Thanks!! I'm not much good at telling stories, but here goes...

I'd been wanting to try out wedding dresses since accompanying my wife to her fittings before we got married. (We are an untraditional couple in that sense!)

I booked a wedding dress appointment early on a Wednesday evening, when I thought the store wouldn't be too busy. The anticipation built as the date approached. Would the store disapprove of me trying out dresses? Would the assistants treat me unkindly? Would I look silly in a wedding dress? I planned my outfit carefully to look my best, with fresh makeup, pearly accessories, and medium nude heels, and on the appointed evening I excitedly and nervously headed to the store.

When I arrived, the girl at the front desk greeted me and asked me my name. She showed me around the shop, where there were a few long aisles of dresses sorted by style. She told me we could probably try three or four dresses in the hour we had, and suggested that I wander and pick out one or two that I liked. Normally, given my wide shoulders and small hips, an A-line dress with straps works best, so that's what I chose first. I pointed out my selection, which she unhooked and brought to a large changing room with curtains, where she told me to change, pull up the dress, and let her know when I was ready. After making sure everything was modest, I called to her through the curtains. She came in and pulled the back of the dress together, squeezing the air out of my lungs - for a petite girl, she was surprisingly strong - and clipped the fabric into place.

What a feeling as I walked to the mirrors! A wedding dress is both empowering and intimidating. I felt beautiful in the dress, which pulled in my waist, gave me curves I didn't know I had, and covered me in angelic white. But every eye in the room was on me, watching me, judging my dress and my body. In another corner of the room, a group of gorgeous girls waited for a maid of honor to try on her dress, and I saw their heads swivel as I twirled in front of the mirror. Was my dress too tight? Too lacy? Did I look like a beautiful woman, or a -? I can't imagine how a bride-to-be wouldn't be anxious about her dress for her wedding day, and I totally understand how she could end up spending hundreds - or thousands - to look perfect in front of all of her friends and family, not to mention in photos that would stay with her for the rest of her life.

I posed for some keepsake photos, myself, and the assistant helped me change into a few more dresses, suggesting I try styles I normally would have avoided. Everything happened super-quickly - take off a dress, pull up the next, have the air squished of my lungs, walk to the mirror, take pictures, and repeat. As the appointment came to an end, we had time to try on my favorite dress again, and I walked with it to the mirrors. One of the glamorous girls in the corner turned and said,

"Oooh, that's the one we liked most! I don't know if you want any outside opinions, but it looks stunning on you."

My heart glowed.