The joy of blogging, and preparations for Lent...

When I arrived at work this morning, one of the first things I did, like always, was open a browser window with my blog; I like to see if anyone has left comments, as well as think about an afternoon post topic. Today when I checked, I had 2 new comments!! I was absolutely delighted, thanks Joe and Cam! And both, addressing my post yesterday on Catholic modesty and headcoverings, were incredibly interesting and informative. I responded to both of you, so make sure you check :)

It just made me realize, once again, how much I value this blog. I enjoy it because it gives me a creative outlet for my writing, and it makes me think about a lot of interesting topics. As well, I have met other Catholic bloggers and treasure the online Catholic community that I've found. For all of that, thank you :)

Couple of things to followup on yesterday's post... I am going to continue my journey in 'dressing up' more for Mass. To this end, I'll obviously use the clothes in my wardrobe better as I select what to wear each Sunday. On the skirt issue, I was thinking that it *would* be nice to have maybe 2 that I could choose to wear to Mass, or out other places. For the winter, skirts just really aren't practical around here. *But* I could use to add some variety to my wardrobe. I have a few gift cards from Christmas, so I started my research today.

Let me tell ya, (Cam, I'm sure you can relate to this :) it is *not* easy finding dresses and skirts that fall below the knee. I'm not talking floor length gowns here, just things at or about calf length. Old Navy and Walmart.com - not a single contender. Surprisingly, I found a decent selection at Target.com. They're not cheap, but they have a few A-line skirts that are approximately calf length, as well as some chiffon overlay skirts that fall just above the ankle. In the next week or so, I'm going to go to the store itself to see if I can ferret any of them out and try them on.

I *was* able to secure a pair of long boots, suitable for wear with skirts, with a gift card. So, that's good. I've been needing those for a while.

Secondly, I was thinking about this headcovering issue at length yesterday; it's really grabbed hold of my attention. I think that what I'm going to do is try this headcovering idea out as a pilot project over Lent. To the extent I get odd looks from others at my parish, I can offer it up as a Lenten sacrifice, if you will. And naturally, I will blog about all of this :)

So...the next part is actually selecting the headcoverings and purchasing them. I am absolutely charmed by the offerings over at Garlands of Grace. Their prices are extremely reasonable, including the shipping rate totaling $2.99! I like the subtler nature of their coverings, and their versatility - there are many that function both as a headband or as a short scarf. With the type of coverings I'm looking at, plus shipping, I would say 2 are in my budget.

That's all well and good, but this is me we're talking about here. For the life of me, I cannot narrow my selection down to just 2. They're all so pretty! I will continue to agonize over this, rest assured.

I like this one, for a more traditional look:

But for the cute, headband styles, I like these:

With these two, you can wear them as a headband, or stretch them out into a scarf:

And of course, all of these come in a multitude of different colors, meaning more happy decisions. Clearly, I need to get back to work now (that is, *real* work), but believe me, you will be updated tomorrow...