pants pants revolution

I only have a few pairs of pants (and shorts and skirts) left that still fit. So, on a whim the other day, I decided to see if maybe I could squeeze into one of Pat's larger pairs of shorts. I pulled them up (under the belly, mind you) and the button and the buttonhole were about 8 inches apart.

This prompted me to wonder what my measurements had actually grown to. So I whipped out the measuring tape and took them. And re-took them. And took them again. Because I didn't think it was physically possible, given how I look, that my measurements are 38-43-42. (Keep in mind that's measuring around the widest parts.)

How, when my belly is this big, are my belly and hips/butt measuring almost the same?

I asked Pat, who reminded me that my back has curved in significantly. I suppose I'm also a bit wider from side to side at the hips than I am at mid-belly. Still, it feels like I'm in one of those optical illusion puzzles. (The "surprise, the distance from Point A to Point B is the same in both pictures!" one.)