Yep, you read that right. Four months after birthing a tiny (well, that’s debatable) human, and I am still rocking my maternity pants. And you know what? I’m not hiding it! Let me give you a few reasons why I’m still wearing these bad boys.
1. I’m In NO Rush. When my oldest was born, I think I was one of those moms that actually packed my regular jeans in my hospital overnight bag. I know, I know, what was I thinking, right? I was naïve and hopeful. With my middle child, I knew better than to pack anything but stretchy pants. However, I was still really worried about fitting into my pre-pregnancy clothes by the time my 12 week maternity leave was over with. I mean, 12 weeks is plenty of time to whip back into shape and trick my body into forgetting it grew and birthed a child, right? Well, by my third child, I was SO over the post-partum rush. I was going to enjoy my maternity leave with my kiddos, eat whatever the heck I wanted, and let go of the guilt!
2. They’re Cute! My kids are a little bit spread out, age-wise. My oldest is 7, the middle is 5, and now I currently have a 4-month-old. I still had all of my old maternity clothes from previous pregnancies. But I wasn’t really feeling the whole, “flare” jean trend again. So naturally, I drove myself to the nearest Target and picked up some new maternity jeans. And boy, were they cute and fashionable! And they even had that amazing stretching material that went all the way up to my under-boob. The best part? You can’t even tell they’re maternity jeans! (Even if you can, I don’t care, I’m still wearing them)
3. They’re super comfortable. During my pregnancy, I seriously lived in my leggings and maternity jeans. However, as any mom knows, even if you bounce back to your pre-pregnancy weight, everything else still shifts and moves around for a few months. There’s extra skin hanging off your tummy, and rolls in places that once didn’t exist. Regular jeans are still not comfortable for me, and until they are, I’m rocking the stretchy panel jeans. That might be 1 month from now, or 10 months. Who am I kidding; I might be wearing these until my oldest graduates from high school.
4. They make me feel good about myself. I know, this one seems a little odd. You’d think that wearing maternity jeans for this long might make me feel bad about myself. Actually, it’s quite the opposite feeling. I’m not trying to wiggle and shimmy into my old jeans every morning. I’m not self-conscious when I sit, and look down to see my tummy rolls. I don’t worry my muffin top is hanging over the edge. None of this happens when I wear my maternity jeans! I feel confident, comfortable, and happy. And I don’t have to say no to that quesadilla at lunchtime.
5. BECAUSE I CAN. My body, my pants, my rules. The most important reason I’m still sporting these maternity jeans, is because I’m tired. I’m tired of letting society’s expectations of how I should look, how I should feel, and what I should wear dictate my decisions. I’m tired of the pressure of rushing to fit into my pre-pregnancy clothes, of trying to erase the last 9 months from my body. And in all honestly, I don’t want to look like I didn’t just have a baby. I mean, I grew a freaking human. That’s pretty darn amazing, and I don’t want to forget it anytime soon.
So for now, I will keep wearing my maternity jeans. I’m sure I won’t wear them forever, but at this point, I’m in no rush to lose my most beloved article of clothing.
#wearthepants