It’s the unofficial start of summer (unless you live in the perpetual heat of South Florida like us!) And with summer comes swimming pools, vacationing, beaches and lakes. And bathing suits.
I hadn’t given much thought to the “mom suit” until about a year ago. I know many moms are self-conscientious of their bodies and many like to cover up or feel they’re expected to. But it never occurred tome that I was not the norm. Until I met a few friends for a swim at the end of the school year and I showed up in my usual suit and quickly realized I was the ONLY one in a bikini.
It didn’t both me, make me feel uncomfortable or out of place (I wore my last one-piece bathing suits when I was about 8 and couldn’t keep them from crawling up my butt). But it did make me wonder why I was the only one.
Was it because I was the youngest? Because I was in my super-thin phase of nursing Doodle? Because I’m a dancer and more familiar/secure with my body?
I can’t answer these questions, but I can say that I don’t have any plans to jump on the mom suit band wagon any time soon! But it doesn’t mean I walk around the beach in a string bikini. Quite the opposite in fact. I’ve carefully selected my bathing suit collection (yes collection, I live in South Florida and we swim many times a week!) to suit my many needs so that I am comfortable in any situation.
My secret to being comfortable in a two-piece in having many styles available that can be mixed and matched. I usually buy pieces one at a time on clearance when I find them, keeping in mind what I already own. And most of my tops go with at least two different bottoms and vice-versa leaving my options endless!
My tops consist of both traditional bikini tops and longer “tankini” styles. I tend to stick to the longer tops when at a public pool and go for the more traditional styles at home and when at the beach. I also love that that tankinis help cover my ever growing belly as I’m not so keen on showing so much skin as my pregnancies progress.
My bottoms consist of traditional bikini bottoms, boy short styles and skirt styles. I love coverage of the skits for the beach when I’m going to be chasing the kids and stooping down into the sand. And the boys shorts help provide a little extra booty coverage when I’m out in public.
I’ve always felt comfortable and confident in my collection of suits and can always find something that meets my needs for both my situation and mood. (and the best part, by buying on clearance, ALL the pieces shown here cost me less that $100!)
