I hear so many Plus Size Princesses describing themselves as “curvy”. I would love to be curvy, but I consider myself more… lumpy.

I have breasts and hips, but because I carry most of my weight in my stomach, sometimes I feel like my “assets” are taken over by my tummy.

The form-fitting strapless cocktail dress that I’m wearing for the wedding looked good when I tried it on, but I couldn’t stop focusing on my trouble spots. I had on high-waist spanx, which gave me more of an hour glass shape, but I wanted more.

Luckily, I was introduced to Squeem just in time. Squeem is a line of waist cinchers that are a step above and beyond spanx. They’re breathable, comfortable corsets that don’t make you feel like you’re in the Victorian age. I was able to hook my Squeem cincher around my waist with no problem and… it didn’t roll when I moved around!

I’ll give you more details on the wedding later, but Robert had his hands around my waist the whole time and because of the way Squeem products are designed, I wasn’t afraid of him feeling lots of boning (its mostly of strong stretchy material).

Usually when I see before and after photos on products, I don’t believe them. But my experience with Squeem was spot on with what the product photos promised.

There are a few different cuts and styles of Squeem that you can check out on their website, but I was very happy with my strapless version. I’m curious to see how the one with straps and a cut out for your boobs fits, so when I try that one I’ll let you know.

You can order Squeem online but if you want to try it on, they’re sold at Ashley Stewart and Fashion to Figure stores.

Have any of you tried waist cinchers?

Last week I attended Fashion’s Night Out at the Avenue’s NYC location on 3rd avenue. I think a lot of plus size girls dismiss the avenue because it often appears to cater to an older demographic. I used to do the same thing, but over the years I’ve fallen in love with the Avenue for a few very specific reasons.

1.) Avenue sells Cloudwalkers, the most comfortable line of shoes for large/wide sizes.

2.) Avenue has  well made tights that go up to a size “EE”

3.) Avenue always has a reasonably priced line of shape wear. (I just bought high waist, spanx-like shapers for under $25)

4.) Avenue has fresh, fun accessories. I met their accessories manager, Kristina and she’s adorable which explains why the accessories at Avenue are always on trend.

5.) Every season they have at least one stand out piece. Two years ago it was genuine leather bomber jackets, last year it was the sequined skirt, this year its a fabulous animal print dress!

These are some of the items that I picked up while shopping there last weekend. They have a huge discount sale going on in stores and online. I got $150 worth of merchandise for $100. You can also save $20 on purchases over $75 and $30 on purchases over $100. Use code “AV111244″ online at checkout.

I woke up on Sunday morning with an intense feeling that I needed to talk to Robert, but I didn’t know why. My headache and queasiness let me know that the night before had been wild, but what about a “Bachelor(ette)” party for my gay best friend would I need to tell Robert about? I rolled out of bed and as I stood in my kitchen drinking water, it all started to come back to me…

As I pushed through the heavy velvet curtains, I knew it wouldn’t be an ordinary night. It was one of Adam’s final nights as a single man before he married his longtime boyfriend and after a night of sipping cocktails through penis straws and playing drunken games we were now at a posh gay strip club.

As Best Girl/Person of Honor, I was in charge of making sure the gaggle of gays and handful of girls that were in our party had an amazing time and although I was nervous, I was up to the challenge.

On the other side of the velvet curtain, a beefy blonde was grinding his hips in blue and white underoo-style underwear. As I scanned the room for a place for us all to sit, a Latin man in a suit sailed over to me. “Hello, can I help you?” he said with a smile. I explained that we had a large group and with a waive of his hand he instructed a few waiters to create a space at the front of the stage for my party. “I own this club and we want to make sure you have a wonderful night, please let me know how I can be of service to you.”

I motioned to Adam who was taking a seat in one of the soft velvet reclining chairs, “Well, that’s the guest of honor so just make sure he has a good time!”

“I will,” the owner replied. Then he cocked his head to the side, “you look familiar to me…”

The owners face didn’t ring a bell for me, “hmmm maybe you’ve seen me out with Adam before. Are you gay or straight?”

“I’m straight.” he said with a chuckle, “I love women!” he leaned in and lowered his voice, “…big women”.

Of course, I hate when men reference my size when trying to hit on me. As I’ve said before If you like me, dont call me fat. But in an expensive strip club, I figured a little harmless flirtation with the owner couldn’t hurt. So I gave him a little smile and walked away.

The night was going well and we were having a blast. I had already had quite a few drinks before we got to the strip club, so I had planned on drinking water for the rest of the night. All of that changed when the owner started sending me complimentary Patron. Before I knew it, I was in full party mode cheering my friends on while they got lap dances.

