One Overly Analytical Mother's Obsessive Musings about Raising Small Children

Friday, October 22, 2010

Why Am I Still Wearing Maternity Clothes?


When I was pregnant for the first time, I couldn't wait until I got a little bump so that I could wear maternity clothes. By the time I was pregnant for the second time, however, that novelty had worn off, even though there was something oddly comforting in only having three pairs of pants and four tops to choose from. Even though I kept wearing the same few things over and over, I knew that I would do so for a finite period, and then boom!  I'd return to my fashionable digs again.

This brings me to the question: Now that my daughter is sixteen months old, why am I still wearing maternity clothes? I can--finally--fit into my jeans (only three pairs), but more often than not, I'm reaching for those long maternity tops to pair with the jeans. Have I "let myself go?" Become just another of those tired-faced moms who can't be bothered with what they wear? Am I just "so over" the need to look fashionable? To match? To appear in public without stains and other toddler...residue?

At first it was a  question of nursing and of baby spit up and orange baby poop that leaked through two layers of baby clothes. Who wants to wear something nice only to have a baby spit up all over it? I needed clothing that facilitated frequent nursing also. Except for the rare mishap, those days of spit up and explosive baby poop look like they're in the past. I do not go through outfits at the same pace as my baby does but I still am dirty and stained by day's end. So my "good" clothes are still packed away in bags in the storage closet. You know, the stuff with tags that read:  "dry clean only;" "hand wash only;" "lambswool;" "silk;" or the rare "cashmere." And then I have a few things that have tags that actually say "do not wash." What? I bought a pair of summer wool pants from Mango that actually say that. You've got to be kidding me. I never wear those now.

But I think that it's time to move beyond maternity clothes. Last weekend I gathered all the maternity clothes together, washed them, put them in a huge bag, and took them to Goodwill. I also put the Mango wool "do not ever wash" pants in there. This has left my closet looking rather empty because other than the maternity clothes, I haven't bought new clothes for about four years. No kidding. I walked into the Gap the other day and saw stirrup pants on display. Does anybody want to wear stirrup pants...again? Weren't they bad enough the first time around? After four years of wearing the same stuff to death, I think it's time to acquire some new digs that will be fashionable and suitable for mothering two kids who love to play outside in the dirt, eat messily with their hands and then use mom as the "human napkin."

So, readers and fellow moms-who-are-more-together-than-I, I need some advice from you. Without sounding like a whiny teenager, what can I wear? What can I wear that will withstand being washed at least once a week? That will repel toddler stains (dirt, food, and other mystery stains)? That will still look halfway decent?

3 comments:

  1. I'm right there with you. I just bought a couple of things from Avalon and realized that they are dry-clean only. Whoops! I'm just going to wash them on the delicate cycle.

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  2. Also, Avalon is a great place to shop because I can walk up during preschool and they have a lot of cool things and everything is $10. My clothes get a lot of baby spit-up, so it's better to buy used.

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  3. I do that all the time--buy stuff that's "dry clean only" only to realize it after the fact but end up washing it anyway. I'll give Avalon a shot! Convenience is key these days.

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