Pregnancy and baby resourcs
Here are the books, articles, and websites I found useful during and after pregnancy.
Good books
Expecting Better, Emily Oster - Hugely helpful scientific explanations of what you do/don't need to worry about. Good to read at any stage of pregnancy, the earlier the better.
How Not to Hate Your Husband After Kids, Jancee Dunn - As a card-carrying feminist, I had no idea how much having a kid would immediately force us into traditional gender roles, and how much work it would take to disrupt that.
Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth, Ina May - Can be a very empowering read, but a lot of what she says about hospital practices (for example, epidurals and c-sections) are outdated, so don't get too worried about her views on that. Take what's helpful and thank her for the rest, because she and this book were part of the movement that got us to the better options we have today.
Taking Home your Newborn, Laura A. Jana and Jennifer Shu - Or any book that looks like sensible advice for the first few months. We focus so much on the birth, but breastfeeding and looking after a newborn is a much bigger length of time.
Like a Mother, Angela Garbes - Feminist exploration of pregnancy, will fill you with equal parts rage and camaraderie.
Cribsheet, Emily Oster - Came out too late, but would have been very useful for me as a first-time parent
For smoothing a transition for a second-born, see my bookshop.org list: Picture books for new siblings
Good articles
Secrets Of Breast-Feeding From Global Moms In The Know - The title is obnoxious but the article is great, important to read to the end
Websites
Babycenter for weekly updates during pregnancy
KellyMom for sane breastfeeding advice
Precious Little Sleep for sane sleep advice
Clothes
When pregnant:
As your stomach gets bigger, shorter hemlines get higher and pushed further out, making you vulnerable to sneaky gusts of wind.
Things with patterns don't show stains as much.
Just get one comfortable, billowy pair of pants. Don’t even try on maternity jeans, you’ll just end up crying in the Atlantic Avenue Target. Maternity leggings have a huge waist that pulls up over your belly, and will continue to be useful after you give birth.
Kimono cardigans are useful, but you really only need two: One for fancy occasions, one for everyday.
Karina dresses are fab. The midi length is long enough that you stay covered even in your third trimester. Their size L has fit me from 165lbs/not pregnant through 220lbs/9 months pregnant. The fabric doesn't stain or wrinkle.
Mom's the Word is good when you just need something moderately chic to stop you from throwing yourself off a bridge. They have a set of Reg for Preg clothes that are normal clothes that also fit pregnant / nursing bodies, and I lived in their Hudson Jumpsuit for my first pregnancy.
When nursing:
"Nursing clothing" is mostly an expensive joke. The easiest thing is a tank top with t-shirt or something similar over the top. Then you can pull up the overtop, pull down the undertop, and go to town. Or button-up tops, if those work for you (they never do for me).
Karina dresses (see above) are also great for breastfeeding, especially the crossover styles.
For pumping at work, I liked to wear separates, because taking off my whole dress to pump felt awkward in a work environment. My go-to was jeans, a tanktop, and some sort of semi-casual blazer.
