"Don't get me wrong, I think my wife is beautiful no matter what," says Jeff, a 28-year-old father of three in Boston. "But when she started to show with our first daughter, she got this sensational hourglass figure that I never, ever expected. I couldn't take my eyes off of her."

"Year round we have men like Jeff in our stores telling their wives how fantastic they look in our clothes," says President Rebecca Matthias. "But my favorite season is Valentine's Day, when these guys come in desperate for a romantic and sexy gift to give, and their jaws drop when we show them things they never expected to find for pregnant women."

This year, Mimi offers playful pajama sets with a Valentine's Day theme print, sophisticated cotton loungewear in fiery red with velvet and lace trim, along with Mimi's signature line of seductive lingerie. Mimi Intimates is a full line of innerwear, including black lace bras, curve-hugging camis, and coordinating panties and thongs. Gift certificates are also available for in-store or online shopping.

So has the pregnant belly reached pin-up status? Not exactly. According to Patrick, a business consultant in California, romance is alive and well in the maternity ward. "Every time we pass a pregnant woman on the street, my fiancee tells me how much she's dreading the big belly, but I think she's got it all wrong. When you love a woman, what could be more romantic than her carrying the child you're going to love and raise together?"

Mimi Maternity designs contemporary and affordable maternity fashion for today's trendy pregnant woman. Visit one of their 150 stores (nationwide) www.mimimaternity.com. ~ 1-877-MIMIMOM