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FYI, if you haven’t seen it, we did a major round-up of white tops for work (that aren’t basic t-shirts or blouses) over at Corporette, including a lot of representation for maternity tops. Even as someone who wears a lot of black, I love a good white top to spring-ify my wardrobe. Ladies who are pregnant: do you like the way white tops look with your maternity glow, or have you gravitated toward (or away from) white for other reasons? Moms with kids already: do you find you wear white less since having kids (too high maintenance), or more (because it’s easy, versatile, bleach-able, etc)? The Hunt: White Tops for Spring
Building a maternity wardrobe for work? Check out our page with more suggestions along both classic and trendy/seasonal lines.
Clockwise from top left: Lilac Maternity, Michael Stars, Eva Alexander, Rosie Pope
Sales of note for 9.10.24
(See all of the latest workwear sales at Corporette!)
- Ann Taylor – 30% off your purchase
- Banana Republic Factory – Up to 50% off everything + extra 20% off
- Boden – 15% off new styles
- Eloquii – $29 and up select styles; up to 50% off everything else
- J.Crew – Up to 50% off wear-to-work styles; extra 30% off sale styles
- J.Crew Factory – 40-60% off everything; extra 60% off clearance
- Lands’ End – 30% off full-price styles
- Loft – Extra 40% off sale styles
- Talbots – BOGO 50% everything, includes markdowns
- Target – Car-seat trade-in event through 9/28 — bring in an old car seat to get a 20% discount on other baby/toddler stuff.
- Zappos – 26,000+ 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 – 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
See some of our latest articles on CorporetteMoms:
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And — here are some of our latest threadjacks of interest – working mom questions asked by the commenters!
- The concept of “backup care” is so stupid…
- I need tips on managing employees in BigLaw who have to leave for daycare pickup…
- I’m thinking of leaning out to spend more time with my family – how can I find the perfect job for that?
- I’m now a SAHM and my husband needs to step up…
- How can I change my thinking to better recognize some of my husband’s contributions as important, like organizing the shed?
- What are your tips to having a good weekend with kids, especially with little kids? Do you have a set routine or plan?
Anonymous says
I am going back to work from my maternity leave in a few weeks (as a lawyer) and just found out that my assistant (who I have been with for 4 years and is amazing) is transitioning to a new role. Complete first world problem but I am so sad about it!!! Just posting here to vent because I’m sure many of you know how important it is to have a great assistant!
Spirograph says
White isn’t my friend, pregnancy, kids, or no. I like the idea of it in theory, but I have a warm complexion that definitely needs “winter white” or more of an ivory, so it’s a process to find a white that flatters me. And then it gets stained almost immediately through my own clumsiness or my dirty kids. I do have a white sweater that I got on clearance recently for $15 and looooove. But if I’d paid any more for it, I’d be afraid to wear it (3 times so far with no stains. I put it on right before I walk out the door to work and take it off immediately when I get home).
CPA Lady says
I had this series of moments around the time my daughter was 6 or 7 months old where I just thought I looked like complete crap. I was out of the hot-mess newborn phase, had lost the baby weight, but just did not look like myself. I was wearing ratty yoga pants with a sweatshirt one morning at Target and caught sight of myself in one of those mirror pillar things and just had this moment where I decided that for my own mental health I had to start dressing like my old self again.
I bought a bunch of ponte pencil skirts, got my silk shells out again, and bought white jeans. For me, wearing skirts and silk and white is part of who I am. I carry a tide pen with me everywhere, but having a toddler has not kept me from wearing white.
Clementine says
I hit that point about 2 weeks ago. I went and got a great haircut, pulled out my pre-pregnancy clothes, and made ‘wear a real bra’ a priority on my daily to-do list.
Although, I’m like EB0220 in that my coffee is still much more of a danger than my kid…
Also! Nursing-friendly dress that’s NOT a wrap dress! The Ashton shirtdress from the Limited. It’s on the shorter side but still work-appropriate for me at 5’8. It looks great with a blazer and is made of a poly that means it doesn’t wrinkle and i can throw it in the washer and dryer.
Navy Lawyer says
Thank you! I am still nursing and miss wearing dresses – for me they’re easier. And I love the Limited.
EB0220 says
White? Hahaha. I wore a white shirt last week and lived in fear the whole time. My coffee is just as much a danger as my kids, to be honest.
