Maternity-fashion-guru, Liz Lange, lets us in on her favorite celeb looks to steal during each time of year.

Plus, more from The Bump:

Tips for Finding Comfortable Maternity Clothes

Sneaky (and Cheap) Ways to Stretch Your Wardrobe Throughout Pregnancy

10 Must-Have Maternity Fashions

Liz Lange, fashion guru, Target’s maternity design partner and fashionable on-the-go-mom, shares her tips on how pregnant women can stay chic during babymoon travels — without ever checking a bag.

1. Make a list and check it twice.

Create a list before you begin packing to keep the process organized and ensure you’re bringing only the necessary items. As I always say, when in doubt leave it out! Consider where you’re going, who you’ll be seeing and, of course, climate. If you’re heading to a tropical location, pack an assortment of flowy dresses. I love these maxi dresses from my Target collection — they can be dressed up or down for dinner or a day by the pool.

2. Stick with a color scheme.

Maximize versatility and suitcase space by packing items that fit within a three-way color scheme: I recommend two neutrals and an accent color. My favorites are black, gray and turquoise or brown, tan and red. Mix and match pieces in these palettes and you’ll have several interchangeable vacation looks that flatter a baby bump.

3. Wear the bulkiest items en route.

Avoid wasting prime real estate in your carry-on by wearing any jackets, chunky shoes and jeans on the plane instead of packing them. Make sure your jeans are comfortable and have some stretch, like this pair from my collection with an expandable belly band and a versatile dark wash.

4.  Load up on accessories.

Accessories are size-less, easily easy to wedge into suitcase corners and can transform your look without a complete outfit change. I’m partial to brightly colored scarves and statement jewelry.

5. Roll ‘em!

Rolling is a great space-saving, wrinkle-reducing technique for packing clothes. It works for shirts, pants, shorts, skirts and dresses, and is a fun way to get the kids involved in packing.

How did you pack for your getaway?

Plus, more from The Bump:

Planning a Girlfriend Getaway? Here’s How!

10 Babymoon Tips

Best Babymoon Destinations

This sponsored post was written by Deirdre Bell of Boba Inc. Boba designs products whose innovative features and intelligent design remove obstacles and make babywearing easy and fun.

Babywearing keeps baby close, warm, protected, and attached. At the same time, it gives you the freedom to live your life without leaving your baby behind. As babywearing experts at Boba Family, we understand that carriers need to be designed with a baby’s unique physiological needs in mind. Here’s our advice for how to select a great carrier you and baby will love!

Avoid forward-facing carriers

Baby carriers that hold a baby facing outward may be popular, but they’re not friendly to tiny bodies. Front-facing carriers force babies’ spines into a hollow-back or hyperextended position. This causes the infant to absorb the impact of each of his parent’s steps. Plus, the International Hip Dysplasia Institute warns that baby carriers that suspend children by the pelvis with no hip support increases the risk of hip deformity or dislocation.

Support baby as he grows

Look for a baby carrier that mimics the way a mother would hold her child at different stages of development. For a newborn, that means a carrier that holds baby close, in his natural, curled-up position (with knees and hips bent like a frog). As the baby grows, he’ll need something with a wide seat to take the weight off his spine and distribute it ergonomically. Then when your baby grows into a toddler, he will need some leg support to keep his long legs from dangling.

Here are a few of the baby-friendly features that make Boba unique.

1. Age-appropriate conversions included. Babies’ needs change as they grow. The Boba 3G Baby Carrier easily converts to a newborn carrier without an insert. Once baby is a toddler, attach the included foot rests to keep her knees and hips supported.
2. Breastfeeding-friendly design. Side straps allow you to easily pull your baby closer or create a bit more space. These quick and easy adjustments allow for spontaneous, no-fuss nursing while babywearing.
3. Parent-friendly adjustments. Babywearing needs to be comfortable for you, too! That’s why Boba 3G has adjustable chest, back, and side straps that create the perfect fit for parents of all shapes and sizes
4. Head protection. The Boba Carrier 3G comes with a removable, adjustable sleeping hood to support baby’s head. It also shields your child’s delicate head from the sun.

When you decide to buy a baby carrier, you’re creating closeness while opening the door to family adventures. Have fun!

