For love of jeans

When I was not quite three months pregnant with Bella my jeans started to become uncomfortable. I wasn't ready to slip into maternity pants yet, and we hadn't told anyone I was even pregnant, so I went to Marshall's and bought a pair of Tommy Hilfiger jeans in a size 8. I knew they were a winner that night when, at a family birthday party, my then 15 year old niece told me she liked them. My husband on the other hand thought I was crazy. My regular pants are sizes 4 and 6, so he said it was silly to buy a bigger size to wear for a month or two when I would never use them again. It turns out I loved those jeans, and with the help of one of my daughter's ponytail holders I wore them through my sixth month of pregnancy.

After Bella's birth I wore my Tommy jeans home from the hospital. During those first few weeks they were the only pants I had that fit, and I loved them more than ever. By week three I was once again fitting into my pre-pregnancy pants (and my Tommy jeans were getting looser), but somehow those pre-pregnancy jeans were just not as flattering as my Tommy jeans. The Tommy jeans were stylish and, dare I say it, sexy. They sat low on my hips and had long legs that flared slightly at the bottom, they made me feel good. My other jeans were, well, just jeans. They weren't particularly flattering, and they sure didn't make me feel like my Tommy jeans did. So, my old jeans were left in a heap on the bottom of my closet while I continued to wear my Tommy jeans. That is, of course, until last week when we went to BJ's to stock up on toilet paper, Kleenex, diapers, and all the other wonderful things that can be purchased in cases large enough to last several months. That is the day I discovered that my Tommy jeans, which had been getting looser by the week, were just plain too big. After bending down for the hundredth time to stuff something under the cart (with Bella in the sling, of course) and standing back up only to realize I was dangerously close to mooning the entire store, I decided it was time to retire my beloved Tommy jeans.

The next morning I headed to Marshall's with Bella, Kylie, and my Mom. The first rack of jeans I came upon had no Tommy's, but I did find a pair of Polo jeans marked "28x34" which looked like they were similarly styled. I tried them on (although I had no idea what size they truly were since they weren't traditionally marked) and decided they would do. We browsed some more and I found another rack of jeans, this one holding Tommy jeans! I frantically flipped through the size 6's until I found them...jeans just like the ones I loved which were now too big. I tried them on and they fit perfectly, I was in heaven. I left the store with two new pairs of jeans and a smile on my face (still hitching up my old Tommy jeans which I had worn shopping one last time).

My size 8 Tommy jeans have now been washed and returned to my closet to wait for (I hope!) my next pregnancy. As for the old jeans on the closet floor they still have a lot of good wear left in them...for someone else.