Former The Real Housewives of Orange County star Alexis Bellino is getting divorced from her husband of 13 years, Jim.
Wednesday was the Fourth of July, and while Alexis wore her most patriotic bikini to celebrate the United States’ independence from Great Britain.
And she made it clear that she was celebrating her own independence, as well.
In the captions of this photo of her showing off her incredible body in this American flag bikini, Alexis is not subtle with her double-meaning.
Alexis writes: “Happy INDEPENDENCE Day friends!”
Yes, she wrote independence in all caps. Like we said … this is not subtle.
In case anyone managed to miss it, however, she included some tags.
She wrote “#independent” followed by “#woman,” and then “#letfreedomring.”
Dressed in a little more … well, clothing, Alexis also posed in a photo with her three children.
Her son James is wearing blue and white — a nice understated way to celebrate the Fourth of July.
Her twin daughters, Melania and Mackenna, are wearing American flag dresses.
Alexis herself is wearing a white dress in this photo.
While white is certainly one of the colors on the U.S. flag, some of her followers joked that she was “wearing the wrong flag.”
A white flag, of course, is a symbol of surrender. Not the message that she intends to send during her divorce.
Of course, when Alexis and Jim Bellino confirmed their divorce, the two made it very clear that they do not intend for this divorce to become contentious.
“It is with heavy hearts that we inform the public of our mutual decision to end our marriage,” their joint statement began.
They acknowledged that they are divorcing, “but it’s important to us that you know we made this choice together, with love, and as the best decision for our children’s future.”
“We hold one another in the highest regards as spouses, and especially as parents,” they announced. “We have agreed on 50/50 custody of the children, and we ask that you respect our privacy by not theorizing about the reasons for our divorce.”
“In recent days and weeks,” they explained. “There has been a lot of negative discussion about our marriage and why it is ending.”
“Outside of the news of our decision to part ways, there is nothing provocative, alluring, or sordid about the dissolution of our marriage,” Jim and Alexis insisted.
“Quite to the contrary,” they said. “We strongly support each other just as we have since the beginning of our relationship.”
Should fans take Alexis’ declaration of independence as a sign that things are a little less amicable now?
“Our marriage was a good one, but we were never perfect people or spouses,” they said. “No one is, and in this respect, we were a lot like millions of other married people.”
They continued: “And, just like millions of other married people, we simply grew apart over time — there is no ill will or bad blood between us.”
“And maybe,” their statement continued. “That’s why absurd rumors about our marriage and future together began when we filed for divorce.”
“We ultimately want you to feel happy for us,” Alexis and Jim said.
They asked fans to “respect our privacy during this difficult time, and pray for our mutual benefit as we weather this storm.”
“To the fans who have supported us since the beginning,” they continued.
“We’re grateful for how you cheers us on,” they told fans. “We ask that you continue to cheer as our lives and the lives of our children change and ultimately improve as a result of this difficult decision.”
So … we should probably assume that Alexis is not trying to “start something” with Jim. They’re just happier apart and she’s not afraid to be honest about that.
