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Updated: Nov 1, 2018 54 Comments · by

Everyone Thursday: Mediterranean Stone-Look Table Covers

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Improvements Mediterranean Stone-Look Table Covers | CorporetteMomsThis is totally not glamorous, but I am going to admit it in case it helps someone else: my glass dining table is now covered in a vinyl cover. See, it’s one of those expandable glass tables that has two glass panes (similar to this one), and we noticed early on when Jack was small and spilling EVERYTHING, everywhere, the table got suuuuper gross unless we took the panes of glass apart every single night. We are lazy, and did not want to do that. So we wound up buying an inexpensive vinyl table cover that is super easy to wipe down and makes a great play surface for all of his painting and play-doh projects. I actually got my black-and-white one on Etsy, but Improvements has a ton of nice ones available through Amazon for $19. Improvements Mediterranean Stone-Look Table Covers (L-3)

Sales of note for 9.10.24

(See all of the latest workwear sales at Corporette!)

Kid/Family Sales

  • Carter’s – Birthday sale, 40-50% off & extra 20% off select styles
  • Hanna Andersson – Up to 50% off all baby; up to 40% off all Halloween
  • J.Crew Crewcuts – Extra 30% off sale styles
  • Old Navy – 40% off everything
  • Target – BOGO 25% off select haircare, up to 25% off floor care items; up to 30% off indoor furniture up to 20% off TVs

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Comments

  1. FVNC says

    I am way too excited about the oilcloth seller on Etsy! Some of my favorite childhood memories are of doing art projects on our kitchen table that my mother always covered with a big blue oilcloth, and want to be able to recreate that experience for my daughter. Now, just have to pick a pattern….

  2. Muppet says

    Paging “waiting” from yesterday — I am thinking of you today and hope you get great news from your second beta post IVF. The waiting is so hard – hang in there!

  3. MomAnon4This says

    Similar story – my parents bought us dining room furniture for our first few anniversaries, esp. when we moved to a house from our apartment. So we had a lovely dining room table that we moved with us to a smaller house, and got rid of cheap-o kitchen table. So then we had a cute baby, super cute in a high-chair, not so cute banging on the bee-you-tee-full dining room table, even when it was covered with a tablecloth.

    So we invested in those expensive table pads like old people have to go on top of wood tables. SO worth it – even now that we don’t use that table every night, it can be a workspace for a laptop, or pens or whatever without me thinking OY! about the table underneath. Definitely worth it.

  4. Fitting in exercise? says

    Hi ladies! Random question – when do you fit in exercise with little ones? Pre-baby, I exercised before work (at home, usually an exercise dvd). We’re in enough of a routine now that I think I could manage exercising in the morning again – but I’m still BFing, and always wake up painfully engorged and leaking. (Baby is 5 months, so I think my supply has regulated.) How do you handle this? Just put on a super supportive sports bra and get over it? (If so, any brand recommendations?) I’ve thought about trying to exercise later in the day, but I don’t want to take time at work since pumping already takes up lots of time, and in the evenings I’m too exhausted.

    • Maddie Ross says

      Honestly, when baby was that little still, the idea of a pre-feeding workout was beyond me. I could barely handle the amount of time it took to walk and get her on my sore b**bs. I often would wake with her, feed her, and then strap her in the Bob and go run/walk while she slept more though. Otherwise, I basically just ran on the weekend (after feeding).

      • JJ says

        Agreed. I do morning workouts, but I wasn’t able to get into a groove until I weaned. I woke up too engorged to even consider working out before feeding the baby. I usually just worked out well on weekends and if I fit in any workout during the week, I considered that a success.

        • hoola hoopa says

          +1

          Do you have time to take a walk with him in the evening? We’d go as a family, which gave my husband and I time together, too.

    • Chronic Overachiever says

      My baby is 8 months and he is consistently waking around 5 am to nurse. I nurse him, put him back in his crib and then go to the gym two mornings a week.

    • meme says

      Can you exercise right after your first regular morning feeding or do a quick “dream feed” to relieve some of the pressure then put baby back to bed? I’d be worried a super tight sports bra could affect supply.

