My name is Sarah, and I am addicted to buying bathing suits for my daughters. That means that they each have at least five in their current size, and possibly a few more in the next size up.
I love to be in the 
water, and I introduced both kids to pools, lakes and oceans within their first months’ of life. As a result, I have two water loving kids who regularly play with the hose in our yard, dip in the hot tub and ask to go swimming at least once a week. We frequent the outdoor pools in the summer, going at least four or five times a week.
With all this time spent in the water, the girls need all of those bathing suits. Okay, maybe not one for each day of the week, but close to it. Here’s the kicker – I even buy them bikinis.
I understand the argument that people think bikinis sexualize children, but a one piece suit clings as much as a bikini, and really, it’s the perception of the beholder, not the wearer. I think there’s something inherently wrong with our culture if you are looking at a child as a sexual being while jumping through a sprinkler in a bikini. These two parents faced off about it, too.
I’m trying to teach my girls that they can wear what they want, when they want, and I try not to limit them. If we are bathing suit shopping and they see something they like, I usually let them have it. I draw the line at white, because of practicality- they often will wear a suit all day long in the summer and getting grape popsicle out of white is a laundry nightmare. I help them pick out suits that will be comfortable. For my eight-year-old, that means two pieces. She is quite petite for her age and while she can fit into size four or five clothing for her width measurements, one piece suits don’t fit the length of her torso. Now, I bet you’re thinking, why not a tankini or rash guard? You’re right, she has some of those, but she likes the freedom of a bikini in the summer. Since my littlest one gets all of her sister’s old clothes, she gets all the suits too.
I, myself have not worn a bikini since I was 14 year old. It was the last time I felt like it was okay for me to wear one. We were on the beach in Hawaii and I wore it, but was fat-shamed by a group of young men, and I immediately covered up my body with towels and dresses and haven’t put one on since. I think that was a mistake. I should have been proud to wear whatever I wanted, no matter what other people thought about my body.
Maybe I’m living vicariously through them, or maybe I’m just trying to teach them that it’s okay to express themselves from an early age. The key point here is that it is their choice. I buy the suits and they choose what they put on. The caveat, of course, is that the more skin that’s showing, the more sunscreen they need to wear.
Who knows, maybe this will be the summer you’ll find me at the pool in a bikini, (likely not looking at me in a sexual way because you’re busy chasing your kids around), in solidarity with my girls.
Where do you weigh in on the great bikini debate?
