The Summer of Swimming

One time, I told you about my concerns regarding my future in swim suits as a relatively new mother who definitely does not work out.

We brought Jules to Old Orchard Beach on Sunday before she went home. I wore long shorts and a loose tank top. I didn't swim. I don't have a swimsuit and I was afraid to try any on.

I watched other women in their suits. (That is not meant to sound as creepy as it does.)

There was a woman in the water with her husband and small daughter. Her daughter was probably younger than Liam. She was wearing a tank top over her bikini, but she didn't need to. She looked good. She had a beautiful body and she was happy.

A woman on the blanket next to ours was beaching with her young son, who looked about Liam's age. This lady was HOT! Her body was in perfect shape- no jiggles, no cellulite, beautiful tone. It looked like she had never had a baby or missed a wink of sleep. She could have been a model. No joke.

These two women made me think, hey. I can look like that too. I just have to try.

Then: I watched women with jigglier thighs than mine walk confidently through the sand. I think we all know how hard our legs work while walking through sand, and how that must look when we jiggle. But they didn't care. I saw ladies with more cellulite than me, and they didn't care either. There were women with bellies that had not crunched in ages, if at all, and they carried themselves so confidently that you'd hardly notice.

I'm not saying I have the perfect body. I am fully aware of the work I have to do. But being at the beach helped me see that I don't have to look perfect just to wear a bathing suit in public and I don't have to hide everything but my ankles and elbows.

It's been hot. I am ready to swim. So yesterday I went swim suit shopping for the first time in a couple years.

First stop: Steve and Barry's at the mall. No luck. The only one-piece they carried was unattractive, and they didn't have matching tops and bottoms in the color I liked.

Second stop: Kohl's. No luck. Their one-pieces were no less than $70, and if I wanted separates, they were at least $28 per piece. Seriously? I don't have that kind of money. I did see a really cute bottom with the cutest little un-granny skirt, but that one was like $38. Next?

Third stop: Wal-Mart. I honestly had to expectations of finding a suit here that I liked. I was looking for a one-piece that didn't have really high cut legs holes a la aerobics instructors from twenty years ago,



or a tankini with boy shorts. I didn't find what I was looking for.

I found a tube top with ties at the shoulders, and a regular bottom. I still think I am a little crazy for thinking I might actually go to the beach and not care if I jiggle. But the top does look really good. I was fortunate not to get a lot of stretch marks, and I think my stomach looks at least a little toned because I laugh a lot.

And hell, my hips and thighs could be worse. I do fully intend to make them look how I'd like them to look. And I only spent a total of $20 on this. And I might exchange the bottom, but at least I can go swimming now.

Liam doesn't care what I look like in a bathing suit, and Gabe doesn't care if I wear clothes at all so... my purchase is win/win.