My Story

The chronicle of the journey from infertility, to miscarriage, to finally raising twin girls born in June 2012.

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Fat lady fashion show

Well, I had my first crying, non-provoked, purely hormonal emotional meltdown of this pregnancy.  The source? Clothing!  I hate clothes.  I hate shopping for clothes.  I hate that as a fat woman, no clothes ever fit me right, ever.  Even if they fit in the store, or last week, that doesn't mean they'll fit right today.

We were invited to a St Patty's Day party and for once, I actually was feeling fairly social.  I have a pair of gray pants that seem to be stretching right along with me, and they are kind of my go-to going out in public pants for this pregnancy.  As I was pulling them out trying to figure out what to wear to the party the next day, I found a spot of wax or something on them and they couldn't be worn until they went through the laundry.  So I started to panic.

I hadn't busted out my maternity pants from the last pregnancy yet so I pulled those out and while they fit, they are also too long.  I'm afraid I might trip.  Some of my jeans are ok if I fold them down and do the belly band, but it's uncomfortable and looks weird.  The only pants available were leggings, and in trying on tops, I had completely run out of tops that were big and flowy enough to cover my butt.  And I'm sorry, but if I'm wearing leggings, my butt needs to be covered.  I'm just not going to inflict skin tight clothing as the only barrier between my butt and the world on anyone.  That would be cruel.

So panic set in and I realized that it was official, I did not have enough actual clothing to leave the house.  Not that big a deal most days, I just wear jammies and jammie pants at home, but holy shit!  If I'm too big to leave the house now, what the fuck am I going to do over the next 3 months???  Almost everything I've tried to buy at some sort of reasonable price has had to be sent back because it didn't fit.

Full on melt down.  There was crying.  There was a husband sitting there like a deer in the headlights having no idea how to respond.  It was unpleasant.

Ok, so I did finally find something I could wear in public.  I found this top and a black sweater that was a bit longer than the top so it covered my butt.  It's actually kinda cute.  This is probably what I'll wear to nicer outings like my grandmothers 100th birthday at the end of the month.

Emily has also requested updated belly pics.  Well, K has been too busy to deal with belly pics and I haven't felt like climbing into that skin tight outfit I've been using.  So the fashion show pics will have to suffice.  I also wanted to get some pics of me with my hair like this because I've made an appointment to get rid of it on the 29th.

Good lord.  If I'm this big now, how inhumanly gigantic am I going to be in 3 months???

But one picture hardly makes for a fashion show now does it?  The rest of this post will be dedicated to solving the solution plaguing plus sized maternity shoppers everywhere.

Where can a plus sized woman find maternity clothes?  As long as you're a very casual dresser, the answer is Value Village.

After our Day With Baby Class (oh yeah, remind me to write about that at some point), we stopped by the Value Village near the hospital.  I expected to spend a total of 15 minutes there because stores like that usually have this smell that just reminds you that you're going ghetto.  But this one was actually pretty nice.  Didn't have that used icky smell at all.

So now I present to you, the crap I bought to simply cover my belly and ass for this pregnancy.  The intention isn't to look good, or cute, or to make a fashion statement, the intention is simply to cover myself so that I won't be arrested for public nudity if I need to leave the house.

Tshirt already owned.
Sweater purchased to make
most of my tshirts work with leggings.

Red yoga pants already owned.
Huge black tshirt with white
"undershirt" thingy.  Should last
 through the pregnancy.


Gray nursing tank from jammie set.
Red and white sweater makes it
publicly ok and still gives me boob
access for nursing.


 

I swore I'd never wear a maternity
shirt that tucked under and hugged
the belly.  Apparently I was wrong.



Black tank top dress.  I'm going to be
hugely pregnant for the beginning of
summer.  I'm hoping this will help 
beat the heat.

Blue dress.  Leggings mean I don't
have to shave my legs yet.

7 comments:

  1. You're adorable! Personally, I feel no one, no matter what your BMI, should wear leggings and not have an ass cover. Some things should be left to the imagination :) I'm glad you found some pieces to tide you over for the next few months!

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  2. Ditto on the ass in leggings thing -- even a size O needs to COVER THAT THING UP. :-) That being said, I really like the striped top over the tank and leggings combo.

    As for fashion and shopping, you can't change someone's stripes -- I think you're either born with the gene or without. :-P BUT, I will say this, as for the next few months you will have some time on your hands before the babies arrive: there are some amazing, plus-sized fashion blogs out there (I follow quite a few of them) and they have helped me to realize that I can be comfortable and cute at the same time. It's also helped me to see new trends that I thought I could never pull off look AMAZING on a bigger body. This has given me confidence to try new things with clothing (I actually wore SKINNY JEANS this winter. I would never have thought!)

    Anyway, all that to say, if you are in a rut, try finding some budget-conscious, plus-size fashion bloggers and take a look at their pics. You may find a combination or two you didn't think of that you can use utilizing the contents of your wardrobe as is.

    Much love,
    Jo

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  3. YAY!!!! You look BEAUTIFUL!!! And you are just adorable! I love all the outfits, especially the first one. It shows off that beautiful belly. I really like the third one too. Black shirt with white undershirt and those red yoga pants. Too cute and looks really comfortable. I am all about comfort! I can't believe you are going to cut your hair off. Cant wait to see the new doo!

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  4. Awww, you look SO GOOD! It is such a relief to actually have clothes that fit and don't make you self-conscious, isn't it?

    Stacy (ecallaw1977)

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  5. Seriously great maternity clothing finds! Love the first outfit for more dressy stuff :)

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  6. You look great. Can't wait to see your new do after the haircut.

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  7. I have loads of plus-sized maternity clothes. I would be willing to mail you some. I am totally done with them and if you still want some things email me.
    BTW, I like what you picked up!

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