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This stripey dress comes in three colors: gray, mint, and navy. I feel like navy stripes are a dime a dozen, but both the gray and the mint feel fresh and new. I suspect the gray would be more versatile for work, though, especially considering that you want to streamline your maternity wardrobe as much as possible. (Although, note that it does come in solids!) Still, it is only $25, full price at Target, so there’s that. Liz Lange for Target V-Neck Tee Shirt Dress Psst: If you’re looking for one fancy dress for your pregnancy — for showers, black-ties, etc. — this black Isabella Oliver lace dress is on a great discount. (L-3) Building a maternity wardrobe for work? Check out our page with more suggestions along both classic and trendy/seasonal lines.Sales of note for 3.18.24
(See all of the latest workwear sales at Corporette!)
- Ann Taylor – 30% off sale; $50 off $200
- Banana Republic Factory – 50% off everything
- Eloquii – 50% off select styles; up to 40% off almost everything else
- J.Crew – Up to 40% off women’s dressed-up styles
- Lands’ End – 10% off your order
- Loft – 40% off your purchase
- Nordstrom: 4,400+ new markdowns
- Talbots – 25% off your purchase, including markdowns
- Zappos – 37,000+ women’s sale items! (check out these reader-favorite workwear brands on sale, and some of our favorite kids’ shoe brands on sale)
Kid/Family Sales
- Carter’s – 50% off pajamas & free shipping on all orders (ends 3/18); at least 40% off everything
- Hanna Andersson – 30% off all dresses; up to 40% off Easter
- J.Crew Crewcuts – Up to 40% off kids’ dressed-up styles
- Old Navy – 50% off everything (ends 3/20)
- Target – 20% off tees, tanks & shorts for all; BOGO 50% off kids’ books, board games, activity kits & puzzles; up to $150 off select Apple products
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And — here are some of our latest threadjacks of interest – working mom questions asked by the commenters!
- If you’re a working parent of an infant with low sleep needs, how do you function at work when you’re in the throes of baby’s sleep regression?
- Should I cut my childcare down to 12 hours a month if I work from home?
- Will my baby have speech delays if we raise her bilingual?
- Has anyone given birth in a teaching hospital?
- My child eats everything, and my friends’ kids do not – how should I handle? In general, what is the best way to handle when your child has some skill/ability and your friend’s child doesn’t have that skill/ability?
- ADHD moms, give me your tips to help with things like behavior in the classroom, attention to detail, etc?
- I think I suffer from mom rage…
- My husband and kids are gone this weekend – how should I enjoy my free time?
- I’m struggling to be compassionate with a SAHM friend who complains she doesn’t have enough hours of childcare.
- If you exclusively formula fed, what tips do you have for in the hospital and coming home?
- Could I take my 4-yo and 8-yo on a 7-8 day trip to Paris, Lyon, and Madrid?
DC Mom says
When did you graduate to a new car seat? We have the Chicco KeyFit and my 11month-old still fits in it well, but it gets so hot. We took her for a 5 minute drive yesterday with the AC blasting and she was sopping wet with sweat.
mascot says
Like to a convertible? Probably 7-8 months. We used a Britax blvd and I don’t remember it being overly warm for him. Those piddle pad seat protectors can make them a little hot I’ve noticed.
EB0220 says
We moved our kids around 9 months. My kids have been much happier since the switch – they are cooler and can see more.
Anonymous says
On the sweaty factor – we have the Recaro ProRide (x4). It has mesh sides and my kiddo is much cooler in it than in the infant seat. I’m not sure how it compares to other convertibles, though.
Jen says
~10 months and we wished we did it sooner. She was pretty stuffed in there by 9 months but still under the weight max. We just hadn’t gotten around to a convertible seat.
KJ says
We waited as long as we could to switch because the bucket seat is so convenient. She was too tall for it around 1 year, so we switched from the Chicco Keyfit to the Nextfit. Both are pretty hot, though, I think it’s just the nature of car seats.
TBK says
Seven months. We were told that if the baby’s head covers the label on the top of the seat, the baby is too tall. But as for the sweatiness, I don’t think that’s at all related to infant vs convertible seats. Our guys get pretty sweaty in their Britax Boulevards, too. It’s just f&$*in’ hot in DC right now!!
