Girls in white dresses

OK, it's only one dress - my wedding dress. I thought about having it boxed and embalmed many years ago, but that seemed so final, and I figured I'd rather let my kids play dress-up in it than make it untouchable. Of course, 40 yards of matte satin don't fit in the dress-up box, so I store it under my bed 364 days of the year. One day each summer I drag it out and make Audrey and Claire put it on. I try a new setting every year. This time I think I fudged the lighting, so to all my photographer friends, forgive me. Also, please note, I realize I made Audrey look like a giant in that one photo - but it was a complete accident - I have no idea how to do it again when I actually want her to look like a giant, whenever that might be. Every year the photo session is met with different levels of enthusiasm, but they like it even if they don't want to admit it (that's what I tell myself). My girls always ask me to try it on and I say no, but I did it this year and it definitely won't zip. They liked seeing it on me anyway and I did too, just a bit.












The funny thing about this dress is that it was not the one I chose originally. It's the second dress I tried on, but I chose the first one. Then came the great and terrible UPS strike of 1997 and a month before the wedding I was told my dress would not be delivered in time. So I rushed over to the wedding dress store (what are they called, salons?) and bought this one off the rack. I was so traumatized, I didn't even care - I just needed a dress. But I liked it and I still think it's a pretty dress.