Middle Ground

Let it be known, that I am no fashion plate. True, I try to make an effort to not be a total slob when I leave the house. I'll put on a bit of makeup. I'll wear heeled slides instead of flip flops. I only own one pair of sweatpants, and I NEVER wear them out in public. My tee shirts are of the plain, solid, fitted variety, as opposed to the oversized, printed ones. Everything is clean, free of stains and holes. Oh, and I wouldn't even THINK of leaving the house without a bra. Hey, even if I don't care for my own self, other folks still gotta look at me, you know? I'm also not wearing designer clothes from head to toe or sporting stillettos or a 20 minute makeup job either. I admire the women out there who have the ability to do so, but I'm kinda lazy. I'll admit it! I was at Walmart (I know, I know) a while back and I saw this woman there that really made me think. She was wearing a HUGE gray tee shirt with some trucking company logo on it, paired with gray cut off sweat pants. They were about capri length. The entire outfit was covered in various stains, and there were more than a few holes in it. She had some plastic sandals on her feet, her hair looked unwashed and was pulled back in a messy pony tail. There was no makeup on her face and her toenail polish was chipped so bad it had to have been applied months before. Like me, she was pregnant. I understand that it was Walmart, and not necessarily someplace you need to get all gussied up to visit. What I can't understand is having so little self esteem or pride in yourself that you would let yourself look like that ANYWHERE, let alone in public! I see it all the time... women who are pregnant, or who have small children, who just seem to give up. Maybe I'll understand better when the baby gets here, but honestly, I don't want to. I want my child to be proud of his mom, and how she looks. I want to be able to leave the house and not be ashamed of my self. I'm not saying I'll all of a sudden be a MILF, or one of these new Yummy Mummy's, but holy crap, isn't there a middle ground? I don't want to be a dumpy pregnant lady/mom!