Spirograph says
My kids are tall — I think we switched my son around 8-9 months, and we’ll probably switch my daughter in the next month or two as well. We have a Britax Chaperone, which I bought in anticipation of tall kids since it goes up to 32 inches, but is on the heavier side as infant seats go. Baby’s around 16 lbs, and it’s starting to get unweildy, taking away a lot of the convenience.
Amen to DC being too f(@*#&$ hot.
HM says
We live in Texas and switched our 17-month to a convertible seat last month. Can’t say I noticed a decrease in the sweatiness. I think that’ll come when we turn her to front facing, and the A/C can blow on her…
Anonymous says
We switched at barely 7 months. Kid was 22 pounds and the maxi cosi we had broke.
Anonymous says
Delayed response here, but hopefully still helpful: A friend just told me about the Noggle, and I have to say it is amazing! It’s a hose vents air back to rearfacing seats. It looks a little obnoxious, but keeps my daughter cool to the touch in the Oklahoma 100 degree heat. I used to feel so guilty about stuffing her back there to sweat until we arrived, and having to run AC on full blast the whole way was a pain to the rest of us too. I absolutely love it. And much cheaper at buybuybaby than the Noggle s!te. Good luck!
Anon says
I purchased the Meeno (sp?) liner for our B Advocate and it has helped a lot with the heat. I also try to roll down the windows when I start the car until the A/C can catch up to help her cool down faster. Another tip is to put the canopy down so that the air that is coming from the front can actually reach her.
Alli says
I have seen this dress in-store with coral stripes as well. The dress is cute, but a lot of them in the store look rather cheaply made; the stripes do not line up at the seams, making it look mismatched along both sides. I liked it but did not buy it for that reason.
lulu says
Dang. You must have had nice showers if you could wear a black tie dress to them. but that reminds me I have an evening wedding and a gala coming up. Normally I would wear very different dresses but willing to make an exception since I’m pregnant. Curious though–they are six weeks apart so I’ll be 6 months at one and 8 at the other, so will the same dress even fit?
Clementine says
could you wear a fabulous black maxi dress with spectacular jewelry and/or a colorful wrap at one and then do more subtle jewelry with intense makeup at the other?
(I’m thinking a maxi dress made of a nicer jersey is likely to fit at both occasions as it is stretchy.)
This is what I’m thinking (yes, I realize it’s navy, but that might work too)
FVNC says
I did this, exactly. I bought a navy jersey maxi dress from Amazon (can’t remember the brand), and wore it to three weddings the summer I was pregnant: two were black-tie optional, so I wore it with fancy jewelry and shoes; the third was an outdoor farm wedding, so I wore it with wedges and a denim jacket. The weddings spanned 3 or 4 months, and while I certainly wasn’t the most fashionable guest at any of them, I blended in nicely (it was thick, decent quality jersey) and I was super comfortable.
Pigpen's Mama says
This is the ONLY item from my maternity wardrobe that I miss. I was able to dress it up for a wedding at 6/7 months with some blingy jewelry, but also wore it for a dressy-casual event a few weeks before I was due.
sfg says
I have this dress and wore it at 23 weeks and at 31 weeks. It was a bit more difficult to wriggle into later on but felt fine (and looked great).
pockets says
Most maternity clothing is meant to be worn throughout pregnancy, so I would think the same dress would fit.
Spirograph says
In theory, but I ballooned between 6 and 8 months… my fancy maternity dress was a bodycon style, and that was a poor choice – I did not feel comfortable or attractive in it after about 6 months. That Seraphine maxi dress would have been much better.
tk says
I wore this (or something similar) at a wedding around 5 months and a winter formal at 7 months:
http://www.apeainthepod.com/Product.asp?Product_Id=153820023&MasterCategory_Id=MC3
As others have noted, there can be a massive difference in how you feel in bodycon at 6 months and 8 months. It might *fit,* but whether you’re comfortable is another question.
No advice on appropraite evening footwear at 8 months. Flip flops were all I could manage by then, and it was December. In the upper midwest. Ugh.
Lulu says
Thanks for the tips! I love the idea of a bodycon dress but sounds like it is probably too risky. I could get a lot of mileage out of the right maxi-dress though and for the most part I wouldn’t need to buy new accessories or think about overlap in attendees.
