My boys officially smell of summer. And to me summer smells like sunscreen.
The ritual has begun – the spraying and lathering and rubbing into scalps of sweet smelling SPF 50 on blond hair and pale white bodies. {Sorry, boys, you may have got my blue eyes, but you also got my British genes.}
They love it. They stand – arms akimbo – and rotate slowly as I mist them. Teeny tiny waists astride gulping swimsuits that all but swallow their cute little patoots; hide their calves and brush just short of their ankles.
I could literally eat them up.
We wade into the water together.
Their tiny selves next to my not-so-tiny-self. And it makes me proud.
Because this body of mine that can’t ever seem to find a flattering suit, this body birthed those two boys. This body has seen life that the adorable taut, toned and tiny lifeguard girls on duty couldn’t possibly dream of yet.
This body has housed 3 miracles and it turns out that miracles need room to grow.
This beautiful amazing body has stretched to accommodate three sets of feet, three heads, three hearts, three sets of flexing limbs. This body is round where some say it should be flat; soft where some say it should be hard; and full where many others are running on empty.
This body knows what it is.
And it is much, much more than a swim suit.
{Revisiting this post from last year, after our first trip to the pool today and my third baby; I needed the reminder!}
Want to keep up with this here blog? Sign up to get my posts emailed to your doorstep right here Or delivered to your reader of choice. Or just like us on Facebook.
Amen!
L-J,
My heart needed this today.
Thank you.
Mine too. Mine too. I always have to try not to have bitter thoughts towards those life guard girls and just know that in years to come they will also be sitting pool side with young babies wishing they’d appreciated what they had when they had it :)
lol … I linked to this from your article on beauty and scrolled down just a bit and this caught my eye … whenever I see lifeguards now I think of my nieces who are so not worried about how other people look and love people regardless of how their swimsuit fits. And I just try to relate to everyone else soul to soul rather than how does my body compare to your body (clothes/hair/accessories)? ….
Oh how I needed this. Summer is no where near us yet but I dread putting on an awful suit and hating it. And then, inevitably hating myself which is not good. But it certainly has housed some babies and feet etc :) And that is a beautiful thing!
Blessings,
Mel
Please feel free to stop by: Trailing After God
Oh yes this I needed. Yeah I’ve got farm fencing scars, baby stretches and lots of other lumps and bumps from life lived and each one means something amazing that God brought me to, through and blessed me with. I still hate swim suit shopping and love the smell of sunscreen. Thank you for this!
Oh, how I love this – you get it!!!
I SO needed to hear this today, thank you so much for posting!
AMEN!!! That is all I can think of to say!! And if you were in a room with me and said all this… know that I shout this AMEN as load as my lungs would allow!!!
Here’s to housing babies!!!
Oh, yeah – right on (hmmm….how old does that phrase make me?? Yeah, I am that old!) Lovely post and I’m so glad you put it out there again to encourage us all as the sweetness of summer approaches…and the sting of swimsuit comes right along with it. :>)
Alleluia!!!!
Ever learning to rejoice in this morphing body, that actually got to join God in miracle-making…seven times over…
Oh you–
dear-tiny-life-guard-girls-on-duty….with your tiny string bikini suits that make me feel like a–
Whale.
There is so much more.
I wish I could say…
“oh what I wish I knew back then”
But honestly–I was never one of you :)
And it’s okay.
The 5 babies are my life-guard.
So full of life.
So life-guarding.
Whenever I start to sink into that world that truly does not matter…
They pull me back out.
Save me back to that place of …real life.
Where real life happens.
5 lives full of real life.
This post was so perfectly real life dear Gypsy Mama :)
Thank you.
And I will wear my real-life-mama-suit with JOY and much thanks for the many shape-shifting little bodies that it has brought forth.
Oh so so beautiful. Yes. this.
Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! (Carried 5, birthed 4!)
Bless you for this reminder that I seem to need daily. This body has housed and grown 4 babies, and there are days when I curse it for what it isn’t and days when standing in front of a mirror is like torture. A firing squad of negative thoughts lets loose assaulting the reflection I am faced with. But you are right. Of course, you are. It IS more than any swimsuit of pair of ‘skinny’ jeans. It’s a greenhouse of sorts, where seeds have been planted and sown and grown into little people. Maybe one day, I will stop throwing ‘rocks’ at my greenhouse, stop smashing windows with negative self-talk. Your post reminded me to do this. To stop. Thank you, Gypsy-mama.
