Look who's a swimmer!

Last year we took Kayla in the pool for the first time in TX when Kayla was just barely 5 months old.  Then when Aunt Amy came in town, when Kayla was about 7 months old, she took Kayla under the water for the first time.  Now at 16 months I decided she needed swim lessons.  I took her in the pool the whole weekend before we started to get her used to it - which was good because she was very hesitant about it those first few days.  But as soon as we got in the pool at swim lessons she LOVED it!  She got in all smiley and happy and stayed that way for the entire 30 minute lesson.  I signed her up for 3 two week sessions and this first session I signed us up with our friends Alicia and Cooper.  Cooper wasn't such a fan.  He cried the ENTIRE first day.  But as that first week wore on Cooper got happier and Kayla got more frustrated.  That's usually how it is - if he's crying she's not, if she is, he's not.  Unfortunately, our first session only lasted 1 week instead of two because she got a stomach bug, which she passed on to me, then I had the tour of the maternity ward, then we left for San Diego but oh well.  But that's okay - the point was to get used to it to before we went on vacation (which turned out not to be so necessary since we didn't get to spend much time in the pool but oh well.)

Anyway - so what do we do?  We do 6 exercises:  front float, back float, kick, blow bubbles, go underwater, and jump off the side.  And to do all of these we sing a song: Tick tock.  Tick tock.  I'm a little coo coo clock.  Tick tock.  Tock tock.  I'm gonna strike at 1 o'clock (followed by 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 o'clock).  And at each o'clock we do a new exercise.  By the end of the week she had the song down pat!  At least the waving of the hands, not singing.  :-)  And she was really good at front floating (with me holding her) and going under water.  She hated the back float and didn't get the idea of kicking.  Blowing bubbles to her meant to stick her tongue in the water.  As for jumping off the side - they have us sit her on the side while we sing humpty dumpty and when we say "humpty dumpty had a great fall" we lean them forward so they "fall" into the water (in our arms).  And she did so good about falling, and rocking as I sang "humpty dumpty sat on a wall".  At the end of the week we have an "evaluation" and she did so well showing off her new skills!

This week started our 2nd session and as the week went on she got better and better and by today, the last day of the first week, she was kicking and floating on her back (she's still not a fan of floating on her back but she's at least okay with it as long as I was moving her through the water not just making her lay there) which was an improvement over last week.  And today she actually "jumped" off the side!  I'd stand her up on the side of the pool and she'd step off the side into my arms.  Too cute!  (Of course, earlier in the week when I'd stand her up on the side of the pool she'd take off and go to our stuff and find her shoes. :-)  )  She also learned the turtle song hand motions (the song goes: I had a little turtle.  His name is Tiny Tim.  I put him in the bathtub to see if he could swim.  He drank up all the water and ate up all the soap and now my little turtle has bubbles in his throat.)  She now puts her hands together and dips them in and out of the water.  Again - too cute!  And the other improvement was her willingness to walk to and from the pool while holding my hand.  The first few days she refused and when I made her she sat down and cried.  So, yay for that! 

So, swim lessons are going pretty well and teaching us more than swimming!  Who knew?!?!