    • Fitting in exercise? says

      Ah well. I was hoping you smart ladies would have a magic solution I hadn’t considered :) (because you usually do, no sarcasm intended!). I usually try not to wake up baby until right before I leave, so I get ready first and then feed him. Maybe I should revisit the evening idea, at least I could take a walk or something after he’s in bed.

    • Midwest Mama says

      I started working out again when DD was 6 months old and we were still BFing. I would feed her as soon as we got home and then bring her in the basement with me (usually in an exersaucer) while I did a video. She was usually content enough for 30 min or so and my bre@sts were empty from just feeding her. I made sure to have super supportive and properly fitting sports br@s too.

    • Pigpen's Mama says

      While I was EBF and for about a month after that, there’s no way I could have worked out before nursing. Now that I’m just nursing in the morning and pumping once a day, I probably could, but baby gets up ridiculously early, so it’s not happening.

      I’ve been working out in the morning at the gym in my office building — just going in as early as possible and getting ready there. But that’s still pretty patchy and depends on how high-maintenance baby has been and how busy work is.

    • NavyLawyer says

      I woke up, pumped, then exercised for 30-45 minutes. If baby woke up DH gave her a bottle, but he could alternatively rock her enough until I got home. It meant getting up early and going to bed early, but it was complete and utter ME time, and I felt so much better for it. Also it was easier to do while she was asleep and I didn’t feel like I was missing anything, as opposed to after work for the 2 hours she was awake. Occasionally I exercised after her bedtime, but that was just too late.

  5. KJ says

    Thank you to the person who recommended the cookbook “Parents Need to Eat Too.”

    I am currently eating her Moroccan Lentil Stew for my lunch. While, sadly, Baby didn’t like it, I think it’s delicious, and it made a ton so I froze a bunch for future meals. I’m looking forward to trying more of the recipes!

  6. Msj paging CPA Lady says

    Very excited for the blog you’ve proposed. Have you found any particularly helpful advice RE weaning from the pump. I’ve managed to go from 3 to 2 sessions during the work day. I’d like to drop another session by next week and wean completely from the pump in June (nursing morning and night). I’ve already gotten mastitis so pretty paranoid about the whole thing.
    Also how do you handle the weekends during the pump weaning process
    Would love to hear any and all advice

    • Pigpen's Mama says

      I didn’t have mastitis issues, but once I dropped from 3 pumps to 2 at work and supplemented with formula at daycare, I started using formula once or twice a day on the weekends, usually when we were out and about because baby just won’t nurse in public (heck, now she won’t even nurse if her dad is in the room). My supply did tank within two months of doing that, however.

    • Katarina says

      I did not have mastitis, but I dropped one pump session per week. I adjusted the spacings from every 3 hours (3 times) to every 4 hours (2 times) to every 6 hours (1 time), to 12 hours from nursing in the morning to nursing when I got home. I had a little pain when I dropped to one session, and again when I dropped to no pumping, more than when I completely weaned.

      • RDC says

        Follow up question – how long were you able to continue nursing after you gave up pumping? I wouldn’t mind stopping pumping, but I would like to keep nursing twice a day, and I don’t know how sustainable that is.

        • CPA Lady says

          So, I never pumped, but I EBF-ed during the first 2/3 of my maternity leave, and ended up weaning down to three nursing sessions per day when I went back to work–1st thing in the morning, right after daycare pickup, and right before bed. She got three bottles of formula at daycare.

          Her three daytime mealtimes were around 9, 12, & 3. I dropped the 9 am session first, then the 3, and then the 12. I took about a week between dropping a session. There was some engorgement, but nothing terrible. Have you considered just pumping a tiny bit if you get too uncomfortable?

          I found that my supply was great with three sessions a day, and then held out pretty well when I eventually dropped down to nursing twice a day, but I had to be very consistent about it. Once I started missing some evening feedings (yay tax season), it dwindled down pretty quickly after that.

        • ADE says

          I stopped pumping in January (at around nine months). I’ve been BFing twice a day since then. I think my days are numbered, but my son is thirteen months now, so I think we’ve been able to keep it up for a pretty long time at this rate! I’m hoping that my son will grow disinterested soon — he seems to be close.