This is the fourth and final installment of Danica’s series on her son’s Autism diagnosis. In her first post, The Moment Autism Changed Everything, she shares how the autism diagnosis changed her family’s world. Her second post, Avoiding the Autism Diagnosis: Ignorance Is Not Bliss, takes us through coping with the diagnosis and in her third post, Yes, My Son Is Autistic But No, He’s Not ‘Rain Main’,  Danica details her son’s “super” powers. She is a stay at home mom of 3 who spends most of her time homeschooling and cleaning up the path of destruction her autistic son leaves. You can follow his antics at http://laffytaffyandwine.blogspot.com/.

Laughter and perspective. These are two of my favorite words that go hand in hand and have been essential on this journey. I’ll admit that there are times I lose my perspective and I don’t find my situation all that humorous! But as I get older, those times are fewer and farther between. In the trenches of autism it can be easy to lose your perspective and sense of humor because sometimes it feels like the only thing you’re doing is handling crisis after crisis. When I’ve felt that way and people told me “it gets easier,” I could have choked them. Please don’t kill the messenger, but for those of you who are in the thick of this and can’t find humor in your situation, it does get easier.

Perspective.

When I think my world is ending and my circumstances unbearable for one more moment, I remind myself (and my kids) that there’s always someone out there that has it worse than we do. There are parents who are dealing with really tough stuff with their kids. I don’t want to minimize what we’re going through, but knowing that this world is so much bigger than only us makes me feel a little better. I’ve been through some pretty heartbreaking situations recently and despite those circumstances, there are people out there who have it much worse than I do. I park on this thought, pray for those families and am thankful for what I have.

Laughter.

When Aaron does something outrageous (which happens on a near daily basis), I have a choice. I can let it be the end of the world, or I can find the humor in it and possibly even celebrate a new skill he’s acquired. Most of the time I laugh and think, “seriously, you did NOT just do that!” If he’s being naughty then, of course, I don’t laugh (most of the time) because I do have to discourage the behavior. I generally don’t like to clean up the messes he makes, but after it’s all over, I have a story to tell. I have sympathy from strangers and I can be the perspective for others (“my life may suck, but at least it’s not as bad as Danica’s”). I’ve bought more shampoo, hand soap and shaving cream in one year than most people buy in their lifetime. I’ve had to take the toilet off after he’s flushed two $400 tracking bracelets (never found them). I’ve had to hide the plunger because he kept sucking on it. I’ve walked into church embarrassed with Aaron in dirty, smelly, food smeared clothes because he asked me to wear a particular shirt (a huge feat for a mostly nonverbal kiddo).

Keeping perspective and finding the humor in the crazy things Aaron does keeps my attitude in check and quite honestly it’s a lot more fun to camp out there than in a puddle of tears.

Plus more from The Bump:

Autism: What Every Parent Needs to Know

Is This the Earliest Sign of Autism?

Baby Milestones: What Baby Will Do When

This is the third installment of Danica’s four-part series on her son’s Autism diagnosis. In her first post, The Moment Autism Changed Everything, she shares how her son’s diagnosis changed her family’s world. Her second post, Avoiding the Autism Diagnosis: Ignorance Is Not Bliss, takes us through coping with her son’s diagnosis. Danica is a stay at home mom of 3 who spends most of her time homeschooling and cleaning up the path of destruction her autistic son leaves. You can follow his antics at http://laffytaffyandwine.blogspot.com/.

Here’s one thing that’s good about autism in 2013 — fewer and fewer people have seen the movie Rain Man. Seriously, people. In the “early days” of our journey, everyone associated autism with Rain Man. I loved the question, “So what super talent does your son have, you know, like Rain Man?” What? Super talent? Oh, do you mean is he a savant (a person with a mental disability that is a prodigy in some way, like in math or music)?

