Skinny jeans have been a thing now for a few years.  A thing I have been pretty much terrified of.

I noticed them first on the uber tall and very slender, and I liked the look.  Then I saw them paired with boots and I liked the look even more.

Then I saw them on teenage boys.  And those teenage boys also tried to do the “sag” look.  Um. Sagging skinny jeans? SHOULD NOT BE A THING.

Then I saw this on a not skinny guy.

I thought the trend maybe had died.  But no, it raged on…for the past couple years.

Now skinny jeans are on all sizes in all styles–I saw a pair yesterday on a high school girl that I thought might be painted on AND they were acid wash.  The really bad acid wash from 1987.  I may have cried.

Last year, before I was pregnant with Charlie, I wanted to try a skinny jean, but I was afraid I would look like an apple in them.  Or more terrifying, like an upside down ice cream cone.

I could not find one that fit.  Either it fit my waist but was dumpy in the butt, knees, and thighs (not exactly “skinny” fit), or it fit everywhere like a glove but my muffin top was so squeezed I couldn’t digest a tic tac without indigestion.

Then I got pregnant, moved into my panel-elastic pants, and forgot about “real” pants for a good nine months.

{sorry, I got distracted by how awesome it is to not wear pants with buttons, snaps, or zippers…ah. Those were the days. Sorry, what?}

So anyway, this school year started and I was all, “I want to try skinny jeans again!  But ahhhh! I have the scared of looking ridiculous!”

In my mind, there is a fine line with skinny jeans. A VERY FINE LINE.  And I will admit here and before all the internets that 80% of the people I see daily in skinny jeans look ridiculous and will later live to regret the fashion decision.  I will also say that 98% of THOSE people? Are under 18.

Before Christmas I found a pair at The Gap that I thought fit.  But I wasn’t wearing my boots, so I couldn’t be sure there wouldn’t be bunch-ation around my knees. Instead of buying them and trying them at home, I put them back and spent my money on Christmas presents.

Between then and now I polled everyone I know who would tell me the honest truth about the skinny jean on my booty to find out if they think I should try.

100% of them said to go for it.

I still wasn’t sure.

But armed with a GAP giftcard from Christmas (thanks, mom!), I got my first pair.  I wore my first pair last week on a day we had a half day due to exams.  On those days only two classes met, but I wore them on a day I also had my planning period, so only ONE class would see me.  The staff and lunch would see me too, but I would be grading the rest of the day in my room.

And then of course I took a picture of myself so the whole internet could judge my thighs. And my dorky, pointed in toes.

does this nervousness make my thighs look big?

All jokes aside, I actually felt pretty comfortable in them.

And it helped that I got an email from Cortney (unprompted, I might add.  I don’t think he knew how nervous I was to wear them) telling me that I look great in my new jeans.

I got a bit blushy in my empty classroom at 7:15am.

Yes, I will wear them again.  They are a size smaller than I usually wear, which is a bit pinchy in the midsection, but they are also made with some stretchy material, so it’s not too bad once I’ve moved around in them a bit.

It was important to me to find some clothes that made me feel good about myself in this post-Charlie body.After I had Eddie, I gave in to the depression {that I didn’t know I had at the time} and bought frumpy sweaters and ugly pants because that is what my brain told me I was worth.  I was someone’s mom now, and I should look like it.

I know that doesn’t make sense, but at the time it was the most logical thing to me ever.

One of the steps I am taking this time around is to feel better about myself.  I eat healthier, I stay away from the scale, I take “me time”, and I am trying to buy a few pieces that are new (since my last “new” clothes are from two years ago–pre-Charlie).

So skinny jeans, it is.

What should I try next?

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