Oh Kris – such beautiful words. Yes, it has grown wild and wonderful things and lived to proudly tell the tale :)
thank you So much for this reminder today. i so needed to hear it. we leave for vacation next week and the dreaded swimsuit is inevitably going to be worn then. i have had 5 kids, 4 of them in under 6 years, and my abs just don’t want to tone up. i’ve lost almost 40 pounds, am at a healthy weight, but STILL get asked if i’m pregnant..and i’m not. God has really done a work in my heart over the past few years and has helped me to see that my desire should be more about honoring him than having a small tummy. being beautiful inside because of my love for him, rather that looking fabulous according to the world’s standards. and you know what else i’ve learned? those sweet little people God has given us..they don’t see the ugly stuff we see. they see a beautiful mommy who’s willing to have fun with them. and to me, that’s worth more than a flat tummy. :)
Yes and Amen!!
Love this post. Truth, truth, truth. Maybe we embrace our bodies – and the blessings they have given us. You’re awesome!
Cass @Unplug Your Family and Spirited Homeschool
Ha… I was meaning “MAY WE” not MAYBE. ;)
I love this! When my kids ask me why my belly is “squishy,” I tell them that it had to make room for them to grow! I tell them I would much rather have them than a flat belly! I try to tell myself this when I look in the mirror, but it’s hard not to criticize this body that has lived 37 full years.
Love your body, girls. It’s the only one you’ve got! And just don’t look at those tiny lifeguard girls. Unlike us, they have barely lived yet! My body is nearing 60 years (and I’m not skinny) but I fully intend to be a sassy old lady on the beach this summer, reveling in the body God made just for me!
Oh wonderful – you just gave me the biggest grin!!
Thanks so much for the beautiful reminder!
I haven’t housed 3 miracles, but I have housed 4 decades (and lots of cream-puffs) so to this I say….
A to the freakin MEN!!!! :)
love you and those cream puffs!!
You made me laugh and cry! I dread swimsuit season. But you are so right, I wouldn’t trade a perfect body for the life this one incubated and has the scars to prove!
The girls want to go to the pool today. I’ve been stalling. I think I just found the push I needed.
My girls thank you. :)
Heh, good!! :)
What about girls who haven’t birthed miracles and STILL don’t have those bodies?! Hahaha! :)
Um, I’ve seen your wedding photos – just hush your mouth, beautiful :)
8 weeks pregnant with my third, a surprise that came after the addition of winter weight.. I’ve been feeling so uncomfortable in my own skin with the knowledge that summer is coming and I’ll only get bigger from here. I really needed this. Thank you.
Thank you for this. I have only housed one and birthed one, but that one is truly a miracle. My body has been ravaged by chronic illness, struggled with weight its entire life, and struggles still with side effects of many medications. Thank you for reminding us that we are indeed flesh, and it really doesn’t matter what the outside says.
Oh boy did I ever need that reminder today. Pre-menopause and three kids have added a few pounds on me this past year, and I hate it. I am trying to run, but I hate that too. Sometimes I think I just need to settle into my body and be glad it is what it is.
wow, friend.
wow.
would it be okay if i posted this at my body image blog sometime? (http://chasingsilhouettes.wordpress.com)
I’d be honored :)
My goodness this couldn’t have been a more timely post! Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Oh that we could see the treasures we are! Instead of hating the skin that holds us together. To see what He sees… the beauty of our hearts.
To let that be reason enough to hold our heads up and shoulders back, without shame.
“This body has seen life…”
I used to be one of those taut, toned girls; I used to be itty bitty! I know that compared to many other moms in position, I still am. But, I constantly beat myself up for not working harder to look 16 again.
But, this body has seen life I could never have dreamed of all those years ago. Thanks for this. It touched my heart right where I needed it.
How did you know that I went shopping for a bathing suit yesterday? And today. And, um, nothing fit anywhere. I cried. I think I mentioned before that my baby is the same age as yours….
The entire time I lived in Ukraine (before I ever had kids) I never fit into a single thing that I tried on in the stores, markets, and from friends over there. For real – it’s Ukrainian sizes, not you :)
I’ve housed one miracle. As my body slowly loses the weight I gained after she was born, there are some spots that don’t seem to go away. I SO needed this reminder that my body HAS housed a miracle and phooey on those who concentrate (including me) only on the extra skin and flab that wasn’t there before! :-)
I’m fairly new to this blog and I have to say — thank you! for this post. It is just what I needed to read as I contemplate a new swimming suit.
