Way, way back in 1991 Demi Moore appeared on Vanity Fair in this iconic cover. Man, did she make pregnancy look beautiful. That smooth perfect belly housing her perfect, soon to be daughter Rumer. Didn’t it make you want to get knocked up??
Let’s cut to 2008. I’m pregnant with my one and only. I have maybe 10 pictures of me pregnant. And only one where I’ve exposed my belly (in comparison to my dad and brother….both sporting large bellies at the time). I didn’t love my pregnant body. My boobs were enormous – I think for most of it they were bigger than my belly for godsakes. And all the barfing…my body was rejecting me too. Let’s just say it was a reality check. I tried Demi’s pose…I needed an extra set of hands to cover the boobs.
Then Elle Magazine decided to recreate the iconic cover with Jessica Simpson. This time, I could look at it with the rose coloured glasses off. HOLY AIRBRUSH BATMAN. They have to have taken her down 6 cup sizes and half belly.
But there is some girl entering her twenties going ‘Wow – pregnancy does make you glow….and stretch marks – they must be a myth like the tooth fairy.’
Then there is this. Last week, Kris Jenner posted this picture of what she looked like when she was pregnant with her son Rob – who was turning 25. Now her timing was kind of gross. I can tell you Will will not be having a cake with my pregnant bod on it when he reaches a quarter century…. BUT….
I think it’s awesome. I’m not going to add to the naysayers. She’s veiny, purply and big. I’m going to salute Kris (except for the gitch that look like diapers??). That is a pregnant belly.
Then there is the OctoMom – top left corner. She’s showing off her post baby body. Twenty-year old, non-moms…. I can tell you this…. she did not get that body back without a crap load of surgery. I was blessed with a tiny baby and no c-section but my friends who had to undergo a c-section? Their number one complaint is the kangaroo pouch. Eight babies in one womb? That would be one giant kangaroo pouch my friends.
My point in all this? I do think the pregnant body is beautiful. I just think we should be showing the REAL pregnant bods (like Kris) and the real post baby bodies…war wounds and all.
God bless our bodies who gave us the gift of life!
My weight fell off in 8 days but I could not breast feed to save my life. Likely related but who knows? I did not like that people congratulated me on that- it just happened in a pool of night sweat. So however it goes I don’t think people should be so hard on themselves and each other about how we carry our babies when we are pregnant and how our bodies recover.
I like that women feel sexy now pregnant where our mothers were told they were fat- but when I walk into your home for dinner I don’t need to see a photo of a nude spread of you pregnant over your couch! Even if it was professionally done.
Some of us have cellulite, some vericose veins, some pouches, some droopy boobs and some stuff we wont print. I got on an elevator after a womanly proceedure and looked at the woman in there and said- I love being a women but it is a son of a gun! (ok I used another word) – we both laughed until we wet our pants. I had never met her before.
Childbirth? Pot roast through the nostril, they say. The body is never the same.
Yep, the aftermath is not always pretty – but here’s betting that J Simp will show up on some mag cover a few months after her birth unveiling her post-baby bod. That’s the part that makes me the MOST nuts. Talk about pressure that new moms don’t need!
Aww yes…the c-section kangaroo pouch…I’ve been blessed with one of those as well. Oh well, all worth it!
I didn’t have a bad go of things, but I do wish these cover stories didn’t make it seem like these pregnant bodies are the norm. Ack.
I think I linked this in Chantel’s latest post about saggy boobs and things… it’s post-baby stuff I wish was a bit more wide-spread. http://thebellyproject.wordpress.com/
Photoshop & air brushing should be illegal. Nuf said.
as usual it seems the young men-folk that are all “grossed out” by the jenner photo and the “real” photo of jessica. they want reality but when it’s shown to them they can’t handle it! once again women are to be pretty and smooth and not real. kinda drives me nuts….