Meg Murry says
Yup. I don’t do white clothes – I’m too much of a slob myself, before adding the kids to the mix. I also don’t like having to make sure to separate the whites from the rest of my clothes – I forget or miss one and then they wind up dingy looking. Add in the difficulty of finding whites that aren’t sheer or having to add a tank or camisole and I’m out.
JJ says
I couldn’t wear white before kids, and I certainly can’t do it now. I always look at white jeans online, put a pair in my shopping cart, and then realize that I manage to stain my black skirts….so white is just not an option.
One day, maybe. But I am way too much of a slob and a klutz to wear white now.
anon says
Maternity swimsuit ideas/thoughts? I’ll be in the 6-9 months pregnant range so pretty pregnant and I have a large chest!
NewMomAnon says
I wore a regular two-piece swimsuit while pregnant. I had to go a size up to accommodate my chest and hips, but that way I didn’t have to worry about a maternity-specific suit. Bonus: I wore it the summer after having the baby while everything was still adjusting.
CPA Lady says
I got a non-maternity two piece from herroom dot com in my ludicrous pregnancy bra size — something like 32FF? And then a normal bikini bottom from old navy and one of their maternity tankini tops. Both worked well. I was just basically standing in the ocean though, not doing any kind of hard swimming workouts.
Meg Murry says
I had a cheap maternity suit from Target that was ok-ish, but I always felt I was very close to overflowing the top, and it wasn’t very supportive.
I needed lots of support for my very large chest when pregnant, so I went with tankinis from Land’s End since they have DD and DDD options that are available in tall/long, and you can buy the tops and bottoms separately. They weren’t available when I was pregnant, but I think the Swimkinis look like a good maternity option, as do a lot of the tunic length tankinis. http://www.landsend.com/shop/womens-swimsuits-tankini-bikini-separates/-/N-fxnZka7?cm_re=lec-_-hp-_-hr1-1-3-_-wmnsswim-_-20160329-_-cta
If you are looking for a suit to actually swim or do water aerobics, etc, and don’t want the extra fabric from a tankini floating around, I’d suggest wearing a sized up one piece with either a sports bra type bikini under, or even jsut a straight up cheap sports bra. That’s what all the water exercise teachers at our local pool do when pregnant. It isn’t necessarily a cute look, but it allows you to move without a sore chest later.
JTX says
Check ASOS and Topshop.
Anonymous says
I loved my maternity swimsuits from Seraphine. Pricey but flattering.
DC anon mom says
I need shoe recommendations for my toddler. Daycare demanded shoes one day, so I ran and bought some without much thought. I got the Stride Rite for Target hard sole shoes. She has outgrown them and I realized that hard sole probably is not the best idea at this age (18 months). So, now I am looking for a nicer pair – what do you recommend?
anne-on says
Pedi ped was what we wore exclusively until my son was about 3 (wide feet). See kai run is also supposed to be good. 6pm had lots of both brand.
Carrie M says
We’ve done well with the softer/more flexible shoes from Stride Rite (not the Target ones). We also liked See Kai Run and baby converse. All are on Amazon Prime. If you want to go to a store, there’s Bradshaws in Lee Heights in N. Arlington, and there’s also Shoe Train in Potomac, which I’ve heard is amazing but I’ve never been out there.
PinkKeyboard says
Pediped and See Kai Run are both great. Stride Rite (the actual store vs target) has flexible soled shoes as well.
PhillyGator says
We have had good luck with pedi ped and with Nike Free.
Anonymous says
I’ve had good luck with Old Navy maternity suits.
Anonymous says
My child is almost 18 months old…Why do I look so tired and haggard? How can I get out of this rut without spending a fortune?
Anonymous says
Try changing up your makeup routine – I was using the old school maybelline mascara for ages until someone posted here about the waterproof versions leaving dark circles under her eyes. I’ve stopped using that and it has made a difference although not the difference I was hoping for. Basically – if you wear waterproof mascara make sure you remove it properly every evening and not fall asleep with it on.
Clementine says
I think this was me! Yes! do this!
Spirograph says
When’s the last time you got a haircut? That made a huge difference for me.
CPA Lady says
Concealer and blush?
Take time to take care of yourself every once in a while? As in, at least once a month do something just for you.
Lock yourself in your bathroom with a glass of wine tonight and have a mini spa night. If you are like me you have a ton of samples from sephora that you mean to use someday. Maybe that day is today. Do one of those exfoliating thingies and moisturize your face. Paint your toenails a festive color.