    • JEB says

      So I know the Babycenter message boards are a bit nuts, but there’s an exclusive pumpers board that’s actually super helpful. They have a thread specifically on weaning from the pump. I exclusively pump, and I’ve learned a lot from them.

    • anon says

      I just weaned from the pump (had been doing about half pumping/half formula). I cut down one pump/day per week until I was down to 3. Some clogged ducts but was able to resolve them; it just made the process a little slower. At 3/day, my supply diminished greatly and the remainder was much faster — I cut the length of two of them down to 10 minutes for a few days, then combined the 7 am and 6 pm pumps into a mid-day pump for a few days, then cut down the length of that one, then dropped it, and finally tackled the 10 pm by cutting its length for a few days and then just stopping.

  7. LLC says

    Has anyone had success with “nursing” necklaces? I assume I could just use a regular necklace, but it would need to be non-toxic (are necklaces toxic?!) and very strong so it wouldn’t just break when my daughter pulls on it. My six month old has been scratching and pinching me while nursing for a couple weeks now. I thought it was a phase, but it doesn’t seem to be stopping. Toys and blankets don’t stop this, so I don’t know why a necklace might, but I am feeling ready to try anything! Thoughts?

    • KJ says

      I got a couple of Chew Beads necklaces when I was dealing with trying to nurse a highly distractible baby. They never really helped with nursing, but there have been a few events, like a baptism, where having something fun around my neck helped keep her entertained and well-behaved. I say it’s worth a try!

    • MSJ says

      Yep. Love them as do the babies. Plus its fun to wear jewelry, even if it’s silicone

    • Momata says

      Around that age we were also trying to introduce a lovie in anticipation of sleep training. I had a couple with animal heads attached to a soft piece of fabric about the size of a handkerchief. I would stick the animal head through my bra strap so the lovie was basically pinned to my chest by its “neck,” and my daughter could then fidget with the piece of fabric I had draped over my decolletage. She never did attach to a lovie, but it kept her from scratching me and I think kept her focused.

    • NewMomAnon says

      I have one from Chewbeads, and it was helpful for me when my kiddo was in pinching and scratching mode. I still use it sometimes when she gets in the pinching/scratching zone (she is 15 months old). It’s not a look that I would usually wear for jewelry, but it isn’t bad looking. It also has been helpful to distract kiddo during diaper changes.

    • hoola hoopa says

      I would hold their hands, or specifically get them to hold my fingers.

  8. Anon S says

    Hi ladies, my daughter (first child) is almost 4 weeks old. I am taking 6 months maternity leave, so still have quite some time before I go back to work in October (wow, that seems SO far away). Anyways, I’ve been feeling in a bit of a funk lately because I have nothing to wear. I don’t need to be super fancy every day, but it makes me feel much more motivated and just feel better about myself if I look semi put together. The problem is since I’m nursing, I need to wear something that’s nursing friendly. I also can’t fit into any of my pre preg pants, so I’ve just been wearing my maternity jeans and leggings.

    Any suggestions on how to look somewhat presentable during the stage in between maternity clothes and regular clothes, and also keeping in mind something that’s nursing friendly? As I type that out, I realize that may be a lot to ask, but thought I would put it out there to see if you ladies have any suggestions!

    • Maddie Ross says

      Honestly, on days I was home alone with the baby or was only going to be out for brief periods (that did not necessitate a nursing break), I didn’t dress particularly nursing friendly. Like you, I had a spring baby so spent a lot of my leave home while it was warm. I lived in jersey dresses. Some that were v-neck or somewhat nursing friendly. Some that required me to take it off or lift it up completely at home to nurse. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t buy non-nursing friendly ones, but I sure wore those I already had. I also wore a lot of flowy tank tops (some that could go down to nurse, some that had to be pulled up) and shorts from target in fun colors and patterns.

      • Anon S says

        Maddie Ross, did you wear nursing bras, or just regular bras and take everything off to nurse? I feel like even with nursing friendly attire, it’s just such an ordeal to take off and get ready to nurse her, but maybe it will just take me some more time to get used to everything.

        • Maddie Ross says

          Nursing bras. I had a couple Bravado ones. I wore them the whole time up until I weaned, even sometimes after I stopped daytime nursing as I found them comfy (but I am small of chest).

