Judi and the ChristmasColored Dream Coat......

I already told you part of this story. It's about a jacket that set off a multi-year firestorm of dieting....

Now, it's time for the sequel....

Let's start where we left off with my beloved jacket--I had packed it up and gave it to a dear friend who had always admired it. And that's where it stayed. Every year when she would haul it out to wear to a holiday party, she would enthusiastically tell me about all the compliments she received. After all, it was a damn special jacket. I will never forget the day I bought it. Vince was just a little tyke in a stroller and Toni was not even on the horizon. We were Christmas shopping at the mall that day when I spied it in the window of one of my favorite stores of yesteryear--The Icing. The store is now long gone. But, oh how I loved that store and their overpriced baubles and sparkly what-nots. I immediately navigated the stroller into that delicious store and found the jacket. $268. A bit pricey for a mom who had much more Christmas shopping to do and a bit impractical for a jacket that could only be worn once a year. But, damn, I wanted that jacket so bad I could feel it in my limbs. I vowed to have it....when it went on sale. So, from then on--I visited that jacket each time I went to the mall. By December 26, it was mine. It was still a little pricey but it was on sale. My beloved red blazer with embroidered Christmas trees. The one I wore every Christmas Eve....until the picture...

Fast forward to December 23, 2008. I had taken a little time out to share some Christmas cheer with two of my spirited friends. It had been a day of last minute shopping and traffic jams with the promise of more to come. By the time I arrived at the little restaurant-bar where we were meeting, I had done a number on my debit card, my mind and my feet. I desperately needed that Tangueray Gin martini--the first one and the second one. And, I definitely needed a good dose of friendship. Thankfully, by the time we parted, my body and my spirit were refueled for the chore that laid ahead of me--finding an outfit to wear for Christmas Eve. I visited several of my favorite stores--braving traffic and crowds with a hopeful heart. Yet, as the night wore on without finding a suitable outfit, my hope diminished and I became weary. I still had a few groceries to pick up and a few chores to get done when I got home. So, I gave up my search for a Christmas Eve outfit with the knowledge that I would come up with something. Little did I know as I once again headed out into the holiday traffic that " the something" was already sitting on the love seat in my living room. Thanks to the very dear friend who loved my Christmas jacket.....

Yes, that's me....in MY RED CHRISTMAS TREE JACKET.....December 24, 2008

And, here's me in MY RED CHRISTMAS TREE JACKET with Ms. Best Dressed.....


And, here's me in MY RED CHRISTMAS TREE JACKET with the guy I share a special Christmas Eve cocktail with every year....


Yes, it was very Merry Christmas Eve.....me in MY RED CHRISTMAS TREE JACKET. The one I bought oh so many years ago....a Size 12. Thanks to a wonderful friend who has good taste, a big heart and a true appreciation for the fact that I lost 80+ pounds....

THAT picture is now a bad dream. These are the pictures of what dreams of made of....