Wedding Dress Shopping - Take 1 - KCMO

I was nervous about dress shopping - I haven't really stuck to the diet and my exercising tends to be about 10 minutes in front of the tv.

so, Ma, J and I decide that we will go for a trial run in KC after thanksgiving. I make the appt.
we show up a little early and check in - it is a small storefront in a little neighborhood in KCMO.
seems like there are a lot of people in a very small store sort of sitting around.
then, there are some women trying on dresses and they have to come out to the front of the store area to look in the mirror.
we are a bit horrified that I might have to do this. I resolve that if they force me to do this I will not try on any dresses.
we wait.
around 20 min after the appt was supposed to start the lady comes over. She interviews me out in the lobby. She goes to pull dresses. I forgot to tell her that I wasn't going to try any on if she was going to make me come out into the main area.
she comes back. I ask. yes, that was her plan. I balk. she arranges for us to have the bigger room. whew. - if you knew what the back of those sample dresses looked like on me, you would be just as relieved.

Scary thing #2 - stripping to my underwear in the room with the woman I don't know and my mother and sister. - I thought through the underwear and bra first, but still. - oddly enough, it was about 2 hours worth of me mostly naked. I became accustomed quickly. even did a little dancing.

Scary thing #3 - measurements - not that bad. but I did suck in a bit. I tried not to, but dude, the lady was measuring my middle and I just couldn't release all the way.

Scary thing #4 and also one of the most absurd moments of my entire life - perhaps I brought this on by spending 2 hours looking pretty comfortable in my underwear, but we were talking about the measurements and the sizes listed for the dress - I made a small joke about working on my tummy, and the lady reached out and started manhandling my middle - it started with some poking and squeezing of the love handles, but culminated with a rub of my belly and her admonishment that I needed to work on this part.
it was one of those moments that you will never forget - and will make you laugh hysterically when you think about it.

note to self - be a bit more conscious about the image you are portraying when prancing and dancing in your bra and underwear. people get the wrong idea and touch you inappropriately.