I am in the midst of a postpartum fashion crisis. I’ve lost 2/3 of the baby weight, but as I was 20 lbs overweight when I got pregnant I still have a long way to go. In the mean time I need some clothes that actually fit. Maternity clothes hang off me like a tent, but pre-baby clothes are tight and ill-fitting. I’m living in wardrobe limbo. My body has changed a lot because of the pregnancy, c-section, and breastfeeding. Holler if ya hear me, mamas.
I was watching Stacy and Clinton regulate on “What Not to Wear” and came to the realization that they would be horrified by my current wardrobe. I am shocked at how quickly I fallen into bad mom clothes. To add insult to injury, I haven’t had a hair cut in over a year. Yikes. Please send help. I’m trying to see this as an opportunity to start over and buy classic pieces that will last. Stacy and Clinton gave their pupil a list of basics, so I went to the TLC site to check it out.
The “What Not to Wear” Basics List
I would add a pair of dark, stretchy jeans, a pair of black pants, and a few a line skirts. What are your fashion basics? How did you deal with the postpartum body change? How did you lose the baby weight?
Welcome to the world, Fisher Scott Eby. We are so excited that you’re here. Our boy is 7 1/2 weeks old now, and we are getting the hang of parenting him a little more each day. It has taken me a little while to be ready to tell this story. I did not have the birth I planned or expected, and for some reason I needed to mourn the loss of that for a little while. As my due date approached, everything was looking good. I had been 3-4 cm dilated for weeks and almost completely effaced. Because Fisher was measuring large, my doctor wanted to induce before my due date. I wanted to wait until a few days after, and she respected that decision, but didn’t want me to wait very long. We negotiated for 3 days after the due date.
On May 31st we went in for our induction at 8 am. They told me not to eat, but I’ve never been a rules kid so we hit Chick-fil-a on the way. I researched eating during labor and saw that the only reason they tell you not to is because of the slim chance of an emergency c-section, and if in case of c-section the slim chance you will have to put under general anethesia. Jed made me confess to the nurse that I had eaten (he is such a rules kid), and the only consequence was that I had to wait until noon to be eligible for an epidural. So glad I ate those chicken minis.
I wanted to try to birth without meds, but knew it would be difficult with pitocin contractions. When we arrived I was 4 cm dilated and totally effaced. I started progressing well and held off the epidural until around 1. The reason I went for it was that I had my sister and brother-in-law in the room (who are a nurse and doctor) reading the monitor and telling me the strength of the contractions. I could handle them ok where they were, but knew they would be getting worse. Once back labor started I was ready for some meds.
My doctor offices 2 floors below labor and delivery, so she was in and out all day which was unexpected and awesome. Fisher was flipped sunny side up which makes for a difficult delivery, so she tried to turn him twice. This was not fun. Seriously not fun.
After laboring from 10 until 5:30, I was at 10 cm and ready to push. Fisher was still facing up so I knew I had a hard road ahead. My doctor, our awesome nurse, my mom, sister, and Jed were all in the room. I pushed with everything I had for 2 hours without much progress. Fisher moved only from a -2 to a -1. My doctor was concerned but knew I wanted to avoid a c-section so she let me push a further 30 minutes. I have never worked so hard in my whole life. My epidural wore off for the most part after 1.5 hours of pushing, and the back labor was like no pain I’ve ever experienced. My sweet sister was my doula and massaged my back throughout the pushing while Jed and our nurse held my legs. My doctor allowed me to try several different positions (all fours, on my side, etc) but nothing worked. After 2.5 hours of pushing and no movement, my doctor broke the news that I would have to have a c-section. She didn’t want to attempt to use forceps or a vacuum because he was stuck behind my pelvis and his shoulder would almost certainly break. I agreed to a c-section and the wheels went into motion. I was calm and had a peace about it, but it was pretty scary for Jed.
Because my epidural had stopped working a new had to be put in, but it didn’t work either. Finally after 45 minutes of trying to get me numb the doctor had to use local and light general anesthesia. This freaked Jed out because I had eaten a few Luna bars throughout the day (so not a rules kid). Thankfully Fisher was not in distress so they were able to wait for me to be numb. The c-section went well and Jed was handed our beautiful baby boy at 8:56 pm, just 13 hours after arriving at the hospital. He weighed 8 lbs 10 oz, and was 19 in long.
This is our first family photo. I am totally out of it, but so relieved to have a healthy baby. I just knew he was a boy the whole pregnancy. 🙂
Our sweet friends and family were in the waiting room for hours so they could meet our boy. They are awesome.
I’m so ready for Baby Bun to arrive, but there are a few things I’ll miss about being pregnant. Here are the top ten.
10) Sleeping with a giant body pillow
It has become the 3rd person in our marriage and Jed likes to use it as an arm rest.
9) Asking people to fetch things for me
I told Jed the other day that sometimes getting up or rolling over feels like trying to move a mountain. I have to make a decision about how much I really want that glass of water or to pick up that thing I dropped. Now I just ask someone else to get it for me.
8) Setting the thermostat as I see fit
I have a built in space heater right now. I am normally cold natured, so much so that I will sleep with a down comforter while Jed has just a sheet. Now we have totally reversed roles. Will I go back to normal?
7) A million craft ideas inspired by pregnancy
Mobiles and onesies and decorating…
6) Wearing very stretchy, comfy clothes 24/7
Stretchy pants rock and flowy skirts rock. Let’s be honest, I wear a lot of flowy skirts normally.
5) Feeling my baby move inside me
I know I will miss this feeling, but I can’t wait to see my sweet baby moving around on the outside.
4) Constantly asking other people to carry things for me
Usually I just tough it out and tote things myself, but I’ve had to give in and ask for help. Sometimes I think that 80% of my job is loading and unloading my car for events. I will definitely miss people helping me all the time.
3) Preparing daily for motherhood
I’ve read so many books and websites, prayed and discussed, and spent so much time and energy getting ready for Baby Bun. The preparation and anticipation has been fun, but I’m ready for it to be over.
2) Giving in to food cravings
Buttered popcorn – yes, please. Garlic bread – absolutely. Fresh fruit by the basket full – bring it on.
1) Knowing my body creates the perfect home for my baby
It is so comforting knowing that my body cares for my baby perfectly, and I hope I can do so once he/she is born.
What do you miss about pregnancy or another phase in life that has recently passed?
Looking at pictures of yourself at nine months pregnant is a bit humbling, because you really are as big as you feel. On the other hand, I love having these pictures of our little family before we meet our Baby Bun. We are nervous and excited and waiting patiently for our new addition.
We tried not to be too cheesy. I started to giggle whenever we would strike a goofy pose. I think these all turned our really well. The sun was SUPER bright, so there were some shadows, but these look as natural as you can look posing in a field of wildflowers with your husband.
Yesterday I got my long awaited test results for the gestational diabetes 3 hour glucose tolerance test. Ok, I really only had to wait over the weekend,but it seemed like an eternity. My results came back totally normal for the whole test! I am so thankful and praising God for the wake up call to eat healthier. We needed it desperately, and had become really lazy about our eating and exercise. Type 2 diabetes runs in both of our families, so we are now on a mission to fight those genetics. This whole ordeal has put Jed and I on the same page nutritionally, which is huge for us. And hopefully will prevent us from being huge in the future. 🙂 Thanks so much to everyone who prayed for Bun and me.
We are praising God for so much today- spring and spring break, good test results, loving family and friends who are kind enough to throw us baby showers, our fabulous and affordable rent house, great jobs that we love, great friends, our neighborhood lake, and so much more.