MOMday: Dressing the Post-Baby Body

Ahhh - remember the early days?  Those days right after baby was born and you could just slouch around in your maternity clothes for a while longer.  Those lovely stretchy waist "buffet" pants and empire waisted tops.  I had a really loevly maternity dress that I loved to wear in those days.   Flattering, comfy, long enough to feel secure in it, low cut enough to show off the boobs I'd just grown.  LOL.  Ya - those were the days.

All too soon, though, I started to feel like a schlump.  If I didn't get rid of those maternity clothes, and fast, I was destined to still be wearing them and would probably let myself go even further.  So I sold them all.  Got them out of the house and forced mysefl to buy a few new things to fit my post-baby body.  Do I remember what I bought?  No, not really.  Chances are it was things that were destined to be covered in baby puke (x2) anyway.

Months after that - I made my goal to shed the baby weight.  I stayed in my schlumpy clothes until I couldn't wear them anymore and then I bought new, smaller, schlumpy clothes.   Then, I bought new, smaller, nice clothes before I went back to work.   The onw thing I didn't buy myself was a nice dress.  Not even when I was heading too Mexico for my brother in law's wedding (Hello - $5 at Reitmans...and it's not like there are any photos of me there to prove I even went).

Now - I am 10lbs away from my goal weight and I want to buy a really nice dress and shoes for a close friends wedding...a wedding that is in just over a week and a half.   But even at this new smaller size - I am still dressing my post baby body.  I wear the same dress size as I did at the age of 22...but the body that's in that size 8 is SIGNIFICANTLY different than the 22 year olds that once wore it.

Age 22 - well before baby

• Long, sleek and slim legs
• Flat stomach
• No cellulite
• Feet that were used to wearing heels
• Size 10 feet

Age 34 - Post Baby Reality

• Long legs, but the muscles are different now.  Where once was slim, now sits athletic
• Soft belly with stretched, loose skin (bet that makes y'all yearn for twins don't it!?!)
• Um - let's not talk about cellulite.  At least it's better than a year ago.
• Foot injury years ago keeps me out of the heels I once wore
• Size 11 feet

So, off I go dress shopping.   I can picture all of these gauzy, light, ruffly things looking super cute on me...but it is the 22 year old size 8 me that I see them on.  Bad momma. Those things don't look super cute on 34 year old size 8 me. Especially since they seem to all hit me just south of my bum...and by just south I mean JUST.  I take hanger after hanger into the change room - and all I end up leaving the stores with is a static charged bob that makes me look half crazed as I head back to the office.   I can't find a single thing with structure that will raise me up, hold me in, work some magic and make me able to dance all night in it without fear of needing to bring an emergency sewing kit with me.

I can picture that perfect dress:

• Sleeveless
• V-neck
• higher waist with defined band
• slightly flared skirt that will swing a little
• hits right around the knee
• Navy or Turquoise or something
• Classic, but modern looking.

Sound super cute, right? Well - it does to me, anyway.  Ah well - the search continues.  I just hope I don't end up ironing the wrinkles out of my $5 Reitmans sundress...

Now, for the shoes...for my post-baby, size 11 feet - do clown shoes come in "dressy"?