Looking forward to shopping next weekend. :)
ANP says
Hi all — I’m looking at the br3astpumps covered by my insurer and want your input! I’ve had a (different) Medela Pump In Style with each of my last two kids, and my PIS from kid #2 is still functional. Once I go back to work, I plan on keeping my old pump at home for emergency/backup situations where I might need to pump, and leaving the new one at the office. My supply is OK but not amazing and I really had to work to make sure I had enough milk for my kids when I was nursing them (#1 for 6 months and #2 for a year). That said, does anyone have experience with the Freemie, the Spectra 9 Plus or the Spectra 2 Hospital Grade Pumps? I’ve heard good things about both — and didn’t LOVE the PIS, though it certainly did OK — so I’m curious to know if y’all think I should branch out this time around.
Spirograph says
I have 2 PIS and a Freemie accessories/conversion kit to use with a PIS pump… I love the idea of the Freemie, but I haven’t used it as much as I thought I would. The whole process of pouring out the milk from the collection cups into the bottle is just an extra step that annoys me, and since I usually use it at home (I leave a PIS at work), the “discretion” part doesn’t trump that. The few times I’ve needed to use it in the car or an airport, I’ve been happy to have the option, though. I’ve heard that people feel the Freemie contributes to a lower supply if they use it exclusively; I obviously can’t speak to that, but I do notice that – even with the PIS pump – I have to pump longer with Freemie accessories to get the same amount, which makes me think that the accessories don’t optimize suction the way the traditional setup does.
I’d stick with the same pump, just for accessories interchangability, unless you really don’t like the PIS.
Meg Murry says
Yes, I also used the Freemie collection cups with the PIS (not the newer PISA, the older PIS) and it definitely took more time to get empty – and sometimes I didn’t feel totally empty. So I tended to use the Freemie cups when I wanted to do something else like drive or type but didn’t care about it taking longer, and the PIS regular setup when I wanted to pump as much as possible in 20 minutes and get back to work.
I’ve never heard of the Spectra so no help there, but I’d look at whether any of the parts are compatible with the Medela you already have so you’ll have more duplicate parts which means less washing. Also look at what it takes to get spare parts – as I managed to lose one of the freemie diaphragms within a week (luckily they overnighted me new ones for free) and ripped Medela diaphragms like crazy so now I always consider ease in getting spare parts when recommending a pump.
3kids says
Same setup as Spirograph and Meg Murry. I sprung for 2 sets of Freemie cups (not covered by insurance) because I thought they would be awesome, but in hindsight, not sure I would do it.
Pros: easier to pump while driving, connection tubing allows you to sit further from the pump. Feel like less of a cow when sitting at your desk because you don’t have the flanges sticking out and the bottles hanging down, so you don’t have to undress.
Cons: NOT DISWASHER-SAFE!!! extra hassle to pour into separate bottles. If you lean over, the milk will get back into the tubes. Annoying to disassemble for cleaning and reassemble.
LLC says
I also used the Freemies with the PISA. I travel a lot for work and LOVED the cups. I had no problems at all and thought they were a life saver!
PregAnon says
I just ordered ALL THE THINGS from my Amazon registry – it has been a few weeks since the shower, and I got that 15% coupon. Was able to get all the little “clean up” items I was lacking – stroller, car seat, a few other things. Maybe the biggest order ever from Amazon, which was kind of scary, but nice to get that discount and free shipping.
sfg says
Has anybody used a Packit bag for transporting milk? Wondering if it might work better for my long haul days, as carrying ice around can be unwieldy at times.
http://www.amazon.com/PackIt-Freezable-Lunch-Closure-Ziggy/dp/B00IAY6HAA/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1437411293&sr=8-2&keywords=packit
eh230 says
I used something very similar when I was exclusively pumping and did not feel like going up and down stairs in the middle of the night to grab bottles for baby or putting freshly pumped milk in the refrigerator. It worked great for me.
Anonymous says
I used it for a while to take my little one’s bottles to/fro daycare and did not think it kept the bottles all that cold. You could always test it when you’re nearby and can monitor the temperature to see if you think it will work for you.
