By Charlotte Hilton Andersen, REDBOOK
Swimsuit season is upon us, and I am thrilled. No... it's not because I love standing under glaring fluorescent lights in a store dressing room and pondering whether everyone really does keep their underwear on while trying on swimwear, like the sign says. (I just pretend they do. Don't disillusion me.)
Five kids and stretch marks from knee to clavicle mean that I'm still wearing the same suit I bought on clearance at Target five years ago. The real reason I love swimsuit season is that I have a two-year-old daughter, and nothing is cuter than baby swimsuits. This year the trend seems to be tiny suits with big, fluffy attached tutus. I bought two!
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Yet at the sprinkler park the other day, as my daughter toddled around in her fairy princess bathing suit, she was joined by a little girl about the same age... in a triangle string bikini. Exactly the type you would see on busty teens posing in Sports Illustrated, only smaller. While I generally consider myself a live-and-let-live girl when it comes parenting styles (mine give me enough grie; why would I want yours, too?), especially when it comes to clothing, I'll admit this unnerved me.Related: 4 Foods to Eat for a Healthy Smile
It wasn't the skin showing-there were plenty of tots running around in just swim diapers - but the body it implied. While I certainly don't find toddlers sexy, if there ever was a sexualized item of clothing, it would be the string bikini. Why make a little girl look like she has boobs? But maybe it's just me?I did a quick poll of my mom friends. The general consensus seems to be that one-piece suits, tankinis, and "athletic" bikinis were adorbs, but skimpy string bikinis were an absolute no-no. As my friend Alice put it, "Nekked toddlers are adorable. Sexualized toddlers make me sad."
What do you think about baby girl swimsuits?
- She's a baby! Anything on a baby is adorable! Period!
- No string bikinis but two-piece suits are a must for diaper changes.
- I stick to a one-piece for my kids.
- Why bother with swimsuits? Yay for swim diapers!
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Permissions: Reprinted with permission of Hearst Communications, Inc.
