MATERNITY MONDAY… non maternity clothes to wear through pregnancy & beyond

When my husband and I decided to start trying to have a baby, I stopped buying clothes.  I stopped buying clothes because I kept thinking, well, I’m going to be pregnant – what’s the point of buying anything since I won’t be able to wear it?  Well, it took ten months to get pregnant, then of course nine months of pregnancy before the nine (ahem, 12) months to get my pre-pregnancy body back. That’s almost three years without buying the very clothes I was coveting and when I could finally wear my old clothes again they were pretty much obsolete.  What I did manage to find during this time were some NON maternity clothes that could see me through my pregnancy due to stretch and cut.   I continued to wear them post pregnancy, when my body wasn’t back yet and still today, now that I’m back to my former shape! I’m not talking the Kim Kardashian approach to maternity – there’s not need to go high fashion and look, dare I say, a bit tragic….  I’m saying classic, yet comfortable..  The key is looking for fabric with stretch (anything jersey is generally perfect), ruched on the sides, empire waists, tops that are longer and fuller and don’t be afraid to wear a (formerly) mini dress with leggings underneath.  It can be endlessly frustrating spending money on clothes you can only wear for a few months, then not again until (maybe) the next one… So, I wanted to share with you some non maternity clothes to wear through pregnancy and beyond, things I myself bought and still wear now!