39 weeks

Today Ham is apparently the size of a watermelon.

The dress and shirt are vintage. The vest is +Topshop.

I love this vintage dress; it is one of the very first vintage items I ever purchased. Every wardrobe needs a good wrap dress and mine has a really cool bird print on it! because of the style, I can still wear it even though I am very pregnant; I just have to put in some safety pins so it doesn't fly open in the wind.

I am ready to not be pregnant anymore. Well, not practically, I haven't actually finished the nursery, but physically. He's just so heavy; it's not easy carrying a bowling ball around all day. I'm craving a lot of sweets like Snickers but I am really trying to resist and eat healthy. Sometimes I even succeed.

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38 weeks

Today Ham is the size of a pumpkin. That's right. A pumpkin.

The dress is vintage from +Etsy, the shirt is also vintage, but I stole it from my dad's closet. The cardigan and purple tights are from Primark.

I swear this baby is coming early, but what do I know. Pregnant women probably always say that their first time around. I just can't imagine being more pregnant than I am right now, but somehow it keeps happening.
I don't think I've ever felt a Braxton Hicks contraction. My mom says that if I'd had one I would know. Does every pregnant woman get them? Did I miss something?

I'm not nervous or afraid, but I am getting a bit anxious with all the waiting. It could be today or it could be in three weeks. Am I ready? I hope so.

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37 weeks

Today Ham is the length of a stalk of Swiss chard.

The cardigan and shoes are vintage finds from +Etsy and the dress is from +Target.

Today is special because if I went into labor they wouldn't try to stop it. Full term baby! And boy do I feel it. The midwife tells me that the baby's head is now "engaged in my pelvis" which means: 1) this baby is going to be born soonish 2) I am extra uncomfortable.

I have A LOT of cleaning to do before Ham arrives and the pilgrimage of family members begins. I ordered chairs yesterday from +Homebase so that they'll actually have somewhere to sit. My husband and I haven't properly had visitors since we moved into our new place. Probably because we only have a couch. NO LONGER! I can't wait to post pictures after my cleaning fest.

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A shirt that reminds me of home

The hat is by +H&M; the boots are vintage. The leggings are Rebecca Beeson, and they are by far the best leggings I have ever owned. I don't know where to find another pair though. They are like the unicorn of the leggings world. The shirt used to be my dad's :) I love stealing from my parent's closets. It helps that they have hoarding tendencies. I get to find vintage treasures.

These boots were another pair that needed mending this winter. They are vintage so I didn't get them in the best condition. The bottoms were detaching but all they needed was a little TLC. I love the color; they are so worth the investment.

I'm definitely starting to get uncomfortable. You get days where the baby is sitting low and if you stand or walk for too long it feels like you're being ripped apart. Too much information? My midwife assures me it's perfectly normal. Anyways, on days like that all you can do is put on a big shirt that reminds you of home, your most comfortable leggings, and a hat. Keep calm and carry on.

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36 weeks

Today Ham is the size of a honeydew melon. Woah.

(Happy birthday Mr Stardust)

I've had my first craving: mineral water. I would drink the stuff before I was pregnant but never really had much of an opinion about it. Now I want it, crave it, need it.

Other than that I am just hanging around feeling enormous and uncomfortable. Ham is still kicking all day long; is there a point where the amount of kicking is too much? I wore this to go get my blood drawn. Mostly I hang around in old t shirts that used to be baggy and sweatpants unless I have to go somewhere. It's a good thing I'm not back home in that polar vortex or I would never leave the house.

The dress and shoes are vintage, the tights are from Primark. The headband is home made.

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Vintage maternity

I love vintage maternity but it seems to be a pretty rare item. There is some great costuming in Masters of Sex and Mad Men season 3 for their pregnant characters. I put together a little collection of stills for some blast from the past style inspiration.

Can you imagine the amount of time and effort these women must have put into their hair styles?! I am pretty satisfied with myself if I can do a good pony tail.
Here's what's out there for vintage maternity at the moment from +Etsy and +eBay.

Paisley dress, $115

Blue twill top & jacket $124

Black maternity coat $68

Butterfly dress $30

Flower power $33.15

Swingin navy dress $87.40

Red floral sundress $49.95

Mod trapeze dress $65

I would love to feature more London vintage shops but I can't find any with maternity. I guess it's an untapped market.

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35 weeks

Today Ham is the size of a honeydew melon.

The top is vintage from +Etsy and the jeans are by A Pea in the Pod.

My husband and I started to pack the hospital bag. There are so many things they tell you to bring, how do people pack all of them!? I keep looking at the little baby clothes and it kind of blows my mind that there will be a little person in those clothes soon. A little person who will be half me, half him and completely our responsibility. Grown up.

I don't usually bother with resolutions. However, this year I've made a "try to be a good mom" to do list:

Happy new year everybody xxxx

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Outfit: New Years Eve

The dress and shawl sweater are vintage. The shoes and tights are from +Target.

