Melinda,
yes......get the .357 Mag as you can shoot all .38 Special ammo in it...in fact, much cheaper to practice with the .38 ammo and then fire some .357 at the end of practice to get the feel of it.....however, shooting a .357 out of a 2 inch barrel is going to have quite a bit a kick and muzzle flash. Anyway you can get the 4 inch barrel?.....that would be the best of all worlds unless of coure you are going to get a CCW to carry it.......I personally do not like 2 inchers.....you lose alot of power, velocity and accuracy with those....unless of course you are gonna gun down someone at close range.......*wink*
I've had a carry permit for about five years and currently carry the .380. Both of these revolvers are physically smaller guns than the .380 and a little lighter.
My husband is going to read all the replies. He really wants me to take the .38 special because he thinks the .357 will damage me some way. LOL The part about shooting .38 ammo in the .357 is interesting. He showed them to me and they look exactly alike.
Well, he has a Ruger 9mm that I could probably get but it's huge. I know I'm not man enough for that one. Besides, it wouldn't match the handbag. :-) Just kidding. It wouldn't even go in the handbag.