I love getting emails from you and I’ve been noticing that there are a few questions that I get asked all the time. So I thought I’d start a FAQ segment in case there were other Plus Size Princesses that had similar questions. Ready? Lets begin!

Hi CeCe,

I’m visiting the New York/New Jersey area and wanted to check out some BBW clubs or lounges where I won’t be judged! Do you have any tips?

In my experience there are two BBW parties in New York City that happen regularly: Goddesses and Bigger and Better Thangs (BBT).

Goddesses

Goddesses was the first BBW party I ever attended. When I first started blogging about the BBW Scene I called it DIVAS for some reason– I guess to protect the innocent? Anyway, I’ve had some good and bad nights there, I’ve met some hot guys and some trolls, I’ve been there when it was packed and I’ve been there when it was a whole bunch of PSP’s fighting for the attention for 2 or 3 guys. You can’t predict the Goddess party, which is one of the reasons I stopped going (if I’m going to pay a $20 cover, the party needs to be awesome).

Sometimes Goddesses reminds me of a a bad cruise. The party is very “organized” with contests, themes and a DJ who plays outdated songs. The first time I went to Goddesses they had a “thong” contest where girls pulled down their jeans and shook their butts for the judges and the drooling men who were huddled against the wall.

The guys there can be a little corny. Some of them do choreographed dances (its like a bad Usher video). But some of the guys are super sweet. Again, you never know what you’re going to get when you go there.

The good thing about Goddesses is that its every Saturday night, so its a guaranteed place to go not matter when you’re in NYC.

http://www.goddessbbw.com/

Bigger and Better Thangs (BBT)

Bigger and Better Thangs (yes, Thangs) is a BBW party that happens twice a month at club Remix. In my opinion, this is the better party. The DJ is always ROCKIN’ with current songs and they usually have two rooms, one with mainstream music and another with reggae/dancehall music.

The BBT crowd is predominantly African-American, but I’ve seen all types of people there having an awesome time. I would choose BBT over Goddesses mostly because it feels like a “normal” club. There are drink specials, two awesome DJ’s and everyone dances all night, this makes paying $20 worth it.

There is a more blatant sexual energy at the BBT parties, (I was at a BBT party when I was approached by swingers) but again, its a good party no matter what.

http://www.biggerandbetterthangs.com/

No matter which party you decide to attend, keep your expectations low. As I wrote a few weeks back, finding love in the club isn’t a realistic goal. But having a good time in a place where you feel comfortable is an awesome thing!

xoxo,

CeCe

CeCe@thebiggirlblog.com

Every year when the temperature drops I become obsessed with accessories. Living in NYC means that I will be in a coat from November to March and no matter how cute my outfit is underneath, very few people will see it! I love finding fun accessories to spice up my winter coat look as I run around the city.

Here are some things hanging in my closet that I can’t wait to wear this season:

P.S. I was able to save $20 on the Rachel Roy bag with a groupon I purchased last month, if you’re not on groupon you are missing out! (join here).

I went on a date with a guy last year and in my opinion there was no chemistry. He never called for a second date, but about 3 weeks after we went out I got a text from him. It was a photo of his penis.

My girlfriend Kenzie has a guy who texted her asking for a photo of her “beautiful face” because he missed her. When she sent a normal smiling photo, he responded by sending a photo of himself totally naked.

Sexting just weirds me out… I can understand why people in relationships do it, but why do guys think its okay to send unsolicited “dick-pics” to girls they barely know?

Usually I have a plan for different dating scenarios, but sexting is something I’m still figuring out how to respond to.

If a guy were to flash me in the subway, I’d probably just laugh at him or walk away. Opening my phone to find a photo of a man’s privates is the digital equivalent of flashing but … what’s the proper reaction?

What do YOU do when you get dirty pics from guys you don’t know?

Last month, I was tweeting about how my period always catches me by surprise. I’ll find myself on the verge of tears for no reason or super frustrated with a friend and then in a moment of clarity, I’ll check my period tracker on my iPhone and see that Aunt Flow is due t arrive any moment… then my craziness all makes sense!

Unfortunately, my emotions aren’t the only thing that shifts drastically once a month…

I stepped on the scale yesterday morning and BOOM I had gained three pounds… literally over night! I racked my brain for any hidden calories in my meals over the past few days and I had been pretty good in my eating. I had been working out too, so there was no reason for me to be up three pounds.

