This was the secret to his success - the mighty little swim cap. N has been doing pretty well with his swim lessons but he tended to scream - loudly - at the top of his lungs - for the entire hour - while he was trying to trust enough to float. One observation was that he didn't like water in his ears. We tried ear plugs but we just couldn't get them to stay in his ears. Enter the swim cap. I was thrilled to even find some at the local dollar store (it even came with ear plugs & a nose plug). I bought two - one red & one orange.
The first day he wore it, he wasn't feeling all that great about it. No one else had one. He started to cry. He didn't want to swim. His instructor was great & got him going in the water. He didn't scream once. It was great!
The very next day he did even better. This is day two of the photos. How cute is he in that cap? And here is what he managed to do at the lessons...
The first day he wore it, he wasn't feeling all that great about it. No one else had one. He started to cry. He didn't want to swim. His instructor was great & got him going in the water. He didn't scream once. It was great!
The very next day he did even better. This is day two of the photos. How cute is he in that cap? And here is what he managed to do at the lessons...
He's floating!!!!!!
I didn't start yelling like a nut on the beach, but I did shout out a "GOOD JOB!" & even had my three year old tell his brother he was doing well - his voice tends to go farther than mine.
B also did a fantastic job & here he is showing that he can't let his little brother get the better of him. B really hates getting his head wet & he was dumping small buckets of water over his head by then end of the week.
Both my guys did a great job & really made some good progress at swim lessons.
Both my guys did a great job & really made some good progress at swim lessons.
I can't get over the idea of swimming lessons in a lake. We don't do that in the UK.
ReplyDeleteIsn't it cold out there? {g}
You may notice that I certainly didn't get in the lake right? LOL Having said that, it really isn't that bad. The lessons lasted for two weeks. Most of the first week it was rainy & overcast. They still went. The water was warmer than the air temp, but they did come out to warm up & looked a little blue around the edges. The second week was nice & sunny & they managed to stay in for the whole hour without a problem.
ReplyDeleteAh, lake and river swimming...what fun!
ReplyDeleteFor us, the success hinged on GOGGLES. She refused to put her face in the water, but once she had the goggles, she was fine. Doesn't even have to plug her nose. Have you tried the wax earplugs?
My friend used them, along with a neoprene headband (the stuff knee braces are made of) for her son when he