Maternity Clothes & Nursing Bras

My belly is big, though that's mostly "stored energy" (which is my chosen euphemism for fat - like it?), and baby is growing longer and bigger and stronger every day. I definitely have to wear clothing specifically created for pregnant women, except, of course, for anything already gigantic and stretchy. I had to buy maternity undies a few weeks ago since my regular beloved Hanes were starting to bu into my tummy.

The horrid thing about buying clothes when you are pregnant, tall and have a lot of stored energy is that there are very few options available (in Canada) and they all cost an arm and a leg. I really want to buy a pair of jeans. The thought of dropping $50 on something I can only wear for another three or four months freaks me out, given our present need to be a little frugal.

I could always re-sell my maternity clothes (the ones I've bought, not the ones my generous family and friends have let me use) on eBay. But, the rate of return isn't that great.

The underwear I bought, which are not made of terribly good cotton, cost me $21 after taxes! For three pair! Those suckers are going to practically dissolve come July, I'll have worn them so often!

And then there are bras! Oh lord, the bras! I hate bras. Maybe I've just never had a good bra, but I find them so darned uncomfortable. The more structured they are, the more uncomfortable. I don't particularly want to wear underwire bras, particularly since I'm a nursing mom (or will be in a few months - though I've begun leaking colostrum occasionally at night) and it's not recommended, as well as the word floating around cancer circles that underwires and too tight bras may be partly responsible for the explosion in breast cancer rates in the last 20+ years.

No, I want to wear sleep style bras. Despite my large breast size (which I am hoping will begin to decrease as I shed all that stored energy post partum but more on that later) I really just need something to keep the girls from drooping too far down and giving them a tiny bit of shape while also being accessible for a hungry baby. I got a couple of Bravado Bras the last time around, but I hated the elastic band that went around my ribcage; it was too insubstantial and it's wide size caused it to roll horrible so that after a few wears it was permanently deformed.

I'd love to try out one of their new designs. It looks better made than the original line. There is also this bra, from Medela, a company that also makes decent breast pumps and nursing accessories. And, I've had my eye on this company for years.
They do a nursing bra that comes with lots of cool options for fabric lining and sizing.

For now, I'm trying to get by with a couple of bras that are really not the right size for me. But, considering that as of summer I will be needing nursing bras pretty much exclusively for two years (or more, who knows with this baby), spending money on non-nursing bras is a luxury I can't afford.