A few hours later while I was at work, “Aunt Flow” arrived with my monthly gift.

Of course!!!

Every month along with emotional instability, my menstrual cycle brings weight gain… and lots of it. Sometimes its two pounds, sometimes as much as nine! But for someone who is watching her weight like a hawk, seeing those numbers and feeling bloated can be really upsetting.

The first few times time it happened, I let it get me down. I didn’t work out as often and I indulged in everything that I had a craving for. It took two weeks for my weight to come back down even though my cycle only lasts for one.

After that, I started to changed my game plan when Aunt Flow was in town. Now on the first day of my period, I pop some asprin for cramps and I allow myself to eat Nutella out of the jar with a spoon (don’t judge me!). Then after that, I rock my “Period Plan” to make sure that I’m doing the right thing for my weight loss every day even though I know the scale wont move.

I work out, I eat right and I drink lots and lots of water. Usually when I do this, by the time my cycles over I’ve lost the menstrual weigh and a little more.

I know everyone’s cycle is different and some girls don’t have the energy to carry on a normal work-out routine, I feel like I don’t have a choice. With my PCOS, I’m lucky that I’m even having monthly periods so I do my best to keep my weight down. Plus, I always feel much better when I’m active instead of sitting around in sweats and a tank top!

Does anyone else have a  “Period Plan”?

Most people know the basics when it comes to dental care. We are taught at very young ages how and how frequently to brush and floss our teeth, and we learn that not brushing leads to cavities. However, there are other aspects of dental health over which we may have less control. For example, the things we eat and drink might make our teeth less white, or we may occasionally chip our teeth or even knock them out. Dental websites like topdentists.com have solutions to some of these problems, but for some of the more severe problems that people sometimes face with their teeth, it becomes necessary to turn to cosmetic procedures.

One example of a problem that can be solved with a cosmetic dental procedure is when teeth refuse to whiten. In these cases, dentists can apply veneers (sometimes made of porcelain) to the surface of the teeth. These veneers both present a whiter appearance and provide protection for the future, and generally last for quite a while.

For chipped teeth, the most common and simple solution is usually a procedure known as dental bonding. Basically, this is when a dentist applies a material to your teeth that essentially builds itself onto the tooth to replace a chipped or cracked area. This is a completely painless and relatively quick procedure that results in the strengthening and rebuilding of a tooth that cannot be achieved by natural means.

For the most part, the cosmetic dental procedures listed in this article are only for cases that involve severe or unnatural damage. For example, if your teeth really are too thoroughly stained to be fixed by typical whitening methods, or if you happen to chip or damage a tooth, you may have to turn to a cosmetic procedure. Fortunately, most of these procedures are also quite simple and painless, as well as very effective.

I met Keith on the subway. He was a tall dark and handsome banker who worked on Wall Street. Keith had an arrogant air about him and after talking for a while, he asked for my card. I didn’t have one, so he offered me his number. I took it and later that night I sent him a text. Our conversation went like this:

Me: Hey there its CeCe from the train… here’s my number

Keith: Hey hun. I thought you forgot about me. Send me a pic so I can attach it to your contact.

Me: Nope, I didn’t forget about you

Keith: Good, send a photo so I remember who you are. I have 200 contacts so don’t forget that

Me: Whoa Mr. Popular!

Keith: Nah. Mr. Business Man

As most of you know, I am not a fan of the “send me a pic” phenomenon. In my opinion if you want to know (or remember) what I look like, plan a date with me!

Anyway, I really felt like he was pushing a little too hard for a picture. But he was cute and I wanted to keep things light to see if we were interested in each other. I hoped that if I ignored the requests for a photo he’d get the hint and change the subject. The next morning around 8am, I had a new text from him:

Keith: Are you going to send a pic for your contact so a month from now if we don’t speak often I know who it is?

Wow… no “good morning” or “hope you have a good day” just “send me a photo”? This guy was getting really annoying. I decided to ignore him, his approach was a total turn off and even though he was a tall, dark and handsome banker… it was pretty clear he was pushy and I wasn’t into that. An hour later he texts me again:

Keith: Lol guess not. I guess I’ll try to remember. How is your day going?

