Sink or swim

Eve, before going down the slide: Don't catch me.Don't catch me.

Silly me, I kept catching her. She kept getting more and more angry. I would let her go all the way under the water before grabbing her, but still, she would be offended. She wanted to do it herself. The whole concept of drowning escaped her.

It took some aggressive persuasion, but she finally agreed to a life jacket. It was way to big for her, but I didn't have to catch her. Anyway, If I could manage to take her swimming more than once a month, I am sure she would be swimming independently by now. She is a water baby.

Incidental, some of the mom's I know would never go swimming with three kids by themselves. Those moms also have never had to yell at a lifeguard to grab their 2 year old before she jumped in the deep end. I did that today. Eve didn't like it. I think having to watch the big kids swimming lessons the past few weeks without being able to swim herself made her a little desperate. She was so excited to be in the water, that I decided we could stay longer than usual. It sure tired her out. It always does. That is just one of the benefits of swimming that keeps me coming back, even with three kids.

Though really, I should say that Alice, at 7 totally swims by herself now, so I don't even watch her, and Jackie has grown tall enough to touch the bottom, even at the deep end of the kids pool at the Y, so she didn't use her floaty. Her swimming is coming right along as well. And in hr wet suit swimsuit, she looked like a surfer girl. Before I know it, I'll be able to swim laps. Swim laps, then sit in the hot tub.