Swim Lessons with Kids

There is a lot of pressure being a mom these days. There are many factors weighing on our backs: should my child be potty trained by now, am I disciplining correctly, are they eating right, and so on. My current dilemma has been swimming, I guess because it’s the summer months and kids need to cool down.

I enrolled my twins into swim class for 3-5 year olds at our community recreational center. My husband and I took them to their first lesson with everyone in their swim suits ready to go (since last year we had to go into the water with them). We get to the rec center pool and notice all of the other parents have their street clothes on, which was kind of concerning. I did not trust that my girls get into the water by themselves, especially because on the other side of the median there were 6ft deep signs. Um, no.

I soon told the instructors my concerns and led the girls into the water. I kind of hung around (because I was super paranoid) watching them get used to the water and noticed one of my daughters start walking deeper and deeper into the water. At this point, the water was up to her shoulders. I frantically got into the water because no one was paying attention to her, and I pulled her back to the group. I stood back and watched them again, and saw that my daughter was losing her footing. She started bobbing up and down in the water, flailing her arms. I panicked. I yelled at the lifeguard who pulled her from the water and handed her to me. Needless to say she took a break from the water, while I stayed in with my other child.

I called and voiced my complaints to the director who assured me she would monitor the next class to make improvements. I was thankful, but still not comfortable. With that being said, yes, getting your kids exposed and involved in various activities is important, just make sure your child is ready.

Beach

Written by our Sitter Services Coordinator, Courtney Bell Garvey