With your new bundle of delight on the way, your waistline is popping – in fact, it sometimes seems as if everything about you is — including your feet!
An average-size mom-to-be can expect to gain 25 – 30 pounds during her pregnancy, while overweight moms will want to aim for 15 – 25 pounds. Underweight moms shoot a little higher, at 30 – 40 pounds, while moms who find themselves in the obese category will want to aim for an 11 – 20 pound gain. You may actually find that you lose weight in the first trimester.
You’ve got plenty to do before Baby arrives, so you don’t necessarily have the time (or the energy) to shop for an entirely brand-new wardrobe. So here are some tips and tricks to save money and alter a few items yourself to get you through those growing months.
Shopping Around
Shopping for yourself while pregnant is not fun. And figuring out maternity wear when you’re a very petite person can make shopping even trickier. You can incorporate much of your own wardrobe during your pregnancy. Try for long maternity undershirts (the ones available at Target are great) to wear under tops and jackets. Mostly it's a matter of finding clothes that aren’t necessarily maternity items, but just a size up.
Nashville is home to a small handful of shops and boutiques that cater to expecting moms. While some offer cute maternity wear, others are home to an array of services, including massages, lactation consultants, gear for when Baby arrives and more.
Consign On!
Sometimes it’s just about knowing where to shop. Old Navy stores and the Gap Outlet are great places to buy clothes when you don’t necessarily need maternity wear, so much as just a bigger size. Head online to ebay.com for their own maternity section, or check in with your local MOMS and MOPS Clubs for their semi-annual sales, which typically take place in the spring and the fall.
Consignment shops are some of the best places to great deals on gently used maternity wear, so you can add new-to-you items to your wardrobe without breaking the bank!
A Word on Shoes
Summer is hardest while you're pregnant, especially if you're feet are swollen.
Everything changes when you’re pregnant — your joints and muscles are relaxing to accommodate a growing baby and that means all kinds of weird things happen. Some moms-to-be even find themselves suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome! So don’t forget that even your shoe size will change during pregnancy, whether you’re just swelling or your feet are expanding, thanks to musculoskeletal changes that are happening all over your body. Your shoes size will generally go back to normal, so don’t chuck those Chanel pumps just yet! Plenty of water, ice packs on her arms and feet, and flip-flops with a wide, high loop can help.
DIY It!
If you’re handy with a needle and thread, you might want to just keep things on the cheap with a few homemade alterations. Cottonandcurls.com has loads of tutorials on how to alter tops, dresses, leggings and more into maternity wear.
Mom Katie Kelso says, “I didn’t drastically alter clothing, but I did make my own nursing tanks. I cut the straps on the spaghetti strap ones and created/sewed a lop to pass my bra strap through.”
If you hem any dress, remember leave in the hem so you can let it out later when your growing belly takes up more room. That will help to keep your dresses from suddenly feeling too short!
