It seems like just yesterday that I was writing this post about my maternity wardrobe and being rather content with the simplicity of my limited options. Nonetheless, I was looking forward to wearing some of my pre-pregnancy clothes.
When I attempted to put on “real” clothes (i.e., anything other than a sundress or gym shorts) for the first time, about two weeks after giving birth, I quickly discovered that, despite having lost a significant amount of the pregnancy weight, my body wasn’t exactly what it used to be. A few more weeks passed, and some of my “big” pants started fitting, but by week fourteen, when I went back to work, things had not progressed any further. This left me with exactly two pair of non-summery, work-appropriate pants.
For me, it wasn’t about the number on the scale — it’s fairly common for nursing mothers to retain 5-10 pounds or so until they stop breast feeding — or really even the slightly altered reflection in the mirror. The thing is, I liked the simplicity of a smaller wardrobe, I just wasn’t expecting it to be quite THAT limited. While I genuinely enjoyed clothes shopping as a teenager, I rather dislike shopping of any kind now, and the thought of having to buy new (or new-to-me) pants, when I had so many perfectly good ones that didn’t quite fit, frustrated me quite a bit.
Little by little however, I noticed that my “big” pants were actually feeling big again. Then, late last week, I tried on a pair of pre-pregnancy pants, just to see, and found that they fit! A little snug, but comfortable enough to wear 🙂
Now that most things fit again, I have to hold myself to my previous statement to whittle down my wardrobe. While two pair of pants seems a bit sparse, if I can get by with two, I certainly don’t need ten!
Her Green Life 
OK… well, I know I should not wax opinionated on topics that I know absolutely nothing about, but really, when has that ever stopped me?
So, I had 2 friends who both had a baby around the same time. Both gained a hefty chunk of weight throughout their pregnancies. One decided to breast feed and the other chose not to. The one who chose not to was a professional performing musician, and she made her decision for “business reasons” ha ha… so that she could diet to look better on stage, and so that she could drink, because she saw that as an important part of socializing after a gig. Biting my tongue…..
OK, anyhow…. the one who breastfed kept some weight on for a few months, but within six months had dropped all of the weight, and was even having trouble maintaining her pre-pregnancy weight because as she put it “the darned kid eats so much!” She actually looked radiant and AMAZING while she was breast feeding.
The one who chose to formula feed her child STILL hasn’t lost her pregnancy weight, and that was over 10 years ago.
I think there’s a lesson in there somewhere…