When my mother was pregnant with me, pregnancy was not a publicly celebrated thing. I’m sure people looked kindly at her, but she wouldn’t have dreamed of wearing anything that would accentuate her belly. In fact, most maternity clothes were all about hiding it (tents for sale - Aisle 7!). Most women would have probably been mortified to see likenesses of their pregnant stomachs on display in their homes or even in a photo album.

These times, they are a-changin’.

Shannon Iverson has photographed children and babies for years. Two weeks ago she began photographing a new market segment — bare bellies of moms-to-be.

“Maternity photography has taken off ridiculously,” the Edmond, Okla.-based photographer said. “One of my friends who is a photographer in Arkansas started doing maternity shoots and her business doubled, so that’s why I started.”

In addition to photographs of their baby bumps, expectant mothers are indulging in plaster cast belly molds, special spa treatments, even prenatal yoga courses. Many mothers also pay upwards of $175 for 3-D ultrasounds of their babies. Not a bad haul for 30 minutes’ worth of work on the “tech’s” part!

Maternity wear is no longer the frumpy cover-it-up style of yesterday. Hip styles are altered and even created just for the pregnant woman’s figure. Bellies are bared even in the eighth month and onward, and I saw several pregnant women in maternity bikinis at the pool this past summer.

Businesses are raking it in, and mothers have new ways of making this ultimate journey memorable - and of taking it in style. More power to ‘em, I say.

Posted by Sunshining.

When my son was born, my very best friend, who lives in L.A., bought him the cutest vintage/retro tees from a small boutique near her home. I loved them, they felt like they’d been worn and washed thirty times, so they were soft and supple. None of that crisp thick cotton material here, these pull and stretch with no itchy tags…heck, more than once I was wishing I could grab a couple of them for myself.

Anyhow, when my son started growing out of his special L.A. tees (as we call them) I searched for the brand names and began trying to find them in Houston. Kingsley, the brand name on our favorites, were impossible to find.� The few boutiques I found that did have them were always sold out.  I could get on a waiting list (for a t-shirt for a 6 month old?!?!?) or try to order online. So I checked eBay, my back-up plan, and found that the shirts were selling for 3 and 4 times their MSRP.� WHAT IS GOING ON HERE? Eventually, I found what I wanted for a “reasonable” price and moved on.

Then, last week, I ended up in L.A. where the first shirts were purchased. As I was lamenting about how difficult it is to find Kingsley stuff, the shop owner told me it’s because Shiloh Jolie-Pitt was wearing a Kingsley shirt in her first pictorial. After that, they couldn’t keep Kingsley on the shelves.

Okay, SERIOUSLY!?!? Jolie-Pitt babies must mean big marketing dollars; after all, the MSRP on these shirts is $50, and boutiques around the world are apparently fighting over their inventory.  All I want is a soft t-shirt for my son, no tags, cute retro look…and all it takes is one “famous” newborn to wear one of these shirts ONCE, and they’re the hottest commodity since Cabbage Patch. Ugh!

Posted by Dorian.

Smoke Screen: A new study shows that teen smokers who were exposed to nicotine in the womb have trouble looking at or listening to something attentively. Another finding of the study shows that the auditory regions of boys’ brains are more vulnerable to in-utero nicotine exposure, as boys had more problems with listening while doing word recognition exercises than girls.� Teens who do not smoke and were not exposed to nicotine pre-natally performed the most accurately, while teens who smoke but were not exposed to nicotine in the womb, or those who do not smoke but were exposed to nicotine in utero, fell somewhere in between the two groups.

ADHD and alcohol: New research confirms that kids with ADHD are at risk of abusing alcohol as a teenager,�usually beginning around age 15.

Posh fashion: Former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham and new gal pal Katie Holmes are joining forces to start a children’s clothing line. I wonder if Tom approves?

Posted by Pager12.

Okay, I think someone has my parenting number. Though I don’t think I’m completely in line to raise a “Million-dollar kid,” I am definitely guilty of a few ‘07 parenting trends.� This article…it knows me. I don’t know how, since it’s based on Australian statistics.

Apparently, I’m not the only one who’s addicted to toddler couture. The Australian children’s clothing market is currently estimated to be tipping $2 BILLION, an increase of $.4 billion over 2 years. One can only imagine what the figure would be in the United States.