While my son doesn’t have a super talent in math or music, he does have a super talent in another area… stealthy destruction. I don’t have enough space, and you don’t have enough time, for me to tell you all of the things Aaron has done, but recently Aaron exercised his savant skills. Like I said, Aaron is stealthy. He’s also mostly non-verbal. If he knows you aren’t paying attention, he will take advantage of that and find a way to ruin your stuff!  One night, my husband, two kids and I were playing Sorry, and Aaron was playing on the computer (or so we thought). I heard the sound of running water, which is never good. I ran upstairs to find Aaron, wearing my brand new (as in I wore it for 2 hours that day) sweater sitting in a bathtub full of bubbles. If he had used regular old bubble bath, that would have been fine. But no. He used 4 Costco sized bottles of shampoo & conditioner, 2 bottles of body wash, 3 cans of shaving cream, and 1/2 of a gallon of vinegar. This happened in just a matter of minutes — a couple of minutes!

I have a mantra that I repeat over and over to myself when something like this happen: “it’s only money”. I repeated my mantra over and over and over while I got him out of the tub and into the shower. As the tub was draining, my other two kids started laughing. The bubbles from the bathtub had filled up the downstairs toilet and overflowed into the hallway. Perfect. At least now my floors would be clean, and I wouldn’t be the one doing it! I got Aaron showered and off to bed so he couldn’t ruin anything else that night. When I went to wash my new sweater I noticed that he cut the tag off of the neck, putting two large holes in it. It’s only money. It’s only money. It’s only money. Deep breath, glass of wine, and another notch on my guess-what-Aaron-did-this-time story belt.

It’s been years since I’ve been asked if Aaron has any savant powers, but if someone were to ask me today, I would give a resounding yes. That boy has some “super talent”!

Stay tuned next week to read Danica’s next post!

Plus more from The Bump:

Autism: What Every Parent Needs to Know

Is This the Earliest Sign of Autism?

Baby Milestones: What Baby Will Do When

This is the second installment of Danica’s four-part series on her son’s Autism diagnosis. In her first post, The Moment Autism Changed Everything, she shares how her son’s diagnosis changed her family’s world. Danica is a stay at home mom of 3 who spends most of her time homeschooling and cleaning up the path of destruction her autistic son leaves. You can follow his antics at http://laffytaffyandwine.blogspot.com/.  

Denial is one of parents’ biggest enemies. No one really wants to think or admit their precious child might have a “problem”. I have run into numerous parents who have kids with obvious developmental delays, and they aren’t willing to admit it. In fact, dads seem to have the highest rate of denial. I speak from experience, because when the rubber met the road with my own son, even though we had suspicions for months, my husband took longer to come around to the reality than I did.

The problem with denial is you’re actually making your life harder in the long run. I saw this played out very clearly between two friends who had children with speech delays.  Friend #1 had a son that wasn’t talking at 3 years old. He would cry, whine, and scream to get what he wanted. In hindsight, I realize that he was frustrated that he couldn’t communicate his needs with his words, so he communicated the only way he knew how. The parents never admitted that he may actually be speech delayed and chalked it up to him being a late talker. When he finally did start talking, his brain worked faster than his mouth so it was a lot of work and frustration to get what was in his head out of his mouth. This boy is now 12 years old. He’s had a harder time learning than most kids his age, and while he’s almost to grade level, it’s taken years of hard work to get him there. In my not-so-professional opinion, I believe that if he had speech therapy earlier, he would have had an easier time with communication and learning.

Friend #2 was worried about her two and a half year old son’s language. I told her to get an evaluation, but Friend #1 told her that he was a late talker and it would be fine. Friend #2 took my advice, got an evaluation, and her son did qualify for speech services. He was in speech therapy for a year, and by the end of it he wasn’t frustrated, his language was age appropriate, and he is currently excelling in third grade. Two similar situations with two very different outcomes.

Let me bring this back to autism. Experts agree that early intervention is key to making the biggest impact on a child with autism. That means the clock is ticking — the sooner your child gets help, the better his chances are. Early intervention does not guarantee “recovery” like I thought it did when I first started on this journey, but early intervention does help and can give a child the tools to be indistinguishable from their peers. The reality is, if your child is exhibiting autistic symptoms and you keep your head in the sand, you’re wasting precious time. As parents we would move mountains for our kids. Sometimes the biggest mountain we have to move is our own pride.

Stay tuned next week to read Danica’s next post!

Plus more from The Bump:

Autism: What Every Parent Needs to Know

Is This the Earliest Sign of Autism?

Baby Milestones: What Baby Will Do When

This sponsored post was written by Audrey McClelland, a Tommee Tippee ambassador. Audrey is a mother of four boys and is expecting a baby girl this summer, she is also a founder of the website MomGenerations.com.