I was drunk.

Then instead of sending me Patron, the owner sent me a dancer to give me a lap dance. Strippers make me uncomfortable, but it was a nice gesture considering the circumstances. After the lap dance, I went over to thank the owner. “You’re very welcome,” he said. I did my best to make small talk, but the Patron was clouding my senses. I asked him how he got into the business of owning a gay strip club and he explained that its only “gay” one night a week. He asked if I wanted a tour of the club and I drunkenly agreed. He took my hand and lead me through another set of heavy velvet curtains and up a set of stairs.

There were a row of plush cubicle-like rooms. “This is really nice, you should be proud,” I said. He smiled and pulled back the velvet curtain to one of the private rooms, “You can go inside if you want…” before I could respond, he was kissing my neck. Everything was moving in slow motion, so it took me longer than normal to realize that he wasn’t really interested in showing me his club, he wanted to show me “something else”.

I began to pull away and at that moment my phone chimed with a text from one of Adam’s friends. We’re all ready to go– where are you?

I rushed back down the stairs to meet up with my friends. I thanked the owner for a great night without looking at him, we all jumped in a cab and 20 minutes later I was home, passed out in my bed.

Its rare for me to be out without Robert these days and its even more rare for me to be drunk and alone with a men who are interested in me. Although nothing really happened, I know I should probably mention what happened with the manager to Robert.

I hope he doesn’t freak out.

Waking up to find a days supply of freshly made meals on my doorstep has been pretty awesome.

As I mentioned before, I was given a free trial of The Fresh Diet, a food delivery program that provides healthy foods in appropriate portions. I was using The Fresh Diet to shake things up in my weight loss journey. As a single girl I was getting into a bit of a cooking rut and the idea of having delicious meals without prepping, chopping, cooking them myself was too good to pass up.

The Fresh Diet allows you to select your meals for each day (they have over 400 meal options), but I opted to let them select meals for me. I told them my likes and dislikes and then let them send me what they wanted. This was great because it opened me up to food selections I wouldn’t normally make.

Some of my favorite meals were:

The Salmon Wrap lunch

The Quiche breakfast

The Veggie Burger Patty & Vegetables dinner

Each day I was sent 3 meals and 2 snacks and although the portions took some getting used to, I always had food left over at the end of the day because I was full.

On top of it all I was able to lose a few pounds which was great with the wedding I’m in!

If you’d like to try  The Fresh Diet TBGB readers are eligible to buy one week and get the next week 50% off. Just enter promo code “single” to redeem this offer at checkout.

I’ve been spending so much time making sure my dress for the wedding was perfect, that I completely forgot about the rehearsal dinner.

As I mentioned before, Adam and I grew up together so I know most of his family. They’re all flying in from California and I want to look my best! Their rehearsal dinner is being held at a rooftop clubhouse overlooking New York City, so I wanted something romantic to wear.

If you haven’t heard of Eliza Parker, put them at the top of your list for amazing plus size dresses. I adore this brand!!! Their Nantucket dress is phenomenal with its A-line cut, full skirt, matching sash and pockets! I traded the sash for a belt to give it a bit more style, but you can wear it however you want.

My best friend Adam is marrying his boyfriend.

Adam and I grew up together in California and now we both live in New York. At this point he’s more than a friend, he’s family. He’s asked me to be his Best Girl/Person of Honor (or whatever you want to call it) and I’m beyond excited.

As we’ve been planning the wedding and getting details together, Adam keeps asking me the same question: Are you bringing Robert?

I avoided the question for as long as possible because I’m not quite sure how I feel about bringing dates to weddings. But eventually Adam got me to open up about how conflicted I was. I feel like it could put a lot of unnecessary pressure on a couple who isn’t themselves preparing to walk down the aisle. If I cry, will he think I’m a wedding obsessed bridezilla in training? If I’m aloof will he think I’m too cynical when it comes to marriage? On the other hand, Robert and I always have a blast together and having a date to a dance party wedding reception would make it all the more fun. Why would I rob myself of that?

I went round and round with him on the pros and cons and eventually, Adam helped me to see that maybe I was over-thinking things. Adams thoughts on the matter were that if I wanted Robert at the wedding, I should ask him to come… so I did. The weddings in a few days and I’m excited that Robert will come. I’ve already told him that he has to dress up and I’m excited for him to see me in the sexy cocktail dress that I’m wearing.

In the back of my mind I’m still nervous, but I’m mostly excited.

How do you guys feel about bringing dates to weddings?