The woman that cuts my hair says it looks like the wispy bits around my face are new growth, not breakage. That's good news I guess...but I feel like my hair most often makes me look ridiculous. I was happy to find this hair style tip from a +Free People blog post. I used my homemade headband and tucked it in just like they say.

Shop FreePeople.co.uk!

It's been a really mild winter. Coming from Illinois, it feels strange to walk around in the sunshine during the holidays. I am so excited to bring in the new year, 2013 was a good one and the next will bring a lot of new, well, everything. My friends are throwing a party and they got me some nonalcoholic wine!!!

Cheers!

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34 weeks

Today Ham is the size of a cantalope.

I'm trying to look presentable for my husband's English family Christmas in this +Gap maternity dress. You can't really see here, but I am wearing flesh colored fishnet tights, which are my favorite. The fishnet accommodates my bump just fine and they are subtly sexy. Fishnets are also surprisingly warm, might I add. I also got to use my DIY headbands so I enjoyed the entire day messy hair and headache free.

My mother in law brought me in the kitchen and explained "now we lite the Christmas pudding on fire...and nobody knows why." I like it. Alcohol abstention is so much harder during the holidays than I thought. Mulled wine, ales, baileys, southern comfort. I love and crave red wine, but I don't want to have a glass even though they say you can. If I have one glass I will want one bottle; you know how it goes.

My days have been wonderful but I have been in a terrible mood the last few evenings, which is a pleasure enjoyed solely by my husband. Poor guy.

I hope y'all had a fantastic holiday!

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My themed shirts

You would think that a grump like me wouldn't be into kitschy themed shirts but, boy, would you be wrong. There are ways you can be clever about it. If you do it right you can be stylish whilst indulging yourself in cheese. I have three themed shirts that were all lovely gifts. My mother bought me this darling Christmas themed shirt from +Zazzle that I mentioned last week:

The shoes were a homage to Christmas parties past. I really just wore them for the picture and promptly switched to some flats. Look how unstable I was:

lol. 

 And a sigh of relief:

 The other two themed shirts were gifts that my friends made. I have some creative amigos. My BFF made me this with just a maternity shirt from +Target and a sharpie.

This shirt was made by taking a vintage iron on and applying it to a maternity shirt from +ASOS. Apparently she had to iron it for about a million years but it was so worth it.

I don't mean to brag but my friends clearly rock pretty hard.

Just a tip: if you want to try making something like this for one of your friends then whatever size she is in regular clothes, that is the size she will wear in maternity clothes.

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32 weeks

Today Ham is the size of a squash.....whatever size that is. All I know is he is big.

My dress is from +Gap and the crop top is on sale at +Urban Outfitters right NOW! The jewelry and shoes are vintage thrift store finds.

Today I have some things to talk about that will make me truly live up to my name. I am a total grump. But I think it's important to be honest, because if even one person can relate to you and feel less alone, well, that's the whole point.

I am having second thoughts. I am worried. You know when you make a really big decision and then wonder if you did the right thing? Well that's where I am today. What if I don't like the baby? What if I am a bad mother? Do I really want this, or is it going to ruin everything? I feel smothered by the inescapable decision I have made. It's all just so final, so concrete. There is definitely a sense of "Oh God, what have I done?" This baby was planned but lately I find my self with feelings of insecurity. It must be so impossible for women who find they are pregnant unexpectedly.

I am sure it will all be fine. I adore kids and can't wait to meet the little Ham that's growing in my belly. Still, a certain amount of doubt or apprehension is normal, right. Is it normal? I'm just going to go all in because, really, that's the only option.

Anyways, that is the truth and I think it's important to be honest. Please Internet, don't judge me too harshly.

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Gettin lucky in Kentucky

Do y'all know how great Kentucky is? Because everyone really should. I am obviously a big fan.

A 3rd trimester road trip is not nearly as complicated as I imagined. As long as you stop and stretch your legs every hour or so it's fine. I would, however, recommend having an emergency plan for when you really have to pee and there is no relief in sight. I bought a bed pan from Walgreens and made my husband swear he would still love me if worse came to worse. I didn't end up using it but there were a few close calls on those winding Kentucky roads.

We stayed at Country Girl at Heart B&B, which is a working farm. I got to hold puppies! She was incredibly hospitable and accommodating. There are things you should avoid when you're pregnant around live stock but as long as you try to keep your hands to yourself and wash them thoroughly you'll be fine.

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Put on that party dress

Party season!

So you can't drink the eggnog, you can still look good. I am partial to a good sweater dress during the holidays but I'm a simple woman. Here are some charming party dresses that declare: "Hello world, I'm pregnant and fabulous."

Maxi Wrap £189 Isabella Oliver's ultimate glamour, dress to impress and it's multifunctional!

Blue Skater Dress £27.99 What a cute festive little number.