Beach Paralegal says
I did when I pumped at work. It was fine – not anything special, but the 10 hour promise was reassuring. Sometimes I put my pumped milk in the Packit in the office fridge and sometimes I just had it at my desk most of the day.
New Mom says
Good resources for starting solids? Like which food did you try first? Then next? And how many times a day?
Think it is time for my five month old but a little confused about exactly how to start!
RDC says
Following. We’ve been very slow (read: lazy) about introducing solids. So far baby (7.5 months) gets cereal at daycare and finger foods in the evening at home. But he not infrequently falls asleep on the way home from daycare and sleeps through dinner. Interested to hear how others make it work.
quailison says
We just started solids (baby will be 6 mos next week). We tried sweet potatoes first, then black beans, then bananas, and today whole milk yogurt. Cooked the beans and potatoes and pureed with breastmilk; bananas just pureed. We’ve tried a new food every three days. We’re using the num num dip spoons recommended by commenters here, and feeding him. He is not interested in putting food in his mouth, though I’d idealistically prefer him to feed himself from the get go, but I think to get him to try things and learn that food is yummy we need to put it in there at this point. But I really have no idea what I’m doing.
The only food that he hasn’t spit immediately back out was the bananas, but since this is just about getting used to it we’re going to keep trying new foods. We’re going off of the phase 1 foods listed in Baby 411 (our go-to book). Our pediatrician was big on rice cereal, but we wanted to start with non-processed stuff so that’s what we’re doing. The only reason I can see for infant cereal is the iron (baby is breastfed) and so we might start that after he’s done a few rounds of veggies purely for the nutrition part. Anyway, it’s messy but pretty fun – I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a face of pure disgust as that first bite of sweet potato!
Spirograph says
I am all over this board today. Whatever, it’s hard to get going on a Monday.
With my daughter, we started a few weeks ago around 6 months (also lazy, ped said it was ok to start experimenting at our 4 month appt, but I couldn’t be bothered with anything except some rice/oat cereal in her bottles), and basically do babyfood at dinner. I do not make my own; we bought a bunch of single fruit and vegetable Gerber ones and baby gets through about half a container per meal, so we try a new food every other day. Our daycare provides food, so I just check off the ones she’s tried at home, and they feed her one of those for lunch in place of a bottle.
Our first 5: Peas, sweet potatoes, green beans, bananas, apples, carrots.
We also give her little pieces of banana on her tray at breakfast and cheerios or Gerber puffs at dinner (mostly for her to play with, but sometimes she gets one in her mouth before my son steals them) and give her little bites of whatever berries we’re having for dessert after dinner.
We did basically the same thing for my son, and once he got through all Gerber’s fruits and vegetables, we just started giving him smushed-up whatever-we’re-having-for-dinner. We tried babyfood chicken once, and he HATED it, so that was the end of babyfood; he liked things with flavor better. No one in my family or my husband’s has allergies, so we weren’t too worried about introducing anything in a specific order, we just tried to do new foods one at a time so that we’d be able to ID the culprit on the off chance there was a reaction.
Take a video of the first time you give your baby something other than milk or formula! The look of shock/confusion on my daughter’s face was priceless, and I’m sad we missed recording it.
CPA Lady says
Fellow late bloomer to food here– We started with baby food and never did cereal. We started at 6.5 months with level 1 baby food orange vegetables — butternut squash, sweet potato, then did green beans and peas. First it was just once a day at lunch time. Since we started so late, we moved pretty quickly onto mixed baby foods (level 2 and 3) that were mixtures of fruits or vegetables or both or protein and veg. She’d get a container of baby food at lunch at daycare, and after a month of that, I started doing “real” food for dinner as well. And by real food I mean cheerios, plain whole milk yogurt, guacamole, scrambled eggs, teething wafers, hummus, etc.
She’s 10 months old this week and is eating a lot of fruit cut into tiny pieces along with whatever we’re eating for dinner, and she gets 2 meals and a snack at daycare. We stopped doing baby food last week. I half heartedly tried to do baby led weaning when she was younger, but I’m an anxious person and my daughter has a sensitive gag reflex, and I just COULD NOT handle it. We both seem to have survived so far.