Six says
How often are you (parents) really having six? Strategies for getting in the mood and/or making more time to up the frequency? Strategies for managing an imbalance in drive? We have a 5 month old, and we probably have some kind of activity 1x every week or two. Very stereotypical, but husband is more interested than I am and feels we aren’t having enough. I’ve been very uninterested since I got pregnant, but am still having a hard time getting in the right mindset for it, which didn’t used to be as much of an issue. I think husband is waiting for things to go back to the way that they used to be, and I keep telling him to wait for another roadblock to disappear (wait until I’m physically healed from pushing a human out of my body, wait until I’m done nursing, wait until xyz…). Physically now, I do feel like I should be more or less fine, and it’s probably more of a mental space issue for me at this point.
Anonymous says
He needs to give you a break. You’re working and you have a five month old – he should be glad that things are as good as they are.
anon says
Um yeah, we were once a MONTH at that point. five months is nothing. are you breastfeeding? I was much more interested after I stopped.
We are once a month right now too (pregnant with a one year old) and I have zero concerns about this. It’s not the time.
HSAL says
I also have a 5 month old and we’ve only done it 3 times since she was born. Tell your husband he’s lucky.
Katala says
This. Ours is 11 months and it’s just now ticking up in frequency by which I mean possibly twice in a month. He’s lucky!
LC says
I have a five-month old and we have done it ZERO times since he was born. Yes, you read that right. I had a rough delivery with a posterior babe, and I’m still terrified of what’s going on down there (even though it’s healed up by now). Add in nursing, working, and sleep-deprivation, and there you have it.
Anonymous says
This. I think we had sex the first time at about 5-6 months. For the first 1-2 months I was still actively bleeding. I finally stopped bleeding around 8 weeks, and since I had a tear and some stitches I was really really timid about sex. I also had gained 65+lbs during pregnancy and while I lost it all it took several months for things to go back where they belong (organs, skin etc). I didn’t get back to PP weight until 8-9 months but i felt normal after 5-6.
Meg Murry says
It also took us months to get back to it, and once we did it was once in a blue moon. When I have to choose between s*x and sleep and I’m only getting 5 broken hours of sleep a night, sorry H, I’m choosing sleep.
That said, I’ll also admit that sometimes if he initiated, I would say “let me” and then just take care of him with my hands or mouth. He enjoyed it, and I selfishly did it because I had no desire to be touched and it was faster that way so then I could get some sleep.
But at once a week, you are probably doing better than 75% or more of parents of 5 month olds.
Also, very uns*xy, but as someone else once suggested, after the baby was a little older I just basically added it to my mental chore/todo list, and I found that even if I hadn’t really felt much like it initially, once we started I got into it – basically it’s a case where “fake it till you make it” is true.
Navy Lawyer says
THIS is not talked about enough. After my first, we didn’t get to it regularly until I stopped nursing. Partly you’re touched out by nursing, and if it’s your first you’re doing most of the child-related tasks. Also your hormones have other ideas, such as literally more friction during sex which by my anecdata seems to bother women more. I also had to get over a Madonna-whore complex; I had trouble reconciling six with being a mom. It is much better after the second child – now it’s about having both time and energy once the kids are sound asleep!!
October says
I agree that at 5 months you are doing well! At that point for me it was still rather uncomfortable. I’m at 8 months and it’s still a mental struggle, though we try for 1-2x week. Honestly, my husband is such a great guy and supportive of me in so many ways, that I’m embracing a “fake it till you make it” mentality. This is important for him, and for us to connect as more than parents, so I make it a point to say yes almost every time he asks (which is usually on weekends and not TOO often because he’s tired, too).
MDMom says
I wasn’t very interested until a certain point, then my libido came back with a vengeance. I can’t remember when it was exactly but later than 5 months. Something like 7 or 8 months? Prior to that it was once every week or two and I really did it because I felt obliged not because I had any desire. But then at some point a switch flipped and I wanted it and enjoyed it more. I’m still nursing so not related to stopping that (and I still don’t really want my breasts touched). Now at 10 months out frequency is back to where it was pre-baby, 2-3x week on avg. And, for what it’s worth, for me the “six” is actually better now than it was before childbirth, but that wasn’t true for the first few months. Give it time.
Clementine says
Assuming no work travel, I really try to make sure we do it 2x/week. Specifically, Wednesdays and Saturdays, actually.