Sweater Dress £46.89 Rock it with some colored tights, if you have any that fit!

Reindeer Dress $59.69 Nothing says holidays like a reindeer print. It looks like wrapping paper in the best way.

Printed Cowl Neck £17.99 Gap has pretty much everything on sale right now, yes please!

Sequin Dress £34.09 I love that this has sequins on the front AND back.

Empire Cocktail £55 Elegant and comfortable. Win.

Wrap Bodycon Dress £38 Perfect for showing off your curves.

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29 weeks

I swear, any day now my belly button is going to pop out like a champagne cork. 

Being noticeably pregnant is starting to be fun. Turns out strangers are nice to pregnant ladies; who knew? People are SO happy for you it's kind of uncomfortable, but in a good way. However, there is a lot of unwanted advice that I am trying to learn to take gracefully. Everyone has an opinion about what you can and can't do when you are pregnant. It really does my nut in when someone tells me I can't drink alcohol. It's like, "I am not just an incubator, I am a human being, and I can make my own choices." It's equally annoying when someone tells me that I'm allowed to have a glass of red wine if I want to; as if I needed their permission. I choose not to drink at all during my pregnancy, but that is my choice. Telling everyone off won't make it stop though, so I tend to just smile and nod.

I am thrilled that my Goosebumps shirt still fits me and my bump with out too much of a stretch. Best part about this t shirt: it glows in the dark! Gotta love the 90's.

The flannel, tshirt, and shoes are all vintage. The jeans are by A Pea in the Pod. Socks are from Calzedonia; They have an amazing color range for socks.

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Outfit: 20/11/13

Today I forgot my own advice in my what not to wear post, and wore this dress and cardigan from Primark. The dress is really cute when you're inside but when you go outside there's wind. Wind is not your friend. I'm going to stick with actual maternity dresses from now on if I have to spend more than 15 minutes outside. Something about the hemline being slightly uneven makes the skirt want to fly up.

The cardigan is great though, very cozy and I love the texture. Thank you Primark; the dress was just 5 pounds!The boots are vintage.

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28 Weeks

Dress: Topshop, Socks: Primark, Shoes: Used to be my mom's.

Heartburn! I have never had heartburn a day in my life; now I get it every day. Thanks Ham. I love the silhouette of this dress; I'm a cute little bell. Bad idea: wearing vintage shoes on a rainy day. The bottoms are slick, and I had to be very careful not to slip in the rain.

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What NOT to wear during your pregnancy (from your pre-pregnancy wardrobe)

Before I actually became pregnant there were times I would buy clothes and think "Hey, I can wear this when I am pregnant too!" Not always. You don't realize that it's not just your belly that expands; you get bigger all over, even your feet! This is all based on my personal experience: a nearly 28 week pregnant lady addicted to clothes.

1) Anything you want to wear post-pregnancy

Even though you can fit into it doesn't mean you will want to wear it because it's about to be stretched to high hell. I love my vintage horse tee so it will have to go in storage.

2) Buttons and zippers

It's not a good look; better to buy something that lays right rather than making you look like a balloon that's about to pop.

3) Heels

So sad to see them go but my balance is so bad these days, I don't want to topple over in the street. Plus you're feet may do a bit of swelling so strappy sandles are not always a good idea.

4) Watch that hemline
Short circle skirts are cute but they are the worst perpetrators. You really don't want to be caught in the wind wearing one of these. So even if it fits, mind the bottom. A wonky hemline just looks sloppy.

5) The bust crusher

Tops and dresses that I thought I could wear during my pregnancy are turning out to be unaccommodating in the bust region. At 14 weeks pregnant I was going to a wedding and tried to wear a princess cut tube top with the same problem. It was obscene; your extra chest has to go somewhere and it will spill out the top in ways that you wish it wouldn't. Makes me sad...

6) Super plunging necklines

Yes, your boobs are looking pretty great these days. However, unless you want to remind people where your eyes are all day, it's maybe better not to. Plus there are some weird adult baby fetishes out there, yikes! But I am a bit of an introvert; if you are into the extra attention then werk it gurl.

7)  Jeans or denim

Trust. I got my maternity jeans around 15 weeks and it was a big feeling of relief. I was in denial about it, thought I could just wear leggings for 7 months. There is a lot of good denim out in maternity so it's not as bad as you think it's going to be. Buy them sooner rather than later, you'll be happy you did. I think my expression says it all.

8) Elastic waist bands

You don't have a waist anymore, remember? It makes you look wide and is uncomfortable to boot.

9) Tops that expose the lower half of your bump

Just don't. It's not cute.

10) Your old bra

Your boobs git bigger, your nipples get sore, and your chest expands, so don't torture yourself by trying to fit your big bust into a little bra. It hurts. Make sure you go get sized because you are changing. Believe me when I tell you that you will look and feel SO much better if your bra fits you properly.

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