Swimming Lessons

We have long been talking about swimming lessons... and the day finally came! All morning, Avery was roaring to go. We got all ready and headed to the Middle School Pool for her first ever swimming lesson! It is a private one-on-one lesson on Saturday mornings from now through November. We got to the pool, she gave us a thumbs up and the she walked off around to the other side of the pool with her teacher. She got all the way to the other side, and then froze. I mean shaking, tears streaming down her cheeks, and all kinds of nerves set in. I knew from her body language that she was terrified, I had never actually seen her act like this before - EVER! I stayed calm and quiet, just watching from across the pool, knowing this is normal for most kids and knew she may, or may not, snap out of it. I knew right when we walked in, and saw that it was male teacher that this might happen, but then when she walked right up to him and went I didn't think we had anything to worry about! WRONG!

After a few minutes of crying and tears the instructor invited me over to see if I could help. I helped her into the pool, and she clung to the edge like she was terrified of the water, and if you know Avery, this is not the case! She goes tubing around the whole lake without batting an eye! She swims laps in my Mom's pool for hours! She dunks her head under in the bath tub. She loves the water! 

Maybe it was the HUGE POOL, or maybe it was the "boy teacher", we will never really know. After a few minutes of her being so shy and clingy I asked if we should try leaving the pool area for a few minutes to see if that helped. He said it sometimes helps, which from my years of teaching, is often true. This was not the case for Avery. When I peeked my head back in a few minutes later, they were both back out of the pool and she was screaming at the top of her lungs for me, almost hyperventilating! She was shaking, and crying and couldn't catch her breath! I held her shaking soaking wet little body in my lap, calmed her down and sat with my feet in the water (completely soaking the butt of my pants and sweating near to death with my vest on). We kicked and splashed and she was starting to have fun. 

Her instructor was AMAZING. He was patient, and fun, and gentle with her. He encouraged her and praised her. He was so wonderful. He was never upset or annoyed that I brought my three year old who seemed terrified of the water to swimming lessons. Not once did he ever make her or I feel like we were "wasting his time" or anything like that. In fact, he came up with games to play outside of the pool, they poured water from a watering can down a pool noodle and back into the pool, and they kicked and splashed. For about the last 5 minutes of lessons, she got the courage to hop in the pool with him and swim. She held the noodle under her armpits and kicked extra hard to splash me when they went past. She laughed and giggled as I got soaking wet, it was a great way for her to end her lesson! 

On the way home, she said "I loved swimming lessons, that was so fun!" Brandon and I just looked at each other in disbelief and smiled back at her. The whole way home, I sat in my soaking wet clothes thinking "Hopefully next week will go better"!