WATERLOO -- The thought of shopping for and wearing maternity clothes truly frightened Maddy Hinz.

The idea of purchasing clothes for her expanding belly was nothing short of "overwhelming."

"I knew I had to start from square one. I couldn't imagine having to buy all new clothes, and clothes I knew in the long run that I was only going to wear for a short period of time," said the new mom.

It's a fear many expecting mothers face. Their hormones are raging and their bellies are growing. Usually a little retail therapy is just what the doctor ordered, but for many pregnant women the task can be daunting.

What size do I buy?

How will this fit when my belly grows even bigger?

Is this shirt really worth the money?

Where do I even begin?

Hinz felt the maternity selection in the Cedar Valley was limited, but others have said they were satisfied with their options here. Michelle Koehn was about four months along when she started wearing maternity clothes. Her job as an admission counselor at Allen College instantly sent her searching for fashionable business casual work wear.

An annual shopping trip to Chicago showed Koehn the trendier, and more expensive, side of maternity fashion.

"It was so much more fun looking there than it is here. My mom kept saying how much more fun it was to shop for maternity clothes than it was in the past. But they were definitely more expensive." she said. "There was no way I was going to spend that kind of money on maternity clothes. It's ridiculous when you think you are only going to be in these clothes for two or three months. It is so hard to stomach spending even $30 or $40 and then putting it away and maybe wearing it again in a couple of years."

Stores like A Pea in a Pod, which also offer an online store for those stuck in Iowa, offer work-appropriate dress pants starting at prices just shy of $100. However, bargain shoppers can sometimes catch an online sale that knocks the prices down as low as $20.

KWWL news anchor Tara Thomas said her frugality was the likely culprit behind some negative e-mails sent her way during her first pregnancy two years ago.

"I gained 80 pounds with Charlotte. Even I look back at clips now and wonder what I was thinking wearing a tight scoop neck top under a blazer," Thomas said. "I got my share of criticism. Some people were really not kind. They e-mailed and commented on my ill-fitting clothes and that was a real eye opener. When I finally decided to read them on air I got a ton of email from other working mothers who said it was great to see a woman working right up to their delivery. They were very supportive and accepting."

In addition to gaining more weight than planned, Thomas also faced another hurdle when shopping for maternity clothes -- her height. At 5 feet, 11 inches, Thomas often found it difficult to find clothes that fit her tall frame. If the shirts were long enough to cover her arms and belly it usually was too big in other areas. Even the longer pant inseams, most brands that carry a long inseam stop at 36 inches, were usually pushing the limit.

"I found with the panel pants, those with a substantial panel, I could get away with wearing them a little lower and then they were long enough," she said. "Some days, though, I just didn't have good fitting slacks."

Thomas sees her second pregnancy -- she's due in early August -- as a second chance to prove her fashion sense.

One thing all three women agree on it maternity fashion has come a long way since the tented, nautical themed or "Baby on Board" shirts of the late '80s and early '90s. Today's maternity clothes closely mirror that of the fashionable pieces worn by everyday women.

"I think that was one of my worries going into being pregnant. I thought I had to be ugly, that the stereotype was that you were ugly when you were pregnant," Hinz said. "But, nowadays, with the pregnant models and actresses, people think pregnant women are beautiful and I like that."

Contact Emily Christensen at (319) 291-1570 or emily.christensen@wcfcourier.com.