What I Wore
#WhatIWore is not a hashtag I use often. Mostly because I don’t need to draw attention to what I wore. I’m a stay at home mom pregnant with my 3rd kid so I’m probably wearing what I wore yesterday, and possibly even the day before that.
The only people who could rat me out are my kids, one of whom can’t talk yet. The older one has said something flattering like, “You’re a big mommy in big clothes.” Followed by a big hug. But she’s never said, “You’re a big mommy in the same big clothes you wore yesterday,” so I think I’m safe.
There are people who love fashion and want to draw attention to the cute things they wear like my friend Rebekah. She has a great blog and tons of Instagram followers because of it. Our Instagram posts vary greatly – hers may be a super cute, profesh photo of her in some amaze skirt she got at Zara, whereas mine is of my kids because I was still in my pajamas. Basically the same thing!
Don't get me wrong, I'm #cutewhenitcounts for dinner, mom night out, church, etc. But since our typical days revolve around the Y, Mother’s Day out, and Chick fil A, I keep it pretty caszh (or however you actually abbreviate casual.) But this topic of clothing brings me to the hardest time to dress oneself – during pregnancy. Maternity clothes have definitely come a long way, but shopping for them is still the worst. Your body changes constantly so something that may have fit last week is laughable when you try it on this week. I don’t love shopping on a normal day, so on a pregnant day it’s even less enjoyable. But you’ve got to have something to put on your gigantic body, so what do you do?
Borrow, borrow, borrow!
If you don’t have pregnant/mom friends yet, then you’re kinda screwed and will prob have to buy all your own clothes. On the flip side, if this is your first pregnancy, you can probably wear some of your normal clothes up to 20 weeks! If you’ve ever been pregnant before, don’t even play. You’ll need maternity right away. If you don’t have much, or say you were working before and now you stay home, you’re also kinda screwed and will have to buy some new things. Or maybe your style preferences, like your mood, keeps changing. (Body contour this week, muumuu next week.) By the second time around, so you can probably scrounge up some hand me downs since you have more mom friends but now they're all pregnant again, too, and they need their own stuff. Occasionally though, the timing is perfect, and one of your friends will give you her entire stash. (Score!) Don’t celebrate for long – this same “friend” will call you 3 weeks later, tell you she’s expecting now, and you’ll have to give it all back. Ugh!
Now, clothing yourself is not optional, but spending a huge amount of money is. Skip the $200 designer jeans (1st pregnancy lessons), and go straight to the sale rack at Destination Maternity (2nd and 3rd pregnancy a-ha’s.) There you can buy $80 jeans that are now $40 and an additional 20% off clearance. That's like a dollar a wear! What, that doesn’t add up? (#notamathperson) You get the point! Let Walmart, Target and Old Navy be your best friends for awhile & save those extra bones for diapers and wipes.
Even after accumulating a few necessary staples, you will occasionally be drawn to the pre-pregnancy section of your closet and think, hmm, I wonder if that flowy dress I have will still fit? It will not. You will barely be able to get it past your boobs much less your belly. Avoid this disappointment & consider all your “normal” clothes a loss after 12 weeks.
There is one more inventory source we're overlooking and it's in a closet near you. Remember in college when it was so fun having a roommate to borrow clothes from? It's like that again now, but your roommate is your husband, he can't borrow any of your clothes in return, and you can't drink so you're not going to the bar. Okay, it's not the same at all, but try to impress this point upon him because he may be unhappy to discover he has no clean underwear because his boxers are the only shorts that fit you, and you've cut out all the necks of his t-shirts because they’re so much more comfortable that way! #sorrybabe
These puppies have gotten me thru thick and thin. Mostly thick. Def cut the neck out of that tee.
Real life L & XL Ross finds.
So you’re rocking along, having built up a decent temporary wardrobe and then suddenly nothing fits again! Welcome to third trimester. Hubby’s casual clothes will suffice at home, but if you’re planning to go out in public and homeless chic isn’t the dress code, you need a final push that won’t break the bank. But Jessica, I’ve exhausted all my options - where do I go from here? Ross. You go to Ross.
Enter store. Walk directly to Activewear, Large section. Trust me, you’re a large. Small and medium are a thing of your past. Avoid anything that says athletic cut. You’re 30 wks pregnant, nothing about you is athletically cut right now.
If you want a good laugh, go to the regular clothes section. Again, start in Large. (If you’re fool enough to walk to the junior section, XL is your starting point.) Proceed to pick out 48 shirts that look flowy on hangers. Find out this flowy-ness is merely an illusion. While wide enough for your shoulders, they fail to cover any other part of your body. Immediately take off ill-fitting shirts and exchange those first 8 for your next 8 while you work up a sweat and the dressing room attendant feels sorry for you.
NOTE: Trying on 48 shirts in rapid succession in order to pick up your kids from MDO by the cutoff time is exhausting. You must fuel before you go, or you’ll succumb to the treats in the checkout line that have probably been there for 3 months or more. If you must purchase an in-store treat, I won’t judge you - you still have 37 shirts to try on & you need your strength. Buy the snack and head back in.
Work through the pile until you find a few t-shirts worthy of the park and some extra large sports bras for the Y. Oh, and go ahead and pick up a few things for your roommate, er hubby, while you're there, because as discussed earlier, you've pillaged his supply and he's gotta be clothed as well.
Remember, this is just a temporary crisis of closet. You’ll be hashtagging what you wore in no time. It may feel like you’re pushing your clothes (and your body) to the brink but take heart - those threads, just like you, are stronger than you think.