        • Maddie Ross says

          Oh, and it totally gets easier. You’ll be able to whip it out one-handed without looking or missing a beat.

    • NewMomAnon says

      Skirts with elastic waistbands – I wore a lot of the knit skirts from Target, Old Navy, and an awesome one from Athleta. Maxi skirts too. I wore those with either a nursing bra and stretchy tank top (the Target maternity jersey tank tops were great for nursing) or a nursing tank and a t-shirt over the top. Add a scarf and a pair of cute flats or sandals, and you’re done.

      But I also wore a lot of yoga pants with nursing tanks and open front cardigans. And that’s OK too.

      • JJ says

        Yep. If I wasn’t going anywhere, I was in yoga pants, a nursing tank and either an open-front cardi or a thin short-sleeve henley over the tank. If I was going somewhere, I would probably wear jersey skirts (the foldover ones from Old Navy) or maxi skirts. Merona jersey dresses from Target were also a staple because I could wear a nursing tank under them and nurse in the v-neck dresses. Old Navy also has some pull-on linen pants that I just bought and love, and that would probably be incredibly comfortable for a post-pregnancy body.

    • MSJ says

      For bottoms, I stuck mostly with leggings and maternity pants. I also had a pair of shorts that was always on the larger side and fit.
      For tops, strappy tanks (I liked the Ingrid & Isabel maternity tanks with a nursing bra underneath – nursing tanks never worked) with cardigans, t-shirts, or casual button ups on top. My big “splurges” for that period were a everlane v-neck tshirt, a 3/4 length henley top and the bobeau asymmetric fleece cardigan from nordstrom.
      I did (and still do) largely wear a very limited casual wardrobe that’s not my favorite, but it was a step up from pjs :) I keep putting off getting new clothes until I can wean and purge my ‘standard’ closet

    • anon says

      My baby is 2 months. I’ve been wearing jeggings CONSTANTLY — looks like pants, feels like pjs. Getting to be too hot, so moving into shorts and skirts (good thing I have some that used to be too big). Then tank top or other wide-necked t-shirt.

  9. anon says

    Question that I may repost tomorrow to prompt discussion since it’s a bit late today –

    I am 36 weeks on mother’s day. My friend, who had to go through IVF, is due in October. She asked what I was doing for my “first mother’s day” and I responded that I wasn’t doing anything because I wasn’t a mother yet. My comment really, really upset her because apparently she feels like is already a mother and she and her family are celebrating her first mother’s day. I truly feel terrible for upsetting her but it simply didn’t occur to me that I was saying something upsetting and insensitive. It’s not that I think she’s wrong to celebrate mother’s day; but I don’t see the need to observe it for myself until I actually deliver a baby. I guess it seems like a philosophical difference to me, like a difference in religion, but she is really upset with me.

    So I guess my questions are
    -was I out of line/is she overreacting?
    -did I walk into an IVF landmine? Are there other IVF landmines I should watch out for?
    -did you feel like you were a mother while you were pregnant?

    • CPA Lady says

      I kind of felt like a mother when I was pregnant. But I think its because I had terrible morning sickness for about 3 months straight, so I felt like I had “done something already” by the time mothers day rolled around, if that makes sense? My husband told me I was not a mother, which irritated me. I fully understood that he was not a father, but I still felt like I was already a mother. That said, I didn’t do anything for mothers day that year, and would not have gotten bent out of shape over someone else who was pregnant saying they didn’t think they were a mother yet.

      I don’t know about IVF personally, but I think it just turns everything up to 11 emotionally for a lot of women, just because of everything you have to go through.

    • Pigpen's Mama says

      I don’t think you were out of line, and I think your friend’s reaction was probably a result of IVF stress and pregnancy hormones.

      I do think, regardless of IVF issues, how strongly a woman identifies with the ‘mother’ label and how soon she considers herself a mother varies WIDELY.

      I’m interested in hearing what other folks have to say about ‘feeling like a mother’ – because 8 months into this gig and I’m not sure how much more I feel like a mother than I did before she was born/I was pregnant. And while my relationship with my daughter is now an integral part of who I am, I don’t see ‘mother’ as a huge part of my identity. But then, I felt the same way about getting married. My relationship with my husband is a very important thing to me, but becoming a ‘wife’ wasn’t this huge transformation.