Gymboree and Baby Gap are just the beginning. The crossover of traditionally adult fashion houses to the children’s world is affecting a few pocket books (sadly, mine included). Granted, my son isn’t in Baby Dior everyday, but we sure own a few things from their lines. My favorite toddler fashion indulgence? Baby True Religions and, of course, Kingsley t’s. I think the increased spending can also be linked to the two working parents, single child household I discussed before. As MommaSteph so eloquently pointed out, expendable money on education is logical, but $200 on baby blue jeans? Sadly, even I have fallen victim to the cuteness.

Posted by Dorian.

If you’re a sucker for handmade boutique crafty things, you’re going to love Etsy. Etsy is an online marketplace made by artists for artists to sell handmade items.

I spent hours looking at the children’ssection, yesterday. I haven’t even begun to look at their other categories, like housewares and paper goods.

Ebay eat your heart out.

Posted by Virgierox.

Via Working Dad, a new trend in wedding dresses - gowns for the maternity set!

This Pea in the Pod dress is sweet. Almost tempts me to get pregnant again and renew my vows.

Posted by MommaSteph.

You’re fun and hip. You’re a mom who sacrifices here and there when needed, but you’ve never sacrificed your sense of style. Underneath that facade of your pulled back pony tail and solid colored t-shirt, is the woman that oozes funky, hip and cool.

I haven’t been this excited over a cool Virgie Pick since the artwork pins or the mommy tags. Do your inner diva a favor and visit Darling Mummy. Darling Mummy is the brain child of two Atlanta, Georgia friends who set out to create “carpool couture”. They wanted to design shirts that were comfortable but still fun to wear.

They succeeded. I want this one and I have to have this one, too.

Posted by Virgierocks.

Boot cut. Straight cut. Slim leg. Low rise. The list of jean types goes on and on. I have always been overwhelmed by jeans, and have never been able to find that perfect fit. I was starting to think it was like finding the holy grail.

One of our MomSquawk message board mommies recently posted this site called Zafu. You fill out a quick questionnaire describing your body type and it pops out jeans that should fit you best.

It only took me about 2 minutes to fill it out, and you don’t have to give any personal information. When I did it, it gave me 14 different types of jeans to try. It even explained why each jean should fit ME. How cool!

Do you have a muffin top you want to hide? Or a flat butt? Or a full butt? This will point you to the jeans that are right for you.  Looking around the site, there are articles and tips as well as the latest fashion trends.

I can’t vouch for the accuracy as I have not tried any of them on yet, but it sure sounds good.

The site says bra fitting is coming soon. I can’t wait for that.

Thanks Kari for the tip on the site.

Posted by Mally

Ah, the fallen bladder… A study published in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology performed MRIs on women with and without pelvic organ prolapse, a condition in which the bladder and uterus “fall” from lack of support, often resulting in incontinence.  The MRIs revealed that the women suffering from prolapse were more likely to have damage to the levator ani, a muscle that supports the bladder and uterus.  They were also more likely to have had forceps-assisted deliveries.  The researchers hope this work will lead to an understanding of how to prevent damage to the levator ani during vaginal deliveries.

Read those shampoo labels!  According to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, repeated use of products containing lavender and tree tea oil may lead to prepubertal gynecomastia, a rare condition characterized by enlarged breast tissue in prepubescent boys.  (See our earlier piece on endocrine disruptors for further information.)

Curves Ahead:  Victoria Beckham has reportedly decided against using super-skinny models to market her line of jeans, as she wants to send a positive message to girls.  Says a source, “Victoria doesn’t want to be accused of giving young girls a complex about their image and putting pressure on them to be as skinny as her.” 

Unrelated, but watch for Ms. Beckham in the sequel to Close Encounters.

So said designer Valentino yesterday, after French fashion bigwigs refused to ban super-skinny models from the catwalks, as Spain, Italy and Brazil have. 

 It’s been a long while since I’ve followed fashion, so I had no idea how extreme things had gotten until I stumbled on mamaVision, a former model’s blog about the fashion industry and all its inherent dangers, and its accompanying photos from the Fall 2006 runway shows.

Sure, some women are naturally thin.  But this is just wrong.

Valentino announced, “I want a more fuller woman, proud of her femininity, with fuller sides, more life and a fuller bust. Elegant but with more emphasis on the curves.”  So, OK, we’re still talking about a single ideal of feminine beauty for the fashion world, but at least it’s one that should allow the models to eat something.

Posted by MommaSteph.