Shopping anyone?

I have always found shopping therapeutic. Retail therapy if you will. There are worse vices I'm sure. I could be smoking crack or drinking cough syrup for instance. But I've always loved to shop. I'm afraid my daughter does too. She always wants to go and just look around, she tells me. And the looking leads to touching which leads to buying...

Anyway grocery shopping doesn't count. See the point of shopping is to only think about me for a while. To do something for just me without worrying about the needs and demands of others. Every few months I would need to drop a few hundred dollars at Gap, J Crew, REI or a trendy online boutique like Shabby Apple. I would buy a new purse as I've mentioned in other posts, or new workout clothes from Sports Authority.

It's been that way for years; this buying without necessarily needing. As far back as I can remember I trolled the mall with Monica, Laura, Karen or Kim. Courtney and I always plan a shopping trip when we get together. So is shopping alone like drinking alone? Is it ok to be a social shopper much like a social drinker vs a singular shopper instead of a solo drinker? Can shopping truly be a recreational activity or is it strictly meant to be a necessities only activity like eating food (which can also be addicting and a vice in and of itself). Sometimes yes, shopping can be recreational. And not everything is meant to last more than a season or two based on either style or quality. Like couple of sweaters I picked up at Old Navy two years ago. They were cheap and trendy and fun to wear, but I don't need them anymore. They were $20 each. They served their purpose and moved in to the great Good Will trash bag in the sky.

But honestly, over the last six months or so I have really tried hard to not give in to unnecessary shopping. This slow transformation started when I found myself reaching for the same pants (my Prana hiking pants) all summer and lately the same shirts (my long sleeve running shirts I got on clearance at Sports Authority or my REI half zip pullover from Ben and Katie) over and over again. And after all the weight I've lost since August, I am down to 2 pairs of jeans and 3 pairs of pants that fit. (and those have been living in bins for several years in hopes they would fit again).

Although I hesitate to clear out the closet of my larger stuff in case the weight comes back.

But after reaching for these same items over and over again I started noticing they were the same type of items I gravitated towards in the stores too. I didn't need another black long sleeve shirt; I had two at home yet here was a third in my hand. Or sure those pants are cute, but aren't they just like the grey pair I got at J Crew last summer?

I started asking myself if it has really been good, all this shopping. The bags of clothes I give to goodwill every year could be a testament to that it's not. So I really have made a conscience effort to stop and ask myself if I really need things before I buy them or am I just buying it to satisfy another need, a need to feel good, to fill something that is missing. For example, my yoga pants were falling down all during my workout the other day. I got them at Gap, since I can buy them with a shorter inseam. I went and picked up a new pair of pants, running tights in capri length (those are falling down too) and a new sports bra (usually the boobs are the first to go when a woman loses weight and my current sports bras were a little big to begin with...) But I put back the cute hoodie and new shirt when I asked myself if I really needed those too answered myself: No.

I thought that was a good call and was proud of those choices. The challenge will be as I raise a daughter and even a son with these tendencies to be a good example and a good teacher of smart shopping.

And all while I'm still learning too.