Mommy Makeover

I think I need to call Stacy and Clinton.

Almost every time I breastfeed I watch TV with the excuse of "what else can I do?" My thoughtful son has timed it so that his feeds coincide with What Not to Wear and I thank him for it.

Now I'm going to admit to something super cheesey, but true. I've learned so much from watching this show! There are a couple of episodes that really affected me. The first was of a young woman who couldn't get over how "different" her body had become and stopped caring about appearances because she thought she was a lost cause. The other was a young mother who had all sorts of excuses for why her outfits weren't that bad, like "I was just out for a quick errand." Both of these women were given makeovers and they looked gorgeous afterwards. You almost couldn't believe the before and after photos were of the same person.

As I sat there in my paint-stained shorts and over-sized shirt I had to examine myself. I started to say, "well, I'm going to be indoors most of the day. . ." but I knew I was falling into a trap. I also looked in the mirror and was appalled by how out of control my wavy hair had become (think Medusa).

I vowed to remedy things and styled my hair first, telling myself that I would wear it down most days and NOT in the classic resident pony-tail. I then went to put on a blouse and found that it didn't fit me anymore. NONE of my button-up shirts were working for me. I was relying on them and these nursing shirts from Old Navy. I suddenly realized I hardly have anything to wear when I start working again!

Now I'm scrambling to put together a Resident Mommy wardrobe. The requirements are daunting, I need clothes that:

• Look professional under a white coat
• Allow for easy nursing/pumping
• Disguise milk leakage
• Are affordable
  (bonus if they can be worn outside of work)
• Machine Washable
• Won't constrict me if I have to straddle a morbidly obese person to perform chest compressions (true story, while pregnant no less)
• Oh, and look flattering!

Will keep you updated on this one.