Keith finally got the hint that I wasn’t going to text my photo to a guy I met for 15 minutes on the subway. But by that time I was over him. This isn’t the first time a guy has tried to bully me into sending pics via text. Guys are so adamant about it that sometimes it makes me feel like I’m the weird one for not wanting to send them.

How soon would you text your photo to a guy you just met?

Are any of you watching Tough Love: Miami on VH1? Last week Steve, the matchmaker/dating coach, did an exercise on texting with the “hopelessly single” women he works with. I’m not a huge fan of texting unless I know the person really well, in my experience too much gets lost in translation and so I try to avoid it at all costs. For some reason guys LOVE to text so this week I thought we could talk about some of the things guys do via text that’s just ridiculous. Ready? Lets begin!

Stewart was a guy that I met at a party through friends. He was new to New York and we hit it off dancing at a party. He was a perfect gentleman and was kind of shy about asking for my number, which was adorable. We met on a Saturday and on Sunday Stewart sent me a text to say hello. We texted back and for for the duration of the day and Sunday evening he called me and we spoke for about 10 minutes.

Monday morning, he sent me a text Good morning, hope you have a good day at work.

Monday afternoon he sent me another text Hi, hows your day going?

I responded to his text messages while I was at work, but as the week went on, a pattern formed. Stewart text me to check on me in the morning, afternoon and evening. But the text conversations never went anywhere. Other than “fine” and “thanks, you too” I was running out of ways to respond to him. Did he think we were getting to know each other? If he did, he was sadly mistaken.

I decided to give him 7 days to make plans to see me again, if he didn’t I would assume he was looking for a pen pal or something.

Friday night, he called me and asked what I was doing that weekend, “I don’t have any plans,” I told him.

“Me either, I’m just here at the house,” he replied.

“Cool,” I held my breath waiting for him to suggest that we do “nothing” together.

“Alright well, I’ll call you tomorrow,” he said.

…and that was it.

He continued to text me morning/noon/night for the next few days but I just stopped responding. In the past I may have pestered him about making plans, but I just felt the whole thing was silly.

Why do guys try to maintain relationships purely via text? I’ve read that it’s a way to keep girls on the back-burner “just in case”.

Whatever the reason, after 7 days of texting I just give up!

Robert and I were walking hand in hand up first avenue. After a fantastic wedding, a large group of my best friend’s wedding guests were headed to a nearby bar that had been reserved for the “after party”.

Walking around New York City in a large group is tricky and ultimately people get split up. Robert and I ended up straggling far behind the group when I noticed Kenzie was up ahead talking to Ben. Ben was the live-in boyfriend of Lisa, one of our friends from high school.

Just ask I was about to call out and ask where Lisa was; I saw Ben reach out, slip his arm around Kenzie’s waist and let his hand slide down over her butt.

“What are you DOING?” I yelled out, my inhibitions had clearly dissolved with all of the champagne from the wedding. Ben turned around, saw me and immediately jogged away, leaving Kenzie on the corner as Robert and I approached.

“What was that?” I said to Kenzie, who was clearly wasted.

“iii wasssn annnthing,” she slurred waving me away.

I was livid.

Ben was getting close to (and in my opinion, taking advantage of) my friend Kenzie, while at the same time betraying my friend Lisa. I was angry for both my friends sakes and I was frustrated because I was the only one who had seen it.

I looked to Robert for advice, “I have to tell her…  right? I mean, I have to tell her…” I kept saying.

“Okay,” he replied, “but I don’t think now is the time…”

We entered the bar and there were Ben and Lisa, coupled up in the corner. Ben wouldn’t meet my eyes and Roberts steady hand on my back kept me from screaming at him. We partied into the night as if nothing happened. Kenzie met another guy, Ben was the life of the party and I had a good time despite the feeling of dread in my stomach.

Lisa and Ben flew out the next morning and I’ve been trying to figure out what to do ever since. I care about her and I know that she thinks Ben is The One but if it were me, I would want to know that my boyfriend was fondling another chick when I wasn’t around. Lisa and I are the type of friends that only see each other on holidays– is it weird for me to call her our of the blue with random bad news?

Should I say something? Leave it alone?

I’m really struggling here….