When I became a first time mom back in 2004, I wasn’t prepared for how difficult the feeding process would be.  I was all prepared to breastfeed, had everything set and ready to go for my baby-boy-to-be… and then when he arrived, everything I planned went out the window.  I had 2 issues, William wasn’t latching and I wasn’t producing enough milk.

It was devastating to me.  My “perfect” plan suddenly became something that wasn’t working out. The more I spoke with other mothers, the more I realized that every mother worries about feeding when their babies are born… “Are they eating enough?” “Is everything working?” “Am I doing everything correctly?” From breastfeeding to pumping to bottles… there are dozens of questions for every mom. I remember keeping a notebook that I popped into my diaper bag outlining all of William’s feedings… how long he ate and how much he ate. I was that nervous and worried about him getting enough nutrients and food in his body.

And then… well, I went on to have my 2nd, 3rd and 4th baby boys… and each boy seemed to have their own little feeding woe.  My 3rd son Benjamin was our most difficult because he had horrible acid reflux. Everything he ate, he spit up. It was such a difficult thing to see and to deal with as a mom. We must have switched bottle brands 2 or 3 times to try and see if maybe that would help the reflux.  Eventually it all worked itself out and we were fine, but it was a tough time in our life.

Now being pregnant with our 5th baby, I’m calm about everything. I know that I shouldn’t expect perfection and that each baby is their own little being and will have their own little eating habits.  The best advice I can give any mom-to-be and new mom out there is to do your research.

I’m happy to say that I’ve already begun the research process for my little girl-to-be. Tommee Tippee has impressed me across the board. From breast pumps to bottles that actually have patented nipples that give a natural flex, feel, and mimic the movement of breastfeeding. One bottle I am truly excited to have in my feeding arsenal is the Tommee Tippee Closer To Nature Added Comfort bottle. It has a patented air venting system that was scientifically tested to reduce air within the milk. This is something that will cut down on the potential spit-ups and gas. Also, with a super wide-neck design for easier latch on, I won’t worry about her losing that stimulation.

As much as I know the feeding process can be a tough thing when baby arrives, it’s something we can all get through together.

This blog post was written by Danica, a stay at home mom of 3 who spends most of her time homeschooling and cleaning up the path of destruction her autistic son leaves. You can follow his antics at http://laffytaffyandwine.blogspot.com/.

My world “officially” changed on February 25, 2003, when my husband and I sat at a huge table with a team of professionals I had no idea existed before — speech therapists, occupational therapists, psychologists, and physical therapists. I can’t remember how many there were, or most of that day for that matter. What I do remember is the team leader saying, “Based on the information you’ve given us, our observations and standard testing, Aaron fits the qualifications for Autism Spectrum Disorder.” As much as I thought I was prepared for what they were going to tell me, it still knocked the wind out of me. In the days that followed, I realized that my journey into the world of autism actually began long before February 25^th.

When Aaron was eight months old, before I even knew what autism was, I was sitting at the dentist’s office reading a Newsweek article about three different families who had children with autism. My son was crawling at my feet, and I distinctly remember thinking to myself, “Thank you God that you gave me three healthy kids. There is no way I could raise a child like that.”  A short time later, I was introduced to our neighbor who had a seven year old son with severe autism. I was fascinated, but all of my questions to his mother were met with so much pain she couldn’t even talk about it. Little did I know this boy would be the example I would use to see the path that my son would have, and his mother would be the example I would think about when others asked me questions about autism. But at the time, Aaron was typically developing. He had words, eye contact, wasn’t picky about food, and he was the happiest out of all my kids.

Slowly, however, we lost him. When he started walking on his tiptoes and flapping his hands we would joke about it, but I did become concerned. I took him to our pediatrician when he was sick and told him I thought Aaron might have autism. He said no way, and I was greatly relieved. My relief didn’t last long though, when three months later I toted my four year-old, three year-old, and two-year old Aaron to his well-child checkup. I NEVER took all three kids to the doctor, because that would be crazy, but that day I did. It turns out having my other two kiddos with me would be a buffer to ease the news I was going to get. When the pediatrician gave me a referral for an evaluation for autism I protested, “I was just here and you told me he didn’t have autism.” How could things have changed so quickly?

