The Hip Mom Is Pregnant....Again?

Here are my picks for pregnancy and beyond:

1. Maternity fashion. Gone are the days of muu-muus and overalls. Denim labels like Citizens of Humanity and Rock and Republic offer jeans as chic as your pre-pregnancy ones. And finding cool duds is also easier than ever. Gap, Old Navy and Target have a large (no pun intended) selection of stylish and affordable maternity clothes.
2. Books. The pregnancy book selection when I was pregnant consisted of the standard What to Expect When You’re Expecting and then-newly published The Girlfriends’ Guide To Pregnancy. I spent many nights crosschecking symptoms between these books and debated whether to believe the eerily calm voice in “What to Expect” or the sassy and sometimes negative approach in “The Girlfriends’ Guide.” Now, pregnant hip moms have their choice of medical-based and humorous books to keep them laughing and in the loop for all nine months. I love 40 Weeks +: The Essential Pregnancy Organizer to help track milestones, record feelings and ask the right questions throughout pregnancy.
3. Maternity Spa. The one thing that was sorely lacking when I was last expecting was a maternity spa. Besides having to walk uphill both ways in the snow to get to my OB appointments, my maternity massage, which consisted of a makeshift incline of pillows and rolled towels and too-gentle and worried hands, was agonizing and outdated. Thankfully, the owners of Baby Bump, Tulsa’s only maternity boutique and spa, felt the same. Located in Center 1 on Brookside, Baby Bump offers not only chic maternity fashion, but also a menu of spa services to rival your pre-pregnancy choices. And no tower of rolled towels to come between you and your much-needed massage. Baby Bump also offers 4D ultrasound, which would have potentially become a monthly date for my baby-to-be and me.
4. Alternative Diapering and Feeding. When I was first pregnant in early 2000, I was obsessed with the newest baby trends, one of which was actually old: cloth diapers. I found that Europeans were embracing the eco-trend. The obstacle was the shipping charge of all of those “nappies” from Europe. I compromised and used Pampers. In 2009, choosing cloth diapers has become more mainstream. At Eco-Baby and Kids in Center 1 on Brookside, the owners have stocked shelves of cloth inserts and covers to make the choice of using cloth diapers an easier one. Eco-Baby also sells biodegradable disposable ones that won’t sit in our landfills for 500 years like plastic.

So I didn’t use cloth diapers, but one change from the norm that I did carry out was making my own baby food. Yes, I pureed everything from avocados to beef stew. But now, I would hang up my “Mother of the Year” crown and buy some of the many organic and natural choices on grocery store shelves. I am a bit obsessed with Happy Baby’s line of frozen baby food. (And surely I am the only woman stopping to read the package who doesn’t have a baby.)

So now that I have chronicled some of the new and improved pregnancy choices we women have, I climb back on that fence that so many of us occupy. Which side will this Hip Mom fall on? Stay tuned to find out.