A bit of a different slant--Father of the groom shenanigans. When we got married, I bought my fiance a nice navy suit, which was quite the chore back in the day before there were lots of options for tall guys; he is/was 6'4" and 180 lbs. Anyway, I found a nice 3 piece suit in a conservative navy. My father had a nice suit in a conservative navy. I asked my future FIL to wear a nice suit in a conservative navy. At which point he went out and bought a nice suit in a conservative BROWN! I was sooooo angry at him, and since he was the best man I was convinced my dream wedding image for the guys was ruined. So, on our wedding day there was my FIL resplendent in his brown suit. I was still a tad miffed, right till we were all leaving the church and as we walked out the doors, he suddenly gave me the world's biggest hug, with the joyful comment 'now you're part of the family!' and the world's biggest smile to go along with it. He's gone now but thinking of that moment still makes me smile every time. It was a good lesson too about whats important and what's not on a wedding day. Happy memories come from what we do and say, not what we wear...have a wonderful wedding! Ann

DLM, I don't think PC expects to look 25 again. I'm assuming she just wants to look the best she can for her age, as most of us do. From personal experience, I just couldn't stand the added weight in the midsection. I'd never had it and couldn't get used to it. It was physically uncomfortable for me (I am not overweight, exercise regularly and eat healthy, yet none of that mattered to my midsection). Anyway, cool sculpting didn't work for me. I'm still upset with myself for having done it. I then had smartlipo and am very glad I did. My clothes are so much more comfortable and I even wear swimsuits again. I've also had facial laser, the first one being CO2 laser about 15 years ago around my eyes. It completely vaporized the unsightly crow's feet (these weren't cute little upward crow's feet, they were cross hatches) which began developing in my early 20's. The dermatologist also did it a little on my lids which provided a lift. It was one of the best things I ever did for myself (smartlipo and lasik eye surgery for presbyopia being the others)! About three years ago I had "fraxel co2" laser on my face and wasn't as impressed with the results. This was performed by a family practice physician who has jumped on the cosmetic procedure band wagon. It didn't eradicate lines but did improve skin texture, clarity, etc. The first laser was performed by a board certified dermatologist who specialized in cosmetic procedures. She gave me numbing cream as well as some injections. After that there was little discomfort though the recovery was fairly lengthly. I couldn't leave the house for two weeks. I don't know if that is still the case with CO2 laser but even if it is, I would still do it again. With the fraxel, only numbing cream was used and it was quite painful. I do wonder if it would have been as uncomfortable had I gone to a cosmetic surgeon or dermatologist (we no longer live in the same state as the dermatologist I originally used). PC, good for you for looking into the various options available to you. I know it can be daunting. It's easy to feel silly and/or be intimidated by how others may judge you. But I hope you'll do what is best for you. I suspect you are a very young 71 and want to look as young as you feel (or as good as you can for your age). Please keep us posted!!

Sorry about bringing this old thread back, especially since it's about our OT discussion of frozen shoulder/adhesive capsulitis. After commenting on another thread about (undiagnosed) frozen shoulder, I remembered that I hadn't updated after recovery. I am in the fortunate group who has recovered almost 100% range of motion. I still feel a little stiffness at the top of my range, or if I over-work my arm, but most of the time I forget that I ever had it. Last year at this time I feared that I'd never be able to move my left arm normally, ever again. In case anyone else is searching for info on frozen shoulder, I'm including a link to the most recent discussion, where I listed the self-guided (with my Dr's approval) PT regimen that I used. I'll also paste it here; for clickable links to exercises, go to the linked thread. I'm not sure if they are the actual sites that I used, because I didn't keep track of links, but they are the same exercises. My 2x/day PT regimen was: Heat pack for 20minutes before exercising (wet towel, heated in microwave) Bruegger posture relief position Scapula rolls - Stand with your arms at your side and perform a shrug motion so that your shoulders rise straight up, arms remaining at your side. Roll your scapula backwards and downward. Raise them back up to the shrugged position to complete the cycle. Repeat this movement for a total of 10 times. This exercise works the trapezius, infraspinatus and deltoids. Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/227683-corrective-exercises-to-help- a-dropped-shoulder/#ixzz2RuyPsVmN Pendulum circles, first with no weight, then use weights. 1½lb weight (I used 20oz food can) 2lb weight (I used 30oz mayo jar) *Several of the following exercises are on this page. *External rotation with yard stick,broom stick, etc. *Abduction with yard stick *Internal rotation - towel stretch, rear Akimbo stretch - try to rest your hand on your waist, at side Arm rolls front and side *Internal rotation across chest, assisted (use opposite hand) Warm-up stretch - hands together, fingers locked, arms straight. Slowly raise arms as high as possible without pain. *Flexion - assisted lift with yardstick, front and back Wall climbs, front and side Wall touch stretch Door jamb stretch, flexed elbow Door jamb stretch, straight arm Corner stretch All fours rocking, flat back Curls with 2lb weight - to prevent muscle atrophy Repeat pendulum circle sequence to relieve tension/fatigue Ice pack for 20 minutes and before bed as needed Look up exercises on Youtube or ortho sites to make sure you are doing them correctly, especially the pendulum circles--they need to be controlled and deliberate. Write them down, in order, on a sheet of paper, and tape it to the wall, so that you can keep your place--wouldn't want to skip any of those really fun (not!) movements. Start with a few seconds, or counts, for each exercise and work up to longer periods. DO NOT push yourself--severe pain means that you are causing more inflammation. It hurts a lot at first, and you'll feel as if you're never going to be able to lift your arm again. Just keep moving a little more each time, and eventually you will notice a difference. And do see your doctor--you may need an injection for inflammation before you can perform the movements without excruciating pain. As you were. ;) Here is a link that might be useful: scroll down for links

It sounds like you're all set. Great! I got a bunch of catalogs yesterday and just thought I'd mention a dress I saw when I was ordering from the Appleseed's website. It's not a maxi and is still sleeveless, but because you can pull it in and tie it in the back, it looks adjustable for fluctuations in weight. They have a 40% off one item promo code APNEW. It's still good today even though it doesn't come up on their website. http://appleseeds.blair.com/p/apparel/dresses-skirts/very-vineyard-dress/pc/8/sc/25/108427.uts?rank=rank&count=500&q2=25~Dresses+%26+Skirts&store=1&page=4&q1=8~Apparel&intl=n&q=*&sc=N&x2=c.t2&x1=c.t1 I also clicked on the Norm Thompson website that shows up at the top of the Appleseed's homepage. They have some cute maxi dresses and a few even have sleeves. Good to know if anyone else is looking for something long and summery.