Baby is 5 months old. A big part of it is because I know I need it to feel like myself again. It also is the time that my husband and I connect- no talking about the baby, etc.
meme says
More commiseration. I have a 5-month-old too. I know from experience that I have almost no libido while nursing, which adds to the usual libido-imbalance issues we have. My husband is a physical touch love language person, so I make efforts to keep things semi-regular, but until recently have just had zero postpartum drive whatsoever, no matter what. Recently, I feel like maybe some hormones (hardly any) are starting to circulate around in there. I don’t have any magical solutions. I try to be mindful of what is important for my relationship, watch some rom-coms together, and read some romance novels to at least keep the concept bumping around in my mind so I’m up for it if we can find/make the time, and don’t have the automatic reaction of uuuuuuugggghhh all I want to do is sleep.
Anonymous says
DD is 10 months. ZERO. ZERO since conception. I have no. interest. at. all. You can guess how positively this is affecting my marriage.
Anonymous says
Girl, you gotta get back in the game.
Um, no. says
No, girl. No you don’t. You might want to think about ways of trying to re-gain your interest if YOU want to. But there is no game and you don’t gotta do anything.
Anonymous says
FAIR, but! Six is great! I want everyone to have all the six they want! Which I get, could mean no six, but I doubt that’s what she *wants*, is it? Maybe it looks different than what it used to, but moms can still be sixual creatures! It might take a little doing, but I encourage you to find the light– for yourself and your partner.
IWFM: take a spa day and get all the treatments that make you feel hot (mani/pedi, a wax, a facial, a blowout, whatever your deal is), get a bra fitting at Nordstrom and buy a new bra (I was a completely different size after nursing and had 2 very plain, very ratty bras that I always wore and felt blah in). Then talk to your husband about what you want. Also, when my kiddo was that age it was a total crapshoot as to when she would be asleep and for how long, so embrace the spontaneity (or, oh heaven of heavens, go away for a weekend sans baby! if we had family close by I would so love to do that)!
I don’t mean to be flip, so I apologize that it came off that way. I agree we need to talk about this more and support one another through challenges of intimacy post-baby. solidarity, girl. it gets better.
Anonymous says
If you want to stay married you do. Physical affection is a necessary part of most relationships. Sometimes you fake it until you make it. If you don’t want to fake it then you need to have an honest conversation with your partner about what you are going to do to try or if you are open to other alternatives. Open relationship? Divorce? No sex forever doesn’t work. It is actually grounds for divorce in fault based states.
Anonymous says
We had a long drought as well and what helped us get back in the game was not jumping right to the six. We dated again and made out and fooled around and slowly took things further. It was fun to relive the dynamic from the very beginning of our relationship.
Anonymous says
Same for us. We stopped a few months into my pregnancy when my lady parts felt like I had been repeatedly punched. And it was months after the baby was born before we resumed. TBH, we had six right before my 6 month follow-up just so I could tell the doctor if anything seemed wrong. But since then it’s been infrequent, like maybe 1x a month. I think we’d both like it to be more but we’re both exhausted. Post-baby my husband also stopped touching me even casually (like putting his arm around me or hugging me), because he wanted to avoid me feeling over-touched. But it meant that I felt very undesirable and like he had stopped showing affection at all (and I am not a touch love languages person). We also fooled around and took things slowly, which helped.
Anon says
When I was nursing six was infrequent – no libido, painful (very dehydrated due to nursing, lube didn’t substantially help), bo*bs out of play because of nursing (leakage, pain, general weirdness). Also exhaustion. Also the feeling of, ‘god, just one MORE person demanding that my body do / produce something for them.’
But there is hope. Around 8-9 months PP it got better, now its up to 3-4 times a week (kid is 2) and better than ever.
Anon says
I agree. It gets better. But it takes a lot more effort than before. And when the kiddos were very little – and especially when I was nursing – the absolute last thing I wanted was another person pawing at me or touching my body. I read once that, during this period in our lives, many women fulfill their need for intimacy and touch because they’re always holding/nursing/sleeping with their babies. This was accurate for me – as an introvert, I would almost recoil when my husband suggested “being friends.”
But it gets better! I would do something for him at least once a week, even if I didn’t go. It wasn’t glamorous, but it kept him happy and was worth the 10-minute investment of my time. Now that the youngest is almost 3, we’re in a better place and it keeps getting better.
