a Red Carpet event

This coming Thursday (March 3rd) is our Relief Society meeting at the church. I believe it's a birthday celebration and this year our planning committee has come up with something special... "A Red Carpet" event. They have asked the sisters in the ward to come dressed FANCY-- as in-- old prom dresses, formals, or anything else that is Red Carpet worthy. There will be paparazzi taking pictures and all kinds of drama! I am not in charge of this meeting (or have anything to do with the planning) but I feel a need to give it a plug.

There has been a lot of speculation as to whether or not anyone will be dressing up, if they come at all. This speculation has me asking, "Who WOULDN'T want to go?" It's a great excuse to get dressed up, hang out with friends and be away from the kids. Who objects to this? I am the least fancy person I know. I don't wear heels, I own very little jewelry and the fanciest dress I have in my closet is my Sister Friendly costume. I can't tell you what I am going to wear, but I am showing up-- with bells on.

I know most of those reading this aren't even invited to this party, so you may or may not want to be a part of the discussion, but why are we so afraid to have a little fun? What keeps you from wanting to socialize with others? Are you afraid you will be the only one willing to have a good time? Are you shy? Are you worried about the drive over?... (because you know everyone on the road will be staring at you if you're wearing a feather boa..) Do you need a dress? Someone to apply your makeup or curl your hair for you? If so, I think I might have the solution:

Let's get ready TOGETHER. I am more than happy to offer up my house for the pre-party... but I think it might even be better to meet at the church and get ready in the women's bathroom together. This way, we can share jewelry, scarves, hair bows, and not worry about who will see us when we're walking to and from our cars. There is strength in numbers... we're all in the same boat here. Not very many of us have the same body as we did the night of our Jr. Prom. This is not about looking better than anyone else. This is about having fun, letting loose, and getting to know one another better. Still on the fence about coming? Call me and I will come pick you up!

There are a lot of excuses, but I can promise you that if you come, you will have a good time. Sometimes we need to put ourselves OUT THERE to realize that making friends is easy and having a good time is all about showing up. I know that socializing doesn't come naturally for a lot of people and I am not going to stand on a soap box and tell you that you won't make friends if you aren't willing to go a little crazy. But the truth is, a lot of people complain about not having any friends or not connecting with anyone. These are usually the same kind of people who aren't willing to step outside the box and COME to an event like this.

I am heading to Savers this afternoon to find a few items for my dress-up box. I already have a couple of rainbow boas, a green Princess Fiona dress and a blond Marilyn Monroe wig that I am willing to lend out for the evening. I am sure all of us have things in our closet that we can't/won't wear but someone else could. Let's combine forces and show up at the church at 6 pm to get ready together. Are you in or are you in?