Pregnancy, Self Confidence, and a Hot Pink Dress

Over Memorial Day weekend, I was feeling a bit down about my maternity wardrobe. Monica was born on June 8, so I didn’t need very many warm weather clothes while pregnant with her. I think 95% of my maternity wardrobe is either black, black and white, gray, gray and black, or navy, which sometimes feels a little too dark and blah for summer. Yes, I still rock my pink skinny cords, but cords don’t exactly scream summer.

I stopped by Gap Preggo Maternity earlier in the weekend and was less than impressed by the in-store selection. Though I managed to snag a pair of perfectly fitting gray maternity jeggings for $10! So in a fit of mild desperation while waiting for my first maternity Stitch Fix to arrive, I ordered a bunch of clothes online based on what other currently pregnant bloggers are wearing.

Two shirts and two dresses from Target have already been returned, not to mention trying on a few things in store and handing all of them back at the fitting room. The one item I’m considering keeping is a from Nordstrom. It bright. It’s stretchy. It’s comfortable. It’s under $50!! But I’m not sure if I can pull it off.

John’s sister thinks it looks fantastic. John thinks I look a bit like a wad of bubble gum and maybe I should have bought it in black. And my initial reaction was that I felt like a bright pink sausage. Wearing it with a jacket obviously tones things down, but there’s no hiding my belly and all the curves!

Beyond the maternity wardrobes woes, I think we’ve entered the terrible two’s and the two-year sleep regression a week early. Monica has been testing boundaries and limits all day, every day. Her new favorite word is “away” and both John and I have been told to go away on multiple occassions. At first, I took it in stride, but after a difficult evening of boundary-testing, eating practically nothing for dinner, lots of crying, and her telling me to go away on multiple occassions; more than a few tears were shed on my part. I was second guessing my parenting skills and wondering if we’d be able to handle two kids under the age of 3. At least she asked me to snuggle with her before bedtime.

After a bit of Googling, I was reassured that the boundary testing is a part of becoming a toddler and we just need to take things one day at a time. And yes, sometimes toddlers seem to survive on air. This article was helpful when she tells us to go away for the umpteenth time. The following lines put things into perspective:

[Toddlers] are struggling with learning to control their emotions and their behavior.

If you don’t take it personally, then you aren’t likely to overreact or overly dramatize the rejection. You can just accept that this an aspect of being a toddler.

As I heard on Relevant Radio that same morning, parenting is a balance between bonding and boundaries. As parents, we need to lovingly enforce boundaries and not take it personally when Monica tests those boundaries and tries to gain some control over her life. Obviously too much emphasis on boundaries leads to helecopter parenting, so we also need spend lots of time playing together.

That night also reminded us that toddlers need more “transition time” between activities than we think. This includes a 5 minute warning before leaving the park before dinner. One more book and then it’s time for bed. And so on.

So what’s a girl to do?

First, I need to remind myself that John and I will figure out this parenting thing together. And I need to listen to Elsa and “let it go” when Monica tells me to go away. Finally, I think it’s time to embrace my ever-changing mom body and rock a bright pink dress (with appropriate undergarments, of course)! And maybe also buy it in  when I don’t want the belly to be so “whoa!” :)