I am a huge advocate of teaching your child to swim. Not only is it great exercise and good fun, more importantly it is a life saving skill. Trying to teach Harry swimming has had it’s fair share of ups and downs. The down’s have included such things as showing my post-pregnancy body off to a load of strangers, trying – and failing – to pour myself in to my pre-pregnancy suit (lycra will only stretch so far before it has the transparency of a pair of 7 denier tights), and lastly – and my pet hate – carrying a small child whilst trying to cram a mountain of bags and towels in to a cubicle that then doesn’t lock!
But it doesn’t stop there. Our sessions have been fraught. Harry has played up so much getting ready that I swear people thought we were having a wrestling match in the cubicle. One week he clung to me like a limpet for the whole session. By the end of it I felt like I had been through an SAS secret selection process. But he topped all of that one week by completely freaking out every time we swam over the black lane markings.
And yet it had all started off so well. He had danced a jig of joy in reception, started to undress, and announced to everyone at the top of his voice that we were going swimin’. Every time we went over these bl**dy black lane markings – and it was impossible not to – he climbed up me yanking my swimsuit down in the process. I lost count of the number of times I flashed the pool attendants and other parents. As a result I considered inventing a polo-neck swimsuit but someone has already beaten me to it. Honestly, Google it. Later on that day I received a phone call offering us a free session because the water temperature had been on the chilly side. If they knew who they were calling they might not have offered. I am hoping that the sight of me having a Miley Cyrus moment every few minutes was not the trigger for them to get the thermometer out!
Anyhow, a few weeks ago Harry’s Daddy and I took him for a routine swim. Nothing in the preparation gave us any indication that today was going to be any different than the others. Harry did his usual trick of putting both feet in to the same leg hole of the swimming nappy – something he finds hilarious and I find mildly irritating. And I went blue in the face and lightheaded trying to blow up his arm bands. Yet as we climbed in to the baby pool something was different about him. He didn’t want me to hold his hand or support him in the water. Confidently he strode out on his own towards Daddy and without any warning lifted his legs and floated! Once he had got the hang of that he then started kicking furiously. The concentration was that immense that even his eyebrows were moving with the effort. My boy was swimming! All the humiliation (mine) and tantrums (his and mine) had been worth it. Cue Mummy clapping like a sea-lion, crying tears of joy and jumping up and down like a jack in the box.
And there you go, Mummy was once again flashing her boobs to a pool full of strangers and consequently informing the attendants that the water temperature was a little on the nippy side. Normal service had been resumed.
Love
Harry’s Honest Mummy x
Glad to hear they get the hang of it eventually. My little one is 16 months and he veers between loving it and hating it!
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That moment when it all comes together like that makes all the tantrums and upset worth it! I’m glad Harry has started to enjoy his swim time 🙂
Thanks for linking up to #AnythingGoes
Debbie
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Yaaay!! Hurrah!! Well done Harry!! You have now a little swimmer!! That is great!! At least all the effort was paid off after all!! In my case, Bella for some strange reason hates to have water in her face!! She asks for a towel to wipe her face all the time grrr!! Isn’t it weird!! I don’t know!! Thanks God Sienna instead is like a fish in the water!! How different they can be!! Thank you so much for sharing this at #KCACOLS. I’m so happy to have you this week!! 🙂 xx
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I wish I learned to swim earlier but never too late. It really is good. Even my back doctor recommends it.
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oh yay little champ! So glad he made it all worth while. I remember Aspen loving the water but hating the instructor, whereas April loved the instructor and wasn’t a fan of the water! Adam took a while to also warm to an instructor, but loved the water as long as no other child splashed him in the face. They all love swimming now, so it is worth it. Thanks for sharing #mg
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Woohoo well done Harry!!! Oh how fantastic is that all the wrestling and hard work paid off. And now you have a little swimmer how fab.xx #KCACOLS
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Oh bless him, well done Harry! Thanks for linking up to #justanotherlinky xx
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Yay, well done Harry! I am not a big fan of swimming but I agree that it is an important life saving skill. My #1 was terrified and he’ll cry the entire lesson. But had to laugh at what Harry does – putting both feet through the same leg home. #mg & #anythinggoes
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Well done Harry! I have not enrolled my kids in swimming at an early age, although Reimer has been enrolled in one early this year and stopped and finally managed to enroll him again which he will be starting this week. At least, him being 5 yrs old, I don’t need to go in with him, saves a lot of embarrassment, lol Lovely and funny post! #AnythingGoes
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Aw, brilliant! We haven’t started going yet but I hope to start with Marianna next year. My dad used to take my brother and me swimming every Friday after school and I have so many great memories of having fun in the pool (and eating the obligatory portion of chips afterward!). #KCACOLS
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Totally agree with your chips comment. Haha cut from the same cloth 😊
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Well done Harry – and you! 🙂 Can relate to everything you said. So important to teach the kids to swim but can be such hard work for the parents. I hated swimming pools and changing rooms and all that goes with it! #KCACOLS
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Awww well done Harry! We took our son from ten weeks old and it started off very stressful but now he’s abit older he loves it. We haven’t been for a while but you’ve inspired me to take him, just as soon as his cold has gone. Snot in the swimming pool isn’t pleasant! #KCACOLS
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Hahaha yes you are right. Every child seems to get a snotty nose in the water (most likely from sneezing back down the mass quantities that they have inadvertently inhaled), and it’s not like you have a tissue to wipe it is it?!?!? All the more reason to make sure you shower when you come out of the pool 🙂
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Ah yes, the joy of small child swimming! I hated taking mine because he was a nightmare getting changed – i think it probably is the temperature but well done for persevering (i was not so brave we gave up for a while) seeing them enjoying the water and being brave for the first time makes it all worth it ! #KCACOLS
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Love it, very funny. They test, test, test and then all of a sudden get it. You must have been so happy, can’t wait until my little boy works out what to do in the water!!!
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I bet you can’t. It is fab seeing them grow in confidence. It’s very rewarding. Thanks for commenting.
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Love it! I teach baby swimming and a lot of the toddlers have completely different swimming personalities each time they arrive! Sometimes screaming, sometimes swimming around happily! Thankfully our pool is a mega warm hydrotherapy pool! Keep at it! #justanotherlinky
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Oh goodness he is a little monkey isn’t he? But good on you for sticking at it. A lot of people would just say no, not and never again. I really want to take my little one swimming but it’s these cheeky tantrums that are making me so weary. Thanks for letting me read! #pocolo
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The good definitely outweighs the bad. And don’t worry because every child seems to take it in turns to have the tantrum of the week 🙂
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Amazing stuff! That’s fantastic! We’re still working on swimming – it’s such a hassle with all the stuff but so worth it!
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Oh and visiting from #justanotherlinky
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I have to say that despite the fact that I am not that keen on swimming, Grace loves it and that is because I started her at an early age. Such a great thing to do and a very good skill to have. Sounds like your boy is enjoying it too 🙂 Thank you for linking to #PoCoLo x
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