On Not Wearing Maternity Clothes

And she's right, I don't.

It's not really something I set out to do intentionally, but it's definitely where I've ended up.

It probably started back when I found out I was expecting my first, and made some truly tragic maternity fashion choices.

I had a vision in my head of how pregnant women were supposed to dress, I think based mostly on Princess Diana and Darling from Lady and the Tramp. So even though I was 25 -- and it was 2002 -- I ordered a box of the goofiest maternity clothes ever. Giant denim overalls? Check. Tent-shaped sleeveless shirt? Check. Enormous chambray button-up? Check. Even though none of that is stuff I would wear in real life. I didn't have a sailor dress or anything polka-dotted and with a giant bow on it, so I can only assume that they didn't offer those options at Gap Maternity.

I guess it's nice that I was embracing the whole being pregnant thing, but, really, dressing like you're at a costume party isn't something that's sustainable in the long term. And as other Catholic moms before me have discovered, for many of us, being pregnant isn't a novelty -- it's a way of being.

Because after pregnant, came nursing, then ten months later came pregnant again, then nursing, then . . . well, you get the idea.

So at first, I had my maternity clothes, and my nursing clothes, and there in the back of my closet, my "regular" clothes. Just hanging there taunting me . . . making me feel badly about my changing body, and making me covet my own stuff, which is a pretty unique sin to be able to commit.

I also had a crisis of conscious every time I made a clothing purchase. If I bought regular clothes in between pregnancies, I felt badly that I might turn up pregnant again soon and not fit into them. If I bought maternity clothes, they were probably overpriced and I probably didn't LOVE them, since there are so many fewer options in maternity clothes, and I hate spending money on clothing pieces I don't really love.

But eventually it occurred to me that if I just looked for regular clothes that could double as maternity or nursing clothes, I didn't have to get so stressed out about buying things. It just so happens that I like the look of clothes that can pretty easily do double duty. And it's much easier to find a good selection and good deals away from the maternity department.

So, what exactly do I look for? When I'm pregnant, dresses. I look for empire waists, shift dresses, or stretch jersey. All seem to work well for me pregnant or not, and if the top of the dress buttons or pulls down or crosses over, it will work for nursing too. The secret, for me, is the belt.

These are dresses I bought from the overstock section of eShakti. I put on a belt, and blouse up the top a bit, and they work as maternity dresses.

Obviously you've got to have some maternity jeans. I do. But I mostly hate them. I feel like I spend all day tugging them up. Not cute. I find dresses much more comfortable. But I do wear maternity jeans. And it's pretty easy to find tunic or bloussant or empire waist tops in the regular section (or better yet, the sale section) to pair with them. And those will ALL still work after the baby's born.

I do NOT own any of these tops, but I would happily buy any of these to wear for all three seasons. They're also all from the 40% off overstock section of eShakti. (They are not paying me to promote them either, I just think their stuff is really cute!)

So, these days, I rarely buy any item of clothing that wouldn't work for at least two of my three states of life. And, besides jeans, I almost never buy maternity clothes at all.

Pro Tip: Accessories. If they're looking at your awesome shoes they might not notice if you have pregnant face.

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Happy Hobbit Day!

Today (in addition to being a Sunday, which is ALWAYS a feast!) is Hobbit Day, since September 22nd is the birthday shared by Bilbo and Frodo.

So, since we love The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings around here, we had a hobbit breakfast of Bilbo's Seedcake and sausage and eggs, and an afternoon snack of hobbit-style carrots (with the stems still on) and lembas bread (shortbread cookies) wrapped in leaves (lettuce, left out overnight to wilt a bit so it can be bent). If these kids ever get their playroom cleaned up, which is starting to look doubtful, we're going to watch one of the movies.

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And . . . back to pregnancy fashion, here's what I wore Sunday:

Dress, sweater, necklace: Anthropologie Shoes: Target

The dress and necklace were birthday presents from my darling husband. Along with a new kitchen faucet, which was at the top of my list beacause the old one wouldn't retract anymore and just dangled there. Bugging me. All day.

The kids each gave me a new baby chick, since our little backyard flock has been decimated by hawks. Sad face. They're majestic and all. And protected by a riduculously lot of laws. But hawks are a menace and I dislike them a great deal.

My birthday presents!

Thanks so much for everyone's good wishes on Friday. I had a great birthday. Hope your weekend was great, too!

And thanks to the good ladies at Fine Linen and Purple for hosting yet another What I Wore Sunday. Head on over to check out what everyone else wore to Mass today!