    • Chronic Overachiever says

      I did not celebrate Mother’s Day when I was pregnant. I do remember receiving calls and text messages wishing me a Happy Mother’s Day, which caught me by surprise.

    • Manhattanite says

      No, I did not feel like a mother while pregnant. Even now with a preschooler (and no2 on the way), I’m quite happy to allow Mother’s Day to be about my mom and MIL. I do feel like a mother now, obviously, but am happy to honor the women in my life who have been doing it longer than I have and are wonderful grandmothers to my DD.

      I’d have felt like it was bad luck to celebrate Mother’s Day before baby was born too. I also don’t like to call fetus by its gender or buy more for baby than is strictly necessary before birth. I guess that’s my Ashkenazic Jewish upbringing too.

    • Muppet says

      Interesting questions! People will probably have very personal opinions about this, but fwiw, I’ll share mine. I went through the whole infertility battle, did IVF, had a miscarriage, and eventually, blissfully, had a baby.

      My reaction would have been the opposite from your friend’s — especially due to my IVF history, I was very, very reluctant to believe in my pregnancy before I delivered a healthy baby. My second pregnancy did span Mother’s Day, and I certainly did NOT feel like a mother already. I still felt like an infertile, and a fraud. The whole pregnancy felt very biological and clinical, and — even though I actually enjoyed pregnancy — I didn’t bond with my baby until after I delivered. I think it was a defense mechanism on my part.

      I could see the opposite happening with other IVF’ers — after all you’ve been through, and having already seen photos of your days-old embryo, I could see someone bonding even earlier than usual. That said, I don’t think this is a typical IVF landmine. I think your friend is overreacting…. However, on behalf of over stressed, desperate, emotional, terrified infertiles everywhere, I ask you to be patient with her and try to accommodate her outburst somehow. I hope it doesn’t come between you in a big way. I lashed out at a few friends during my infertility, and I really appreciated their patience and resilience.

      I think that’s some of the best advice I can give, rather than identifying specific IVF landmines. Your friend’s landmines seem to be different from mine. Just try to stay with her through it :)

      • Muppet says

        Actually, I’ll add one more thing — I craved recognition on Mother’s Day more when I was still infertile than when I was pregnant or, now, as a mother. I wanted recognition that it was a sad day for me – that I was still, through years and years, still trying to become a mother but unsuccessful. A card or call from a friend on Mother’s Day back then would have been tremendous. Now, it feels like heaping praise on me after I won the lottery.

    • JEB says

      I don’t really know whether I felt like a mother while pregnant. On some level, I did, since I thought of the baby as a baby (not a fetus), loved her, and would have been devastated if I lost her. On the other hand, she obviously wasn’t born yet. I think my feelings probably fell somewhere in between. My husband took me to a nice brunch on Mother’s Day, and while I wasn’t expecting it, it felt very nice to have the day recognized. My in-laws also included me in their mother’s day celebration. In return, I got my husband some nice cigars for father’s day (while I was still pregnant).

      I don’t think you were out of line, since you were talking about your own feelings and weren’t intending to say anything about her. I don’t necessarily think she was overreacting either, since these can be sensitive subjects, and probably more so for someone who has had fertility struggles. Just an illustration of how differently we all process these things.

      We’ve all said something at some point that we didn’t realize someone else would find offensive, and all we can do is recognize/validate the hurt, learn from it, and move on.

    • Left coaster says

      I’m also pregnant, due in October, and pregnant after a bunch of fertility treatments.
      Muppet above pretty much summarized my feelings about Mother’s Day (and pregnancy in general) — after being on such a long road, I’m more anxious than many of my friends have been during their pregnancies (example — I am scared shi*tless about my anatomy scan in a couple of weeks, while many of my friends were closer to the “excited” end of the spectrum).

      I don’t think you are wrong not to feel like a mother yet. But I also can’t really fault your friend — as others have observed, fertility treatments send your emotions into crazy overdrive. I’d second the recommendations to be patient with her and not think too hard about whether it is or isn’t reasonable to feel like a mother before giving birth.

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