I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. This is my summer of saying, “no”. No to too much travel, no to too many plans, and no to too much work. And all of the no’s are starting to pay off! We’ve been home for the last two weekends and it’s been incredible. Without packing and unpacking every few days, our summer is off to a much calmer start than last year!

We’re trying to create staycations within 30 miles of us and it’s been a fun little adventure every weekend. This one was no different.  We had friends over on Friday for our first real BBQ in the new house chock full of s’mores and too many bottles of rosé. On Saturday we hit up the dog park and took Boots on his first al fresco lunch date at Terrain and later went on a boisterous double date at Cava with our suburban besties.

Sunday we saved just for us, so Anel and I packed up and headed to Westport for a day at the beach. My friend Alex let us park at her adorable house (pictured in these photos) where we could walk right to the water from her driveway. Talk about dream home location! Goals…

I threw on this fabulous Baywatch-esque (and insanely flattering) red one piece for a day of reading my book, sharing a picnic with my hubby, and frolicking in the water. I’ve never had more random strangers compliment me on a bathing suit, and my Snapchat was blowing up after I posted a picture of it. I know I say this a lot, but it’s definitely worth the investment because it’s incredibly chic, comes in five colors, has a sexy low back and deep v front and hides any belly fat with the criss-cross design.

To get to the beach, I threw on a new pair of denim shorts (I’d been on the hunt for months until I found these and they’re perfect), this striped shirt (only $27!), and a hat to cover my face and neck, something that I’ve become religious about as I get older on beach days.

I might just have to outfit repeat this whole look for the 4th of July!

Striped Tee / Denim Shorts / Bag c/o (on sale here) / Hat (more affordable here) / Bathing Suit c/o