Fashion Fright Friday: The At-Home Mommy Edition
11 Comments posted by Kristi on Friday, April 13, 2007 at 7:15 AM
Once upon a time, I got out of bed in the morning when my alarm went off, showered, ate breakfast, dressed myself in pieces from my professional wardrobe, which mainly consists of your standard issue buttondown shirts, pants, sweaters, and the occasional skirt, hopped in my car, stopped at Dunkin Donuts or Starbucks for my daily joe, and went to work.
And now? My alarm is a babbling 7 1/2 month old. I don't take a shower or eat breakfast until much later in the morning, after Isabella has gone down for her nap and I've done my treadmill run. The coffee comes out of the pot in my kitchen. And my work clothes, well, let's just say they don't exactly meet the "business casual" standard I was used to adhering to.
Behold, the new mommy wardrobe.
As you can see, it consists of black running pants, a button-free, easy-to-lift-up shirt to facilitate nursing, a zip-up hoodie, and HAWT powder blue slippers.
This is what I wear pretty much all day, every day. I have several variations of these pants, and about 12 nursing-friendly shirts. I know it is schlumpy. And frumpy. And quite possibly the most depressing collection of clothing you've ever layed eyes on.
But, before you go all agog and aghast on me, remember that I work from home. My manager and coworkers don't see me. They hear my disembodied (although extremely pleasant! And cheerful! And always awake, and never, ever exhausted-sounding!) voice on the other end of their phone.
And in my defense, I will say that if I actually dressed myself in decent clothing, I would be doing 15 loads of laundry a week, because by the end of the day, I'm usually covered in any number of baby bodily fluids, pureed food, and enough cat hair to weave together and make another cat from sitting on the floor with the babe all day long. And laundry and I? We tolerate eachother for the fresh-scented good of the household, but we are not friends.
I know I'm not alone in my mommy fashion misery. The moms in the Song-and-Storytime group I take Isabella to each Thursday make me look damn good because I actually wash my hair before going. Everyone is in fleece. Or sweatshirts. Most have baby spitup stains on them somewhere. And yes, some of them are even sporting the "mom jean."
Ahh... fashion safety in numbers.
Word. Three years later, that's still pretty much my workday wardrobe! No one sees me either....
I need to spend some time at that jean intervention site... I am completely guilty of wearing the Mom jeans. (But my little guy adores me anyway!)
Huh. I don't see any stains on your wardrobe, there. And fuzzy slippers are a perfectly acceptable shoe.... ;)
well I hate to dress up... and plus I just don't care what others think... But I mostly run around braless (evil things), in black or navy knit capris, t-shirt, and a sweatshirt... only thing different in the summer is it is either shorts or capris and t-shirts lol... and some kind of socks lol... hair always in a pony tail... but then again... That is all my hair will do... so you are dressed way better than me lol...
OH! The dreaded mommy jeans! They don't even look comfortable!
And can I just say: When did Oprah's website explode? Sheesh! It's like a megamall of links and mini articles.
Love the fuzzy slippers!
I have no children, but my wardrobe is really no different than that. I only have two pairs of pants that I can wear out of the house (I refuse to buy more until I get my rear - and the rest of me - back into shape). I suppose that's probably kind of a horrifying thing to admit, but there it is.
I'm not a fashion maven even when I am fit. I'd be happy to wear scrubs or jeans & t-shirts or workout clothes all day every day. I was never into clothes, and I'm becoming less and less so. Look for me to show up somewhere in burlap someday soon, with a rope for a belt. And I won't even get why people are staring!
At any rate, I like your outfit. It speaks of function and comfort, and honestly, isn't that what clothes should be about?
I actually thouhgt the outfit looked very stylish compared to my frayed clothing. I do have darn nice hair though. I figure you can wear rags and look great, as long as your hair rocks. Right now I'm wearing a black shirt with esbalac squirrel formula on the front, stretched out yoga pants, and beat up slippers. But, my hair looks great, courtesy of modern hair coloring products!
Well, as the mom of two cats, I think that you are dressed perfectly fine! To be honest, your wardrobe puts mine to shame. I wear scrubs to work, and then come home and put on my jammies. With HAWT pink slippers!
But those Mom Jeans? Forget it!
I am thinking you look pretty hot compared to me. I am usually in old sweatpants, a race t-shirt, no makeup and mismatched socks. Usualy I shower around 7 p.m. (also after my run). I love my new mom group because it gives me a reason to wash my hair.
In the midst of exhaustion, I really try to get dressed each day. I love my yoga pants and sweatshirts, but try real hard to wear them only at home or for a quick run to the store.
No one understands being a stay at home Mommy like other stay at home Mommy's!
Yup-there's really little point to getting properly dressed if no one sets eyes on you...or at least that's what I'm trying to convince myself of.
Damselfly-Look closer, they are definitely there!
Shannon-Comfort and functionality are key when you're about a baby all day, so I say wear whatever works!
L-Yeah, her website is insane now.
Sunshine-Thanks! They're super-comfortable.
Anne-We're kindred spirits, because I really don't put all that much stock into clothes either, although I really wish I dressed a little more fashionably, especially when I'm around my sister, who is a total fashionista.
Sher-I agree! Great hair trumps shabby clothes any day.
Ramona-When I used to go to the office to work, I would come home and put on my pjs immediately too! I prefer lounging around the house in pjs or sweats to jeans any day.
Sasha-Oh good. I'm so glad I'm not the only one who dresses like a hermit.
Princess- Oh so true!