Carine says
We started at six months with avocado first, then bananas (neither pureed, just tiny pieces or sometimes banana in those mesh feeders but those get super disgusting and are hard to clean). Shortly after I think we did steamed-to-death carrots and peas smushed a little, Cheerios. I tried a couple homemade purees but she was never really into them except in the organic fruit/veg/yogurt pouches, which we used for quick/convenient options as she got older and ate more. Unfortunately I can’t remember how frequently we did solids in the early days–probably whenever we all sat together for meals.
Anon says
We’re concerned about food allergies, so we’ll be starting closer to 4 months (if she’s sitting by then!) and introducing higher risk foods pretty early on. (The best research right now recommends it.) We’ll mostly skip cereal and start with veggie purees and allergy risk foods.
layered bob says
What’s the best way to sell maternity clothes?
I have a great capsule wardrobe for my more-business-than-business-casual office, but I am starting my maternity leave in two weeks (at 37 weeks) and want to get those clothes out of my hair… plan to wear yoga pants and tank tops for the remainder of my pregnancy :-) (We have a very small apartment and will definitely be moving/changing jobs before we ever have another child.) All good quality clothes from Isabella Oliver, Seraphine, etc. that I wore for only 12 weeks… seems like a waste to just send them to a thrift store or something.
Ebay? Craigslist? ThredUp?
Lulu says
What size were you before pregnancy? I might be interested.
If not, are there maternity consignment stores in your area? Here (in Seattle) we have several, although frankly most of what they have isn’t as nice as what you are describing, which I thought was a major disappointment. If I had seen the brands you are describing I would have been over the moon.
As a seller, I find the idea of dropping them off at a consignment store much more convenient than Ebay and probably Craigslist. (Not sure about ThredUp as I’m not really familiar with it.)
layered bob says
There is a maternity consignment store, but when I shopped there when I was looking for maternity clothes there was *nothing* office-appropriate, and I’m not sure they would know what to do with/how to sell/price my office clothes.
I was a 12 before pregnancy – tall and narrow-hipped. All the Isabella Oliver clothes are their size 5, as are the Seraphine clothes – they fit me starting at 27-29 weeks; before then they were mostly too big. All clothes were selected for length – if not sized as “tall” they still fit “tall.”
It seems like there was a post on this not too long ago, but I can’t seem to find it and I don’t think it specifically addressed maternity clothes, which are kind of a niche market.
Noelle says
I’d be interested. We’re about the same size and I definitely work in a more than business casual office.
Lulu says
Short and wide-hipped here, so wouldn’t work for me. Good luck selling them! Notwithstanding the dearth of business clothes in consignment stores (and even on ebay, from what I can tell) I think there should be a sufficient (if not large) market for these kinds of items.
eh230 says
I sold a lot throught eBay, but it’s a pain to have to ship yourself. In retrospect, I probably would have gone with ThredUp since it’s a lot more convenient.
anon says
I have found ThredUp convenient, but that they pay very, very little and what they take is really unpredictable.
In House Lobbyist says
I love PoshMark and I promise I don’t work there. I buy and sell a lot there but it does have more hassle than ThredUp. It is really easy to use and I have sold all of my maternity dresses there.
3kids says
Thanks to everyone for the support on quitting pumping last week. I am going to cut down to 1 pump until 6 months and then reassess (hopefully I can lose a couple more lbs by then, too). 1 pump already feels like much less hassle and time lost than 2. If I decide to quit, I will try to not feel too guilty. I’ll still continue nursing at home.
Lulu says
Thoughts on Pump In Style v. Freestyle? (Insurance covers either.) I was leaning towards Freestyle but I’m not sure if Freemies work with it.
3kids says
Freemies don’t work with the Freestyle. I’ve heard that the Freestyle tends to die more easily and is not as strong as the PIS. For those reasons, I got the PIS even though the Freestyle would be more portable. I don’t tote it back and forth every day, but even if I did, I would still get the PIS.
hoola hoopa says
I have a Freestyle and am not in love with it. I feel like the suction isn’t as good – which could be the motor/design or because the f*ing shields/membranes are a million different pieces and have to be reassembled exactly perfect to work correctly. (I’m good at assembling things, but I often have to stop and reassemble once or twice per session).
It doesn’t really have much advantage over a PISA+bustier (+car adapter if you’ll be pumping while commuting) since you realistically aren’t going to be walking around pumping. I chose it because it was lighter/smaller and I was transit commuting – but then I realized that a better idea all around was to keep the pump at the office, travel only with bottles/parts, and to have a manual harmony at home.
