Another Year, Another Swimmy

Can you believe it’s been a year since my first post with Kortni Jeane Swimmers!? A year later, still my most read post on The Cake by Hannah is this post featuring KJ and talking about positive body image.

As the time inches closer and closer once again for swimwear, or perhaps you are on spring break like we are this week, I am here to BOLDLY YELL (yes, yell) at you to be proud of the skin you’re in, capture any mean thoughts you have about yourself, and stop standing in front of the mirror pinching your sides. I am literally preaching at myself (still!).

Hear this: You have been shaped and formed from the moment you were conceived in your mother’s womb, beautifully and wonderfully made. Such. a. masterpiece.

Listen, I was brutally reminded of the negative view of my own body literally from shooting these pics. I often stand in the mirror and can pick apart my body- every little bit of it that I wish was more toned or “better”, all while being in the best shape of my life currently. I don’t say that to be like “oh look at me”, it’s just a fact. I have worked out and eaten (mostly by force with my health) consistently in ways I haven’t ever stuck to over the last year, therefore I am the fittest I have ever been. Yet, I have a tendency of seeing what I want to accomplish more than what I have accomplished, or what I need to do rather what I have worked so hard to do already. This is how I am with life in general, and I am trying to swap that order. This gap is where anxiety is found- where we feel we don’t quite measure up or where we focus on what we feel isn’t quite up to par yet. Capture THOSE thoughts, lest you want to be up for 6 hours a night lying awake in bed with panic attacks.

So where I see what I want to do better at or fix, my husband is constantly telling me what I don’t tell myself. I definitely am not talking just about my body or how I look. He is constantly building me up in all areas. The first thing he said when he saw one of these photos was “You look so fit” (And then commented on how amazing Hannah my photographer is haha)- Completely unaware that I was struggling a little with insecurity. (Just being honest) Thank goodness for a guy who reminds me of my worth and speaks life into me, y’all. It made me realize how critical and mean I can be to myself!

Guys, we are our own worst critics. We see everything we don’t like, and hyper focus on it. One of my students and I went to lunch recently and I made her tell me 15 things she loves about herself, and it was fun to hear what she had to say! You absolutely have 15 things about you that you like- I guarantee it. So own it! Write them out, put them on your mirror, in your binder at school, at work on your desk… whatever it takes to continuously speak truth at yourself. Surround yourself with people who speak life, and don’t pick apart themselves or those around them. That’s toxic. T O X I C. It will absolutely rub off onto you, the way you view yourself and others, without even noticing.

So, cheers to another year of confidently owning our own skin, and surrounding ourselves with people who build up. This is key! Own every scar, every stretch mark, every single inch of your skin. You are so beautiful!

On another note, how stinking cute is this swimmy from Kortni Jeane?! The top is a newer style, and I am obsessed. The bottoms are ruched and high-waisted, making for the most flattering style of swim suit bottoms you could ever imagine with full coverage. Mixing and matching styles and prints at KJ is so fun- it’s like custom making a swimsuit just for Y O U. Plus, it’s always so hard to find swimmys that I feel cute in while also feeling like I am not walking around in my skivvies. #CanIGetAnAmen?

Love y’all mucho, friends. Thanks for following along with The Cake.

xoxo- Han

All photos by Cottonwood Road Photography for The Cake by Hannah

Shop my favorite statement earrings to pair with your swimmy here: