You have a sister? I do. We are six years apart and I would call her the A Pea in the Pod to my Motherhood. She is older, taller – all the things that make her enviable to a little sister. We used to have epic fights. We shared a room and she would write times on the door when I was able to enter. It usually was just sleeping hours. One time she threw a hot pocket at my face after it was microwaved. [We’re nineties kids.]

We were not compatible, related, but not in sync. But then something happens as sisters age. That rivalry makes way for a new relationship, one where prior enemies become lifelong besties. We have the same DNA after all. This is the case for our sister brand. For years A Pea in the Pod® has been dressing bumps in the most crave-worthy couture and we have been admiring their style from afar. But now, we open our homes to our sister – welcome Pea! We can’t wait to shop you on Motherhood.com. 

A little about our sister site: Not only do they have their exclusive designs chosen and selected here in our corporate headquarters, they house the most maternity name brands in one place including designer denim like AG, DL1961, 7 For All Mankind, Citizens of Humanity and Articles of Society to name a few. The coolest part is that for most of these jeans, they are the EXACT pairs from the label and then our designers customize each pair with our signature Secret Fit Belly®, ensuring the fit is the same, but the belly will continue to provide growth and comfort for pregnancy.   

Pea provides you with posh from across the pond with brands like Isabella Oliver and Seraphine – you know those royal styles, if you catch my drift. Our sister brand also houses a curated closet from down under, with Ripe Maternity pieces, something super fancy from France like the looks from Envie de Fraise. And of course, there are the fashions for all the bella bellies out there, made in Milan, sent to us from Pietro Brunelli.

Our Italian designer is super sweet and I actually had the chance to do an interview with the Pietro Brunelli for Pea’s 40weeksofchic.com – click here to read more. [Going forward, I will be covering Pea’s topics on this blog, because what are sisters for?] Our conversation started to sway toward talking about his best-selling Salisburgo dress, which continues to be our Pea mamas’ favorite fashion from the overseas brand. He says about his dress, “This dress does have something special – it’s a combination of elegance, romantic details and the fact that when I dress a woman, I do not only want her to look beautiful, but I also want her to feel comfortable.” We totally hear you Pietro, which is why we offer this amazing piece with short and long sleeves, as well as in an array of colors.

Don’t get your sleeves all in a ruffle, you can shop this look on Motherhood’s site right now!

We want to see you in it – show us how & where you wear the Salisburgo style @motherhoodmaternity or @peainthepodmaternity #40weeksofchic

Going “on set” sounds very serious, and sometimes it is. However, we have been working with real pregnant women and their real families, so silly is going to supersede serious at times. Companies like to show their prettiest shot, the ones where the light is just right, and the clothes drape to perfection… which we like to do too, because it makes sense. But again, sometimes it’s what the camera captures that doesn’t always make the final cut that matters most. It’s hard to tell the difference between candid and staged, but that is not the case for these moments. I take you with us to Wisconsin…

Apparently Cedar, the little one, refused to take off these boots. This was her own pair, and she was hellbent to make them work with everything. They are her ruby red slippers boots. She made it work!

That’s the face of a mom who is done for the day. I like to call this face, “I don’t want to mom anymore tonight.” I have a toddler and an infant – I get it girl!

You know when you’re pregnant and pose on a large hay barrel it may be difficult and scary to come down? No worries… Abby’s actual husband was there to give her and his unborn child a helping hand!

Day 2 on set was Cedar’s actual 4^th birthday!

That’s my boss giving her a birthday gift!

And there’s the cake to prove it!

Everybody on set is really professional – really, really professional!

You see what I mean? No time to joke. Time is money.

Abby is serving up the same “I am done momming” face as the day before! Models give good face.

I leave you with this picture. The dog days of summer October are coming to an end.

See ya in November!

–          Daina

Two years ago, in a little studio in Florence, NJ, the social media team got crafty. All of these costumes were made by our social media specialist, Erin, who you can see here in a pink wig. Oh, and hey look Ma, I made it! That first picture is your girl rocking a homemade disco ball bump, and the blonde in the glasses is our art director extraordinaire, Klaudia, who I referenced in the wicked good reveal post!

All of these last-minute DIY pregnancy costumes can be done on our side-ruched tee, because it allows stretch and growth for you, but also for the additional glued on pieces. In other words, it gives… give! [There’s a long sleeve version too!]