You’re so welcome. And hi – lovely to meet you :)
i LOVE this. you took the words right out of my mouth.
What a fun post and we are still waiting for our summer. We have just been enjoying weeks of rain, wind and cold.
Thanks for the reminder that perhaps summer is on the way.
Blessings to you!
Thanks! I needed the reminder, too.
So funny that I was bathing suit shopping today and that my 35th b-day was yesterday and I am wishing I could have skipped it and stayed 34…. :) I wish I read it before so I wouldn’t have had such bad words floating around in my head that I would never say out loud and should not even be thinking!!!! Thanks for this post-I really needed it.
thank you so much for posting this. your post really REALLY spoke to me. i’ve been hard on myself lately as i have gained a few pounds. i too have had 3 miracles in me though i’ve only been blessed to keep one & i don’t tell people that very often…lol. i know in my head that i’m more than a number on the scale i’ve actually decided to not weigh myself any more, i’m more than the size my jeans say, i’m more than a swim suit, i’m much more than all of that. thank you for delivering a message i really needed to hear today :)
Love this. Definitely needed that reminder today!
Oh, this was great. I’m still struggling to lose enough weight to even fit into my suit after having baby #5 back in Feb. Sigh…
But listen gals. Go get a swimsuit at LandsEnd.com. They have very pretty suits for all figure types, they’re modestly cut, and while they cost some money, they are worth every penny. Mine is 5 years old, and still looks brand new.
this. is. incredible.
My friend recently delivered her first baby. My almost 7-year-old son asked my husband last night why she was so skinny now. My husband explained that the baby was not in her tummy anymore so her tummy was small now.
Wait for it…
My son then asked why my tummy looked like that still…
Duh. Duh. Duh. I explained to him that I have had four babies and that my tummy is big from eating bad food. Ugh…from the mouths of babes, right? Guess it’s time to lay off the brownies and get back onto the Shred Wagon. :)
I LOVE this post! Thank you.
-FringeGirl
My husband says my stretch marks are my badge of honor. Love that man!
Beautifully said!
Wow, as someone else said, right on, far out and cool!
I wish you all could come join me here at the beach, so I didn’t feel so alone in my bathing suit where the only thongs I wear are on my feet. I was once a tiny little 90lb thing. Once. Even after 4, I still was 90. But then came the middle years creeping in.
It’s taken me a long time to get used to “myself”. so this post not only is an inspiration, it even made me cry to know I’m not the only one who also loves the beach but feels a bit self-conscious. And you know what? My grandson, 2 yrs, and living with me doesn’t care one bit about it, he loves me the way I am, including my singing and dancing and awful guitar playing. And that’s worth every bump, freckle or wrinkle.
Beautiful! Thank you.
Wow- what great timing! I’m in the car on the way to the beach. I really needed to hear this. Such freedom in your words on how I cant compare myself to others- both that are smaller AND those that are larger. Greatful that God has allowed me to carry 3 miracles and the joy of birthing my 2 boys. Thanks Lisa-Jo!
At this point in my life, nearly every single one of your posts are being bookmarked in Delicious. Thank you for the memorable reminder!
Well said!!! And good for you that at such a young age you have come to that realization that life is more than a swimsuit or a swimsuit size! I am in my 50’s and have struggled with this self image battle for the last 15ish years or so. I have lost alot of weight in the last couple of years (67 pounds) and now am in my 150’s at 5’8″ and still struggle with it. Keep your chin up and don’t forget that we were all teenagers once :D
I’m here from Ruthanne’s . Thanks for reposting. I needed to read this today as I’ve just walked in from my son’s swim team practice…
I’ve never been able to shed all the baby weight or pull the tummy back in, even though my youngest is almost 2. I keep hating myself for it, and figure others are judging me too. Doesn’t help that my mom is super skinny even after 3 kids. I think I got my dad’s metabolism. But I also have to remember that if people are friendly, kind, and fun to be around, I don’t notice what they look like! And back in my skinny college days, I literally could not tell if someone gained or lost 20 lbs! It’s only since I’ve become so upset with my body that I notice things like that. Thank you for this, I need to stop hating my body.