Dreaming of Swimsuits and Summer

Is it just me or are the swimsuits this season very Marilyn Monroe-ish? Is that a technical term? They look like they'd be perfect for the fuller figure; perfect for someone with a body just like mine!

I went swimming a few times when pregnant, because with my Maternity Exemption Card I not only got free prescriptions and free dental work but also got free swimming. I had to pay for Aaron but it was still a great deal. Only thing was, I only own two costumes in my current dress size and they BOTH have tummy flattening properties in the front. That was fine in the 1st and 2nd trimesters but it felt very squishy to say the least when I went swimming in the 3rd trimester. If this is you, invest in a maternity swimsuit. 

House of Fraser stocks one. It's even Speedo AND only £33!!!

I was very large carrying my lil lady and no wonder given that she was born 4 wee weeks ago at 10 lbs 10 oz. Oh and by the way, she was weighed at the Well Baby Clinic today and is now 12 pounds 2 oz. Gulps! Never thought I'd see the day that I'd be on my blog in a swimming costume, but here I am (or rather was) at 32 weeks' pregnant below:

If you are carrying large, or "large for dates" as the maternity services likes to call it, then like me, the ligaments below the bump, taking the weight, may hurt. I strengthened mine by walking 30 miles a week but they'd still ocassionally hurt. What I found when I went swimming is I would then be pain free for 3-4 days after. And the relief whilst IN the water was immense. Each time we went, we stayed in the pool for approximately two and a half hours as I felt I benefited from it so much.

But back to swimwear. Now that I nearly have my body back, what would be on my wishlist....

House of Fraser has LOTS to choose from in their swimwear hub - if you click on swimswuits in the hub, you can see what I mean about the cuts and the prints, with regards to Marilyn Monroe! Several of them are currently on offer in a Sale right now too!

This swimsuit is an absolute bargain! 

Dickins & JonesFeather Paisley large cup halter swimsuit

and is reduced from £45 to £13.50. Gorgeous:

The Miraclesuit Oceanus Soft Cup swimsuit in black, seems like a safer option for me. Yes I may have gained slimmer legs and arms whilst pregnant, thanks to staying very active, but 4 weeks post partum I don't think my tummy is quite ready for pink paisley. The ruffles on the Oceanus seem like they'd hide a multitude of sins (and cake)! I can but dream for the Summer though, if we're talking as far away as maybe August!

Oooh I am loving the costume pictured below, the Seafolly Goddess Keyhole Swimsuit - it's £96 though so you are every inch the goddess in terms of the price ticket and the style factor. Wow. I'd even be willing to work on my cellulite to rock this cossie on the beach. Just looking at the pic of it has me sitting up straighter, adjusting my posture as I imagine myself trying to look the part.

On the swimwear hub there seems to be something for everyone, in terms of price, age group and how much flesh you want to show off. There are several tick boxes down the left hand side which you can use to filter your search. Both of my current black swimming costumes are at least 5 years old each. I'm quite fancying a new one now!

Just like with my last blog post I am now day dreaming about a summer holiday abroad with sun, sea and sand. We've never been abroad with Aaron so it'd be amazing. He's been on a plane lots though thanks to many trips to Ireland.

Bye for now, bed is beckoning as Aaron had me awake since 5:30 with his screaming due to an ear infection. In a few minutes that will be yesterday!

Liska xxx

Thinking Summer Thinking Holidays

Aaron asked me yesterday "where/when are we going on holiday?" I said "We've already had a holiday" to which he replied "When?" I answered that "We've been to Bluestone" to which he said "that was ages ago". One of his closest friends at school just went to Manchester for the weekend and although it was for a funeral, because he told Aaron it was a holiday, Aaron's now got the holiday bug. So it sounds like he just wants to go away, so no big demands for sun, sea and sand. But give me a credit card and I think a beach or a pool by the hotel would be beckoning me. Either that, or a trip to Ireland to see my Mum and extended family. Digging out the Bluestone pics though (collage below) yes, I could happily do that again. WONDERFUL free range holiday.

Aaron knew in his early weeks of life, 2010, what it was to travel round the country, with breaks to Nottingham and Harwich in his former months:

Thankfully since then I have learned how to pack, so we have been to Ireland lots of times even meeting Ryanair's luggage restrictions. After years of mastering my packing and travelling light technique, the recent arrival of my newborn little lady, will have put me back to square one, of needing everything but the kitchen sink when going away. That's why families love to go to places that have facilities like high chairs and toys provided, which is increasingly the case in luxury self-catering accommodation that is family friendly. That was one thing we loved about Butlins when we went there for four days when Aaron was young.

The times we have gone away we have been burned, not by the sun, but by airport parking. We get stung, because Daddy does short-term parking, when he drops us off to go to Ireland, but given I always go there hours before (the cautious punctuality conscious side of me) he gets stung for the price he pays. A couple of times, when we went as a couple to Tunisia and Malta, he's left the car in the long-stay carpark and got stung then too, meaning you end up wishing you'd got the Stansted Express and left the car at home. There's something lovely about being able to just hop into your car though.

I didn't know till today that you can book your airport car parking in advance, thus making it more affordable. You can block book 7 or 14 nights and can choose whether your parking is on or off airport grounds. Personally I like the sound of the meet and greet service where you drop your car near the airport, exiting with your luggage, with a member of staff parking the car for you. Like something you'd see in the movies! Actually - in Stansted - they meet you in the short stay carpark in Red Zone Arrivals. 

Cosmic ordering really works for me, so I think I might start focusing on manifesting a Summer holiday and just hope that I can manage to pack everything my newborn baby, the lil lady, needs. Summer is far enough away that she will be 6 months by then and bonny, big enough to travel without being too fragile. To be fair she was BORN bonny and big at a robust 10 lbs 10 oz and is now already 4 weeks old since yesterday. Here she is at 1 and 4 weeks old:

I hope we get to go to Ireland again soon. Below, this is my Mum saying goodbye to Aaron May 2015 in airport departures, in Ireland. Our local little regional airport. Crazy to think May is round the corner and it'll be a year since we've seen her. Secretly, me and my Mum have got a dream of going abroad together but I think she's banking on a lottery win first.

Despite not seeing each other often, they have a very strong bond, fostered from her many flights to the UK in 2010 including one break of 9 weeks. We'll have to get her here again to see the latest member of our little family.