I replaced with an Ameda Purely Yours, which is what was free through my insurance at the time. The manual harmony is still my favorite, actually, but the PY wins over the Freestyle no question.
Lulu says
I’ll probably need to repost tomorrow, but any thoughts on difference between PIS and PY? I will also be getting a manual harmony, which makes me think PIS would be better than PY. It’s also likely that I will leave the electric one at work and use the manual if I have to pump at home (or anywhere else).
I know that I am insanely fortunate to have such flexible insurance (it allows me to buy any OTC pump from any store) but some days I wished that the coverage was more limited so I wouldn’t have to make decisions.
Katarina says
I had a PY and I liked it, but I never used a PIS so I can’t compare. I like that it is more portable and is a closed system. The PY comes with its own manual pump as well, but I really did not like it. The PY was so small compared to my bottles and pump parts, it was not worth leaving at work.
Mom guilt? says
Anyone suffer from mom/parent guilt even when you know you shouldn’t? (too long) backstory: I’ve been doing a ton of solo parenting while DH has been on business trips (like, basically the entire month of June I was alone with 3 kids). That covered some tough stretches, namely the end of year madness. I work FT, too, but I am for sure the default parent. I am worn down by trying to keep all these balls in the air, and got a nasty virus while he was gone a few weeks ago because I was so tapped out.
So: he’s on a deadline right now and needs “hours at his desk” to finish a report that needs to get done. But he also was gone the whole weekend for an annual trip with his best friends–he does not really socialize much, largely because of his work load (he worked during the trip), and this is the one time he gets to see these guys as we live in a city far from all of them. Fine; I made peace with that trip, and I’m taking my own long weekend this weekend to visit my best friend on the other side of the country.
My issue is this: one of our kids has an annual physical this evening and DH has reluctantly agreed to take kiddo. I could probably sneak out because work is slow today but I’m sick of being the only parent who does appointments or anything else along those lines, plus I don’t want to use any more of my time on another kid thing. That is: objectively, I know and think DH should handle this one appointment. Nevertheless, I’m feeling guilty, not only because in truth it would be easier for me to do the appointment but also because I’m accustomed to being the doctor’s office parent. Having won the fight about who covers this appointment, I’m now feeling like I should cave and take my kid. Mamas, tell me I’m being bonkers.
tk says
Don’t feel guilty. I bet your (otherwise lovely, I’m sure) husband is not wracked with guilt over his workload and guys’ weekend infringing upon his child-rearing obligations.
mascot says
You are being bonkers. Your husband is perfectly capable of taking the kid to the doctor’s office. Think of it as exposing him to the full range of parenting skills and responsibilities. If you have any specific questions you want asked, I would send those along.
hoola hoopa says
No guilt! You’re enabling your busy DH to get more one-on-one time with one of his kids! Well done! They are both lucky to have you arrange it for them.
JJ says
Bonkers. It’s important that your husband be just as capable as you to take your children to the doctor. And if your husband’s office is like many, his coworkers will probably talk about what a great dad he is for taking time off to take his kiddo to the doctor.
Pour yourself a glass of wine tonight – you’ve earned it.
ETA: I once made my husband schedule a doctor’s appointment for our son. I usually handle that. It became a two-week saga of him updating me on how ridiculously hard it is to schedule appointments, etc. I so, so wanted to just call and schedule it myself, but I wanted to win this tiny battle and stuck to my guns.
Mom guilt? says
Thank you, all. I know it’s nuts, but having staked out a stand and held strong, I was suddenly not myself (see: guilt). Eh. Rest assured I’m definitely having that wine tonight.
As for kudos for him–that would be nice. Unfortunately his partners have remarked, more than once, that he needs “more help” with our kids (who are, for the record, in FT school/care and for whom we have a PT babysitter/nanny) when he has to do kid stuff (and these days, with his crazy workload, that’s rare). Not surprisingly, these partners’ wives are mostly SAHMs and child herding/caring is just not on the radar. They are otherwise good guys (yes, all guys…don’t get me started) but the concept of all the stuff that parents actually have to do for kids sometimes appears unknown to them.