Finding the perfect nursing clothes by Kirsty McCabe

Phew – summer is well and truly here! But after having my second child in May, my pre-baby body is still hiding under excess padding courtesy of cakes and biscuits. Not forgetting that as I’m breastfeeding my boobs are still on the mahoosive side. So none of my usual summer clothes fit and I’ve been living in the same few tops that allow easy access to feed baby Logan. Good job Seraphine do some great maxi dresses!

 

All in all, nursing clothes are a tricky business. You hope to get your old body back quickly so don’t want to buy new things. Funny how when pregnant you buy new clothes even though you know it’s only for 9 months and actually only the last few that really merit decent maternity wear. But afterwards you don’t want to spend money, even though your post baby body could stick around for longer than 9 months… Which is why I’m back at the gym despite no one having invented a nursing sports bra. I’m lucky enough to have found some classes (run by Jane Wake who you might have seen on ITV’s Lorraine programme) where you can bring your little one along and if needs be you can stop and feed them, hence my desire for a nursing sports bra!

 

Choosing a capsule post-baby wardrobe is even harder in the UK where the weather switches from jumpers to bikinis (Ha!) and back again. I like tops and dresses that let me feed Logan discreetly; having had one hungry boy already I know their talent for making mummy get her baps out at inappropriate moments – weddings, christenings and other family gatherings a favourite. Not on TV thankfully, though I did make sure my firstborn Ethan was filled to the gunnels with milk before we went on Daybreak when he was 4 weeks old!

 

Talking of TV, this week I found myself presenting the weather on Channel 5, despite telling myself I would take at least 6 months off work to make the most of maternity leave. But such is the life of a freelance weather presenter that when a job comes up you don’t want to say no in case they don’t ask you again! Plus it’s not often you get to say hot and sunny on the UK forecast… So my toddler Ethan has enjoyed some extra nursery sessions while my husband Renato gets extra time to bond with baby Logan. And I keep busy expressing extra milk! Choosing what to wear for work this week has been pretty challenging. On the plus side I could wear a proper underwired bra and not a nursing one for a few hours. On the other hand, I can’t yet fit into a lot of my pre-baby work clothes and I didn’t want to wear maternity ones. Thankfully some of my dresses did fit, with the aid of decent Lycra undies of course.

 

Ethan been quite amusing watching me feed his little brother. At first he was incredulous that Mummy made milk and even looked down his own top. Now it’s commonplace and he will borrow my breastfeeding pillow (I got an amazing one at thrupennybits.co.uk) and pretend to feed Pingu, his cuddly toy penguin. So far he doesn’t seem too jealous of Logan, instead he almost smothers him with love and cuddles and is forever talking to him (thus waking him up mid nap!). Because Logan doesn’t talk back, Ethan tries to talk even louder until he ends up shouting at him. But if Logan cries Ethan is first to comfort him, even offering some of his favourite toys. I can’t wait until Logan is older and the two can start playing together properly and having little chats.

 

In the meantime the logistics of looking after two wee ones is something I’m still getting to grips with. Second babies have a reputation for being better sleepers but I think it’s more they get less attention than number one, who as I type is trying to climb the shelves of the freezer (having now got the strength to open the freezer door) to reach the ice cream even though mummy said no. Hmm, maybe I’ll join him and not worry too much about getting back into my smaller clothes just yet.

 

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