Swimming Lessons

Lucas has two under his belt (er... swimming trunk waistband) and he's doing great. Unfortunately, after being relatively unafraid in the water, just a week before lessons started, Lucas had a pool scare when he was playing around in a friend's pool with an older boy. Lucas got in over his head, literally and figuratively. Bad timing with his first swimming lesson right around the corner.

So, as I suspected, his first lesson was a bit of a bust. He was timid and scared the whole time and really just wanted to get out of the water. It was a rainy Saturday morning at the base of Keel Mountain so I couldn't really blame him for not being all gung ho about the water. In fact, when he was done, his lips were blue.

Monday was a different story. He and I had quite a few conversations in the interim in my attempt to combat his nervousness. We talked about what it would take for him to be brave in the pool. We designed signals I could send him to be brave and what response he would send back with his wink - "I can do this". I encouraged him to do the best he can and he did just that the second time around.

Oh yeah, I also offered treats for bravery.

He sat on the edge, eased into the pool and walked around on his own. He went for swims with the teacher with a smile on his face. He was eager and happy the entire time. (I was sweaty and hot on the sidelines the entire time).

Today, in our own little play pool, he put on goggles, held his nose, closed his mouth and put his face completely in the water - many times!

After a bumpy (or is that stormy?) start, he seems well on his way to being a fish. My main goal for him in taking lessons was simply to like the water and want to learn. He may not learn to swim this year, but he seems to be accomplishing a healthy level of fun and eagerness for the whole exercise. Just keep swimmin'... just keep swimmin'