Super Anon for This says
We always started up again right after I got the doctor’s OK. It was occasionally painful at first and my libido was near zero but I tried to frame it in my mind as this is something Husband needs to feel loved. I kind of challenge myself to just not say no. Logistically it is much harder now, and if I am literally dead on my feet, he won’t ask. To be honest I didn’t start getting off again for a long time. It probably wasn’t great six for him but better for our marriage than a drought.
Anon says
I’m at 8 mos PP. we’ve tried a couple of times but stopped because it hurts me. I’m nursing and dry. We are using c*ndoms because of the nursing so that really doesn’t help. I feel very guilty about it. I don’t think DH understands how much bf’ing messes with my hormones. Having a baby and a preschooler and full time jobs is hard enough on a marriage. I really miss our pre-babies relationship. (Of course, our six life wasn’t perfect then either — he wanted mouth pleasure way more than I was interested in giving it. Made me gag so much I puked once.)
POSITA says
We’re expecting our second in about a month. Any suggestions for big sister books to help get our 2.5 yo ready? Any other suggestions for how to manage the transiton?
Anon in NYC says
I bought my friend’s daughter (roughly around the same age) a personalized “Super Incredible Big Sister” book from I See Me that came with a medal that she could wear. I think it was a hit.
Spirograph says
Not about new babies specifically, but we have an adorable book called “You’re All My Favorites” about parents loving all siblings the same. Sometimes I can’t read it without crying, but pregnancy hormones ftw.
Kiddo #1 was almost 2 when my second was born, so I’m sure the dynamic is slightly different with an older/more verbal child, but just know that there will be a rough period, and it will get better. We just tried to spend one-on-one (and both parents+kiddo) time with the older one as much as we could, and let him “help” with the baby. We also avoided other big changes at the same time — so no changes to bedtime routine, moved him out of the crib months in advance, didn’t push potty training for a few months after. This time around, he’s excited that he gets to have “another [sister’s name]” when the new baby gets here. How my daughter handles turning into the middle child, though, is probably a totally different story.
Side note: I was surprised how frustrated, sad, and angry *I* was that I couldn’t spend as much time with my older child. I distinctly remember snapping at my husband, “you get to play with the fun one, and I’m just stuck at home nursing the boring baby.” So be prepared for that, too.
Katarina says
My son was 2.5, and I agree with a lot of this. Especially the missing the older child. I prioritize doing bedtime for the toddler, so we are guaranteed some one-on-one time each day. My husband gets one-on-one time while I nurse. The toddler loves to help, so I encourage that. He can get diapers, burp cloths, and my nursing pillow (even though he hates it when I nurse). I had several big brother books, but I don’t think they really helped, he had no idea what was happening until the baby was here.
I second not pushing potty training. My toddler was on the cusp of potty training when the baby arrived, but is not anymore. We did a bed (and bedroom) transition a few months in advance, but that was no big deal.
I think it is helpful for visitors to big a gift for the older sibling if they are bringing one for the baby, and for them to give the older sibling plenty of attention. My parents took the toddler to the park frequently, which was very helpful.
Older Sibling says
I think something that is important is acknowledging your older child’s negative feelings, if she has any. Rather than being dismissive of how she feels or trying to be all sunshine and rainbows and “How Great Is This Huge Change That You Didn’t Ask For!, let your daughter be sad or worried or angry for a while as she adjusts.
I find that acknowledging a negative feeling makes it go away a lot faster than when you to force someone to be happy about something that is out of their control and impacts them negatively (in the short term, obviously. My little sister is my best friend NOW, but I’m not sure I thought about how great our adult relationship was going to be when I was 3 years old and enraged that my mom was taking care of the stupid baby rather than paying attention to my needs).
kc esq says
Siblings Without Rivalry is a good read to give you, as parents, some food for thought in how to approach your kid so she knows how much you value her and that she isn’t being replaced. There are also cute episodes of Daniel Tiger, Franklin, and Super Why about getting a baby sister — btw, why are there no baby brothers?
Anonymous says
Ooh, +1 to Siblings Without Rivalry. I’ll probably re-read it in a couple years when my kids are old enough to really apply some of the concepts about fighting… but it was a great, quick, read and I recognized a lot of things from my own childhood that really made me think. I was pretty clearly my dad’s “favorite” and my siblings still remember and are stung by some of his comments comparing them to me. Probably no chance my kiddos will remember that I said “why can’t you just sit nicely in your car seat like your sister?!” but good habits start early. :)
Anonymous says
I loved Helen Oxenbury’s “There’s Going to Be a Baby.” So sweet. Not sure my 2-yo really got it, but he really liked it…