I’ve been spending lots of time in my new tankini that I purchased for my Miami vacation. As a Plus Size Princess, I get excited when companies realize that we crave fun, flattering apparel and when a company like Swimsuits For All decides to provide swimwear I can feel fabulous in, its truly a gift.


I feel like we all have at least one summer story from the pool, so TBGB has teamed up with SwimSuitsForAll to host a “Stories From The Pool” Contest! The winner will receive a $100 gift card to SwimSuitsForAll!


Maybe your story is funny, awkward or just plain embarrassing! Either way, I’m sure we can all relate, so… lets share!

Here’s mine:

Growing up in California, my parents put us in swim lessons every summer. I started out as a “minnow” then a “guppy” and by the time I was 10 years old I was a “shark” the highest level in the entire swim program. Most of the other sharks were older than I was but of course, I was bigger. By this time my boobies were filling out my training bra, my tummy was quite round and my chunky inner thighs were eternally pressed together.

But in the water none of that mattered, because although I was the chubby 10 year old in the class full of thin 11 and 12 year olds, I was still the best swimmer in the class. This was mostly due to the fact that I had a pool in my backyard, so I was always in the water practicing my advanced strokes between lessons.

As Sharks, we had our lessons every Wednesday at the deep end of the pool, usually in an area right by the ladder that we used to climb in and out of the water. One day our class was moved to the middle of the pool. We all jumped in and our lesson went as usual… until it came time to get out of the pool for our diving drills.

Because the ladder that we normally used to exit the pool was so far away, everyone planted their hands on the edge of the pool and pushed themselves up out of the water and onto the concrete. I too swam to the edge of the pool, planted my hands firmly on the concrete, but when I pushed up with my arms, I barely moved. One by one the other Sharks propelled themselves out of the water, and every time I tried to do it, I could not. My arms were too weak to support my heavy frame. Over and over, I tried to get out of the water and before I knew it my entire class was standing on the edge of the pool looking down at me, waiting for me to get out.

I could feel my heart racing. I wanted to slip under the water and hold my breath until they all left, but that was not an option. Finally, my instructor reached her hand down and offered to pull me up from above, but I had a horrifying vision of pulling her down into the water with me. “Its okay,” I said and I swam over to the ladder, climbed out and walked back to join the Sharks who had already started diving.

As my Mom drove us home, she listened quietly as I told her what happened, “everyone could get out of the pool except for me!” I whined burying my face in my hands. I assumed my Mother would provide sympathy but instead she provided a solution. “Why don’t you practice getting out of the pool with your arms at home?” she asked, “You’ll have a whole week to build your strength.” Using our pool to my advantage for my swimming strokes was one thing, but the idea of practicing exiting the pool like the other kids had never crossed my mind.

I spent the rest of the week splashing around with my sisters, and then taking time by myself to push up and out of our pool, first from the shallow end where I could use my legs and then when I felt strong I moved to the deep end. Every day, I would practice and when Wednesday came, I hoped I was ready.

Once again our class was moved to the middle of the pool, but this time when it was time to climb out, I had something to prove. I knew I would only have one shot, or else I would risk repeating the embarrassing scene from the week prior. I’d been doing well at home, but with all the other Sharks around, I felt nervous. I swam to the edge of the pool, pressed my palms against the pavement, propelled myself out of the water and this time instead of splashing back down into the water, I felt my body land on the hot cement.

I did it!

On the inside I wanted to do a little dance, or give someone a high five… but on the outside I pretended like it was no big deal.

Okay, now its your turn… what’s your “Story From The Pool”?


Here’s How you Enter:


1.) Follow TBGB with Google Friend Connect (on the right side of this page →)
2.) Leave a comment with your “Story From The Pool”
3.) Include a link to your favorite Swim Suit from http://www.swimsuitsforall.com/

A winner will be chosen in one week!