We took a trip to our local craft store to purchase all the pieces, as well as the fabric glue. The disco ball was made by taking the mirrored squares and creating a spherical shape. I am not sure how Erin did this so perfectly, but she did! She created the circle on a piece of paper first, then one by one glued them on to her canvas, our black maternity shirt.

Utilizing that same technique, Erin glued on colorful pompoms onto a white maternity shirt. This one she did on the tee, then lifted each one to glue, so that she didn’t lose the shape!

The heart eyes emoji costume is notably the easiest and quickest of the looks. All you need is felt, some fabric or craft glue, and a scissor. Know what’s even quicker? One of our Halloween graphic tees – head to your store NOW to get it mama, because you’re cutting it close to the big day!

Happy Halloween
🧡  Daina

October is Italian Heritage Month and this little jersey tomato is stoked for this very special holiday.  Another fellow writer and Italian-American, Raymond Peraino, is back with words, pasta and some gravy or is it sauce? Let the celebration commence!

Words of the day from Ray:

Dating as far back as the first century and later introduced to Italy in the XIII Century by Marco Polo, pasta is now made and enjoyed the world over. Being of Italian descent, I’m here for all things pasta related.

Pappardelle is my personal favorite fresh pasta. The soft, silky ribbons are what dreams are made of. I’m going to let Andrew Rea from Binging with Babish explain to you with his richly colored and calming voice just how easy it is to make fresh pasta should you choose to do so. Check him out here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdSLKZ6LN94&t=375s

Ready? Let’s roll! (Pasta jokes!)

Pappardelle with Wild Mushrooms

Before getting started:

If you have trouble sourcing any of these mushrooms you can use whatever you can find fresh — button mushrooms, crimini (baby portobello), whatever you like will all work just fine.

-and-

If you’re pressed for time, you can skip the making of the fresh pasta and buy another wide fresh or dry pasta like dry pappardelle, fettuccine, mafaldine, tripoline, etc. just be sure to closely follow the cooking time provided for the pasta you purchase.

You’ll Need:

16 ounces Pasta (500 grams)

12 ounces chanterelle mushrooms (350 grams)

12 ounces king oyster mushrooms (350 grams)

6 ounces Hen of the Woods mushrooms (175 grams)

2 shallots, peeled and sliced (sub 1/2 medium onion)

2-3 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced

3-4 tablespoons unsalted butter (50 grams)

1/2 cup white wine (or vegetable stock) (120ml)

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves (15 grams)

1 handful of Italian parsley leaves, picked (reserve some to garnish)

½ cup aged Gruyère cheese (or more to taste) (110 grams) (sub. Aged Gouda)

a good squeeze of lemon juice

high temp oil as needed (grapeseed, safflower, sunflower, avocado, etc.)

kosher salt, as needed

black pepper, as needed

You’ll Do:

1.       Fill a large pot with water, salt it generously and let it come to a vigorous boil while you prep

2.       Cut the mushrooms into large chunks. (They’ll shrink when cooking.)

3.       Heat a thin coat of oil in a large, wide, flat bottom pan over medium heat. When it begins to simmer, add a single layer of mushrooms cut side down and sprinkle with a bit of kosher salt. Cook until deeply golden, then flip and cook on all sides until tender. This will take a few minutes on each side. Remove to a bowl and continue with the rest of the mushrooms.

4.       When all the mushrooms are cooked, add the butter to the empty pan. When melted, add the shallots and garlic. Cook, stirring, until the shallots are tender, then add the thyme, white wine, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Let simmer to reduce liquid and intensify the flavors. After a few minutes of simmering fold in the mushrooms. Turn heat to low stirring to make sure there is no scorching until pasta is ready.

5.       Once your salted water has come to a rolling boil float the into the water.  Give it a gentle stir to keep it from clumping and cook until slightly tender. Heads up, if you’re using fresh pasta, it cooks FAST —about 2-4 minutes depending on noodle thickness.

6.       Once pasta is just beginning to become tender, use tongs to transfer the pasta directly into the pan with your mushrooms and sauce. Turn the heat up and gently fold the pasta into the mushroom sauce. Add reserved pasta water to the sauce as needed and toss together so that everything is well incorporated. This should look glossy and amazing by now.

7.       Take off the heat and sprinkle in parsley and aged Gruyère.

8.       Place the pasta is a family style platter and top with all the sauce or divide into individual bowls and top with an optional drizzle of olive oil, a little black pepper, and some parsley leaves. Serve immediately.

Buon Appetito,
Dai & Ray

Has it really been a month since Ray graced us with a Mocktail Monday?

You are in luck today – get the glasses ready, Ray is here to fill your day with his wordy ramblings and a recipe for something seasonably sweet.

As written by Ray:

This post-season potable has a goodbye whisper from summer in the form of blueberry and a gentle gesture to your taste buds that fall flavors are on the way. It may sound strange, but blueberry and rosemary play well together.

I love this transitional mocktail. It’s got a little bit of summer and a little bit of fall all in one glass, it’s easy to put together whether you’re serving two or twelve, and it feels like a treat.  Do yourself the favor and screenshot this one, download it, print it out… just make sure you can find it again because I’m sure it’ll be a drink you’ll want to make more than just on a Monday.

Rosemary Blueberry Fizz

(serving: one 12 oz glass)

Ingredients:

8-12 blueberries

1 rosemary sprig, stripped

1/2 oz honey (roughly a tablespoon)

1 oz fresh lime and/or strawberries

4 oz sparkling water

Ice

Instructions:

Thoroughly muddle the blueberries, rosemary leaves, and honey in the bottom of a cocktail shaker. Add a squeeze of lime juice and top off with ice.  Cover and shake vigorously for a few seconds. Strain through a mesh strainer into a tall glass with fresh ice. Top with sparkling water and stir. If you want to get fancy and impress guests, garnish it with a sprig of rosemary and a lime wheel.

A sprig of rosemary and a lime wheel?  Well give me a minute as I get my fancy fascinator on. Hats off to you Ray. For all the readers, make sure you make it, post it, tag it, because we want to see it. @motherhoodmaternity #mocktailmonday

–          Dai & Ray

Too tired to put on a costume? Too big to care? No problem – we got you BOO. [My puns are frighteningly good!] October is here and if you thought I loved September, that love is only surpassed by my adoration for Halloween. As I have gotten older, and Santa has brought me less and less for Christmas, Halloween has taken the prize for favorite holiday. Any chance I get to dress up, I am there. I really hope that just because you are pregnant, you’re not thinking about forgoing a costume.

Let us dress you.

Look how cute our “model” is with her ACTUAL daughter. You may remember Abby and Cedar from our real mom shoot last month. Carved in cuteness, Abby is wearing our pumpkin outfit, which comes with both the maternity tee and striped pants. It’s super stretchy and really soft, made from jersey knit, so you can eat as much candy as baby-in-the-belly can handle.

BUT WAIT… THERE’S MORE! [Brace yourself for some truly horrible wordplay]

We’ve got a bone-chilling skeleton costume, a pawsitively adorable mama bear look, a cunningly cozy fox 2-piece outfit, a “Something’s Brewing” witchy look that’s bubbling over with cuteness, a super hero outfit that SAVES you time looking for a costume, a mummy look to wrap you up in something snuggly, a one of a kind unicorn outfit, and a purrfectly easy cat costume. Most of these costumes come in plus too, sizes 1X-3X!

These outfits are super soft. I mean sugar crash on the couch and sleep all night soft. How are you dressing your bump this Halloween? Show & share @motherhoodmaternity  

Fun fact… that witch in the picture is me. Last year I was pregnant with my little Roni girl. Even more of a fun fact… I was not pregnant in that picture, BUT the following year I actually was and used this on my own Instagram. No one knew the truth, until now. That’s Hollywood baby – or well, South Jersey.

Our lead art director, who is one of the most talented people I know – hey Klaud – hand made that sign. She used a grey board, like the ones you get for school projects, some pipe cleaners, fake webs and of course a spider – voila, the perfect backdrop for a gender reveal photo.

The social team and I took this theme and really ran with it. We found a cauldron and got pink and blue bath bombs. However, my sister in law really did throw me a surprise gender reveal last year and it was all about witches and wizards. [You know the real theme millennials, but let’s keep it generic, so I don’t get sued!]

She filled out cauldron with vinegar and baking soda and food dye ala your volcano for the science fair in fifth grade, so when we threw water on it, it bubbled over with pink perfection. That is our actual reaction. I thought I was having a boy.

Are you revealing this October? We love to see the creative ways to share the news. Hit us up @motherhoodmaternity

–          Daina

There is a day for everything, right? But we are HERE FOR THIS! Not only do I love plaid, because it’s a classic, but man does it look cute on a pregnant belly. Visions of fall family photos fill my head. Somewhere there is a pumpkin patch just waiting for today – the worldwide celebration of plaid!

Come on set with us to the wilds of Wisconsin where there was neither a lack of cheese nor plaid.

Meet Andrea, our model here with her son, Bridger. She’s a life coach and also has a daughter named Montana. [Cute story – she and her husband met in Montana and thus the name stuck!] Our Milwaukee mama helped show off our gorgeous nursing styles while being on set with her actual son, who was actually hungry, in clothing she was actually wearing while feeding him. Thanks plaid poncho. Today is your day.

Do you remember Abby? Our mom to Cedar and baby boy on the way? She was a part of our MAMA WEARS THE PANTS campaign and we were so happy she joined us in Wisconsin with her husband and daughter. Look at her posing away in this pink plaid maternity dress.

You know the old adage… another wrap, another barrel of hay. I want to also introduce you to the puppies. There are 9 of them and they are 6 weeks old and my boss ADOPTED ONE! Be still my heart. Click to shop the plaid style top on Abby and the other multi-wear nursing wrap on Andrea.

P is for plaid, but it’s also for PUPPY!!! Click here to shop this cream, black and hint of yellow and baby blue plaid perfection.

A plaid/sweater duo – check! Puppies – check! Hay bale – check! Wagon – check! Cute kid – check! Somewhere that aforementioned pumpkin patch is crying, because this is the new fall photo op worth posting. [Editor’s note – we want to see it all, wherever you take your plaid images @motherhoodmaternity]

Happy Plaidurday ladies!

Love Your Tartan Clad Gal,

Daina

Nude is not a one-color fits all, right?  We wanted to take our best-selling seamless style bra and make our “nude” more accessible to you. We do know that there are more than just 4 colors of skin tone, but we think this is a pretty great place to start!

Our mini rainbow of nudes offers the perfect base palette. What’s underneath counts, and what you put on top should then steal the show!  If you haven’t got our seamless maternity bra, which also is a nursing bra, you need to. It’s honestly the most-loved bra because it’s super soft, but also supportive without a wire. It has over 500 five-star reviews and has won awards based on real mamas’ votes.

Our summer campaign was all about the seamless bra – 5 years, 5 stars and 5 solutions. The clip down straps are there for easy access for nursing and pumping. The stretchy and soft material is made to grow with your breasts as they change throughout pregnancy and when your milk comes in. The removeable pads allow for no show nipples and leak protection. Unlike other wireless and soft bras, the seamless has a barrier in between the breasts to avoid the dreaded uniboob. No one likes uniboob.

But people do like seeing real mamas and real pregnant women in real clothes, so let’s go on set to meet the “models” wearing our newest nudes!

Olivia is pregnant and also a mama [obviously] wearing the nu nude in tawny brown.

Alexis, our nursing mama, is also wearing the new tawny brown shade!

Holly is newly pregnant and wearing our original nude color.

And new mama Ashley can be seen in our other new colorway: mink.

These seamless nudes are in the full bust style for extra support & comfort.

Send us your nudes… um well your nu nude bra purchases @motherhoodmaternity

How does Motherhood® bottle up style? By taking the plastic and making something amazing. We know the wave of the future is clothing that you can feel good about, which is why we are dipping into sustainable style, so that our oceans will be there for those babies in your belly to enjoy.

Our newest pieces are crafted from Repreve® fibers, which are recycled materials made from plastic. Motherhood teamed with Repreve® because so far, they have helped recycle 14 billion plastic bottles, and we are so happy to be a part of that number. They take the bottles, sort through them at the recycling facility, wash them and essentially shred them into little flakes.

To simplify it, they take those flakes, blend, melt and then make little pellet like “chips” out of them.  The chips are then made into strands of fiber, but in the way yarn looks. The end result is clothing that is so soft, you look just as good as you feel wearing it. The material is so finely woven, that each piece is impeccably comfortable. The plastic also allows for a unique breathable feel too, which is great for when those pregnancy hormones strike, and you think you’re having an early onset hot flash.

This post is to honor the ultimate mama, Mother Earth, so make sure you do her a solid and check out our newest maternity collection, featuring a super soft sweatshirt, comfy long sleeve tees, and smooth as butter jeans. Oh, and tag us in outfits made with our look good, feel good, do good pregnancy pieces @motherhoodmaternity #mhgoessustainable – see you there, earth angels.

–          Daina