Last summer Leila and Sarah had no fear of the water but also could not swim. When I took all 4 children to the pool by myself it was dangerous. Leila and Sarah would jump in without hesitation and then just sink. Joshua still cannot swim independently but he has a healthy fear of the water. Matthew is swimming on his own in shallow water. Basically none of them were safe in the water without an adult holding or standing with them. And I was outnumbered!
This summer we probably won't be spending much time at the pool. I'm even more outnumbered now that we have 2 more children and I have 1 less husband. I do plan to visit my grandmother and take advantage of her pool when we are in Virginia. It will be a perfect opportunity for the little kids to show off their new skills.
Just 4 weeks ago Leila and Sarah could not swim. Nathan and Ryan just screamed when they got in the water. Leila and Sarah screamed when their faces got wet.
This is video from their second week of lessons. The girls were finally starting to get excited about swimming. They were able to open their eyes under water and grab the bar on the side of the pool.
On Friday I took this video as the girls finished up their 4th week of lessons. They can swim, then flip over and float to catch their breath, and then flip over to swim again. It is absolutely amazing!
Because Nathan and Ryan are so young they will just be learning to float. If they ever fell into the water we want them to be able to flip onto their backs and float until help arrives. After just 4 weeks they are both able to orient themselves in the water and float independently. At only 8 months old!
If you have these classes available in your area you can ask to observe a lesson and see what it's like. I can just tell you that it has been an awesome experience to watch my children learn to save themselves. Hopefully they will never need to have these skills, but I would rather be safe than sorry. Infant Swim Resource does a great job and our instructor has been fabulous. I have been highly impressed!