Two days after my baby turned two, I started down a path that I never asked for. My hopes and dreams for my son were shattered. I needed to fix him, cure him, and make him better. I needed to make him “normal”.

When I said my world “officially” changed on February 25th, that was only partially true. What really changed on that blurry day in February was my perspective. My best friend imparted words of wisdom after Aaron’s diagnosis that have stuck with me to this day – “This doesn’t change who Aaron is.”  She was right. My world really didn’t change.  It was still the same as it was the day before–it was just about to get a little crazier.

Stay tuned next week to read Danica’s next post!

Plus more from The Bump:

Autism: What Every Parent Needs to Know

Is This the Earliest Sign of Autism?

Baby Milestones: What Baby Will Do When

This guest post is written by Scary Mommy’s Jill Smokler, author of Confessions of a Scary Mommy and Motherhood Comes Naturally (And Other Vicious Lies) in stores April 9.

There’s this mom at the pre-school where Evan goes who, I used to think, was absolutely perfect.

She’s one of the few stay-at-home-moms who shows up at school every day wearing something other than a uniform of yoga pants, a t-shirt and comfy shoes. She’s always well groomed and not wearing remnants of her children’s breakfast or runny noses all over her shirt. She volunteers in the classroom multiple times a week and spends the moments before school starts gently reading to her child. When there’s a bake sale, her brownies look mouthwateringly delicious, unlike my tray which gets avoided like the plague. Nothing seems to phase her, and from the moment I spotted her, an imaginary halo seemed to dance atop her head.

Last spring, one of the other school moms generously held a book launch party at her home for me. I read a chapter from my book out loud and held a Q&A, followed by some snacks and chatting. I gratefully smiled at the people I knew and got introduced to some faces I recognized from drop-off and pick-up but had never met. It was a wonderful evening and I was grateful to be surrounded by so many real life Scary Mommies. And then suddenly, out of nowhere, I saw her – The Perfect Mother – coming towards me. What on earth was she doing here, I wondered. Like she could relate to anything I wrote, little Mrs. I Do Everything Right.

“I have to tell you how much I loved your book,” she greeted me with. “I could have written almost every word myself. It was so me.”

Huh? Say what?!

What on earth in my book could she relate to? She was the one I referenced when talking about the foreign perfection I’d never in my life hope to achieve. She was the one who looked like a million bucks all the time and who always seemed to handle everything that came at her with grace. While everything I did was merely good enough, everything she touched was perfect with a capital P. Had the picked up the wrong book? What author had she mistaken me with?

Unfortunately, those were not thoughts in my head. Unable to contain my shock and awe, that’s exactly how I responded to her, sounding certifiably insane, since we’d never officially met and she had no idea she’d made such an impression on me. She burst out laughing.

“Me? Perfect?” She laughed until she snorted – LOUDLY -  the imaginary halo slowly tumbling off of her head.

She went on to explain that the only reason she showered in the morning was to wake herself up, because without that jolt of cold water at 7AM, she’d never peel herself out of bed. She wears Spanx under her jeans and steers clear of yoga pants because the cellulite on her thighs shows through them so clearly that she can’t stomach it. She reads to her kid in the morning because she’s too spent at the end of the day to do it and he falls asleep watching a DVD most nights. And those brownies I’ve drooled over? Her mother makes them because she can’t cook to save her life.

Hello, nice to meet you, my new favorite person on earth! I think I love you.

Sadly, her son went of to kindergarten last fall, so I stopped seeing her in the lobby and at school events, but I think of her often, this not so perfect mom. Every time I make a snap judgment or feel inferior to some other mother I bear witness to, I envision that halo falling down and the sound of her unglamorously snorting echoes in my head. That interaction was one of the single greatest parenting lessons I’ve learned.

There’s a danger in thinking that someone could be perfect at this impossible job of motherhood; it inevitably makes us feel less than perfect, which is what we all are at the core. There is no such thing as the perfect mother, and there doesn’t need to be. What we should strive for is being the best moms we can be, for the little people we love most. And recognize that, sometimes, good enough is fine too.

Do you struggle with trying to be the ‘perfect’ mom?

