, stopped to ask at customer service, and all of the stores I had shopped in. There was no sign of the tie. So, as the last resort of my shopaholic syndrome, I prepared to spend another eighty-six-something dollars on another Burberry Striped Check Lavender tie. There is absolutely no rationale in wanting to spend another eighty-six-something dollars on the same tie. But in my head it was the only solution. I walked into Burberry and scanned the purple section of the tie table. I didn’t see it. I walked all around the table and looked for a little lavender out of place. There wasn’t any. So, I asked the sales woman if there was one in the back. She asked which one it was…Oh, the one I had called about because it was lost? She was very sorry, but it had been the only one in the store. Oh, the nausea. It really had been the last one…perfect for Dave. You can guess what follows: I have them check the system for any Burberry Outlet in the country, none of which have the Striped Check in Lavender. Popular freaking tie.
So, I began to lay the most wonderful, absurdly expensive Easter tie ever to rest. It took another hour of wandering the outlets for the glazed look to fall from my eyes, and finally I was able to understand that I didn’t have that tie, and I couldn’t have it. So, I better find something else. I remembered the one we had seen in Off 5th Avenue, and I decided to go get that one. While scanning for it, I spotted a lavender and blue gingham check that I liked…maybe would have even liked more than the tie had I seen it before I was smitten. The tag said $90, but it was marked down to $50…and at the register it rang up 50% off. twenty-six-something dollars. And again, ironically, it was the last one in the store. Perfect.
Okay, on the way home I did call Nieman Marcus and Nordstrom. They both had it…the Striped Check in Lavender. For full price… $135. Luckily, this time my rational side won and although I put one on hold, I decided to let them put it back. I’m learning;)
We took our portraits this morning. Milo in green plaid, Dave in blue and lavender gingham and I in sunny yellow. I loved snuggling up close with my boys. Capturing a moment in our thrilling life that will fly by, as time tends to do. Dawn at the blossoms was amazing. The water in the tidal basin glowed pink and purple and reflected the millions of tiny pink blooms flowering above. Breathtaking. It would have been a perfect day for a wedding. Or a funeral. Rest in Peace Burberry tie.
Thursday my friend Sheryl and I headed out to Leesburg, VA (an hour away) to some more outlets. We strolled and searched and had a lot of fun. I found a little lavender cardigan (on the clearance rack) at a J. Crew Outlet to complete my look, and cover my shoulders;) Dave’s shirt was on sale at one outlet store, his suit at another. Things were rolling along by now. Now I was searching for one last touch: the tie.
At every store I shopped, I browsed the ties. I wanted something springy, but that could be worn again. A sale price would be fantastic, but ties for a future lawyer are also long-term. The night before I had told Dave that I needed to find a tie that was the last one in the store…that way I would know it was perfect for him, just like Milo and my duds were perfect for us. After half the day I still had not found a tie that I loved. Until we stopped in at the Burberry outlet (usually just a jaw-drop stop) there on the tie table was a Striped Check tie in Lavender. Oooh. Uh oh. I fell in love. I called my little sister, who is quite a fashionista, to ask if she thought it would be too “designer” looking to have him in a fully obvious Burberry tie. She thought not, especially after I took the above photo and texted it to her. It was indeed perfect. All except for the price. $85 was a great savings from the retail $135, but I had found his whole suit for less than $100! I decided to look a few more places before I committed. So, I did. I almost found one I liked in Off 5th Avenue, but it was almost the same price, which was the tipping point I needed to just decide that I loved it, our outfits wouldn’t be perfect without it, and it would be fun for Dave (who really could care less) to have a really nice tie.
So, I bought it! Eighty-six-something dollars, and the sales woman put it in a little bag with the receipt. Done deal. I felt a little excited thrill as I hung the bag on the stroller with the rest of our bags. Whoopee! After two full days of dedicated shopping I had successfully assembled Easter outfits that I loved. We loaded everything in the car, then drove back to DC to eat a huge burger at Ray’s Hell Burger. Delish. I picked Dave up at the Metro and we made it home just after 9:00 pm. I was so excited to show Dave his new clothes, and especially his new tie! We began to unload the bags and baby. Hmm. There was something wrong. The J. Crew bags were there, the suit in its bag…no Burberry bag. WHAT? Okay, let’s look again. I dug through the whole car, under the seats, practically threw the stroller out onto the parking lot, and still, no bag. No tie. My emotion teetered in between feeling slightly hysterical and rationally confused. Eventually, hysterical won and I had a minor meltdown. For a few minutes I wanted to cancel pictures and cancel Easter until I figured out what happened and what I was supposed to do about it. I called the mall, but of course, everything was closed. Should I drive back out there now? Did I leave it in the store? Did it just drop off of the stroller? Did someone snag it as I looked the other way? It was just the bag, a tie and the receipt. An eighty-six-something dollar tie. The perfect eighty-six-something dollar tie.
After calling to vent to my sister, my other sister and my mom, I decided to follow their advice to call the photographer and postpone the photos until I either found the tie, or bought another one. So, at 10:30 pm the evening before we were to meet at 7:00 am I called, explained that I am slightly psychotic, and rescheduled for Saturday. Needless to say, I didn’t sleep much. I left for Leesburg about 8:45 am Thursday after calling Burberry as well as the two other stores we had stopped in before leaving. None of the stores had the bag or tie, but all offered to take down my information. I thought I should head out anyway, so I could retrace steps, and if all else failed, buy a replacement. I walked the whole mall, the parking lot, stopped to ask at customer service, and all of the stores I had shopped in. There was no sign of the tie. So, as the last resort of my shopaholic syndrome, I prepared to spend another eighty-six-something dollars on another Burberry Striped Check Lavender tie. There is absolutely no rationale in wanting to spend another eighty-six-something dollars on the same tie. But in my head it was the only solution. I walked into Burberry and scanned the purple section of the tie table. I didn’t see it. I walked all around the table and looked for a little lavender out of place. There wasn’t any. So, I asked the sales woman if there was one in the back. She asked which one it was…Oh, the one I had called about because it was lost? She was very sorry, but it had been the only one in the store. Oh, the nausea. It really had been the last one…perfect for Dave. You can guess what follows: I have them check the system for any Burberry Outlet in the country, none of which have the Striped Check in Lavender. Popular freaking tie.
So, I began to lay the most wonderful, absurdly expensive Easter tie ever to rest. It took another hour of wandering the outlets for the glazed look to fall from my eyes, and finally I was able to understand that I didn’t have that tie, and I couldn’t have it. So, I better find something else. I remembered the one we had seen in Off 5th Avenue, and I decided to go get that one. While scanning for it, I spotted a lavender and blue gingham check that I liked…maybe would have even liked more than the tie had I seen it before I was smitten. The tag said $90, but it was marked down to $50…and at the register it rang up 50% off. twenty-six-something dollars. And again, ironically, it was the last one in the store. Perfect.
Okay, on the way home I did call Nieman Marcus and Nordstrom. They both had it…the Striped Check in Lavender. For full price… $135. Luckily, this time my rational side won and although I put one on hold, I decided to let them put it back. I’m learning;)
We took our portraits this morning. Milo in green plaid, Dave in blue and lavender gingham and I in sunny yellow. I loved snuggling up close with my boys. Capturing a moment in our thrilling life that will fly by, as time tends to do. Dawn at the blossoms was amazing. The water in the tidal basin glowed pink and purple and reflected the millions of tiny pink blooms flowering above. Breathtaking. It would have been a perfect day for a wedding. Or a funeral. Rest in Peace Burberry tie.