Plus, more from The Bump:

Unbelievable New Mom Confessions

Before I Had Babies, I Never Appreciated…

7 Surprising (and Sweet!) Things About Being a Mom

This is a guest blog by Kelly, an SVP of E-Commerce at a large nonprofit and mom to a 6-year-old, 3-year-old and 5-month-old. Here’s an inside look at what goes on in a typical week for this busy mom of three.

MONDAY:  Wake up, get breakfast for everyone, pack lunches, backpacks, daycare bag. Collaborate with husband to get everyone dressed, brush everyone’s hair and brush and floss all the teeth in the house (except my husband’s – I leave that to him!). Today is a work-from-home day, so I don’t take the time to shower or put on real clothes. Put the first grader on the school bus, send the other two kids with dad to be dropped off on his way to work. Pump, then make a quick run to grocery store (speed grocery shopping should be an Olympic sport). Back at home in time to start the work day. Emails, meetings, pumping. Repeat. At the end of the work day, quickly assemble a dinner that can bake in the oven while I go pick up all the kids. Dinner, homework, bedtime (usually I put the baby down and my husband puts the two older kids down). Once kids are in bed, reset the house and bags for tomorrow. My husband compares this process to the scene in the movie “50 First Dates,” where they return the house to the same state each night after Drew Barrymore is in bed. Tomorrow is a work-at-work day, so all lunches, etc. must be packed tonight, including breast pump and supplies. Make a dinner for tomorrow night. Start dishwasher. Check and answer work email. Go to bed.

TUESDAY:  Wake up, get breakfast for everyone, jump in shower. Primp (basic makeup and thickening spray on hair is about all I can handle). I pump in the car while my husband drives. Drop off younger kids at daycare and preschool, park at subway, commute into city. Stop at cafeteria to get oatmeal (hoping it boosts milk supply) and hot water for tea. Emails, meetings, pumping. Repeat. On a good day, I’ll have a work lunch that allows me to slow down and enjoy myself at a restaurant. Sitter picks up kids and puts my pre-made dinner in the oven. Commute home, dinner, homework, bedtime. Reset house, pack lunches, breast pump, supplies. Start dishwasher. Check & answer work email. Go to bed. Sensing a pattern here?

WEDNESDAY:  Same as Tuesday, but I alternate leaving early with my husband to pick up the kids at the end of the day. Forget (for the third week in a row!) that oldest child’s library books are due on Wednesdays. Accidentally leave nursing pads out on my desk after pumping and hope no one noticed.  Tonight is bath night, which thankfully my husband almost always handles (yes, we only bathe our kids twice a week). Realize that Friday is “Dress as Your Favorite Character Day” at school and frantically figure out how to make or order a costume in time (thank you Amazon Prime). Reset house, pack lunches, breast pump, supplies. Start dishwasher. Check & answer work email. Collapse into bed.

THURSDAY:  Wake up to one of my kids crying, calling for me or standing next to my bed. Exhausted, tell them to go watch TV. Wonder out loud why I’m the only person I know with 3 kids who works full-time and doesn’t have a nanny. Question many of my prior decisions. Same commute and day as Tuesday and Wednesday, but my parents pick up the kids and bring dinner every other week. Have a multi-generational dinner, happy that my kids are getting quality time with their grandparents. My mother usually unloads the dishwasher for which I am eternally grateful. Fold laundry. I LOVE laundry because it’s a reason to sit still and watch Modern Family. Start dishwasher. Check & answer work email. Collapse into bed.

FRIDAY:  Work-from-home day, so repeat Monday morning routine, but replace trip to the grocery store with quiet (no interruptions!) shower for me after everyone has left the house. At lunchtime, I either volunteer at my daughter’s school, have lunch with a friend or run errands. Knock off work a little early and pick up the kids while it’s still daylight. Make dinner and enjoy a slightly more relaxed evening routine. Maybe even take a walk as a family after dinner in the nice weather. Once kids are in bed we watch half of a movie (while I check and answer work email on my phone from the couch) before I am exhausted and go to bed, thankful to have survived the week.

Can you relate? What’s your working week like?

Plus, more from The Bump:

A Week in the Life of a Stay-at-Home Mom

A Day in the Life of a Work-at-Home Mom

What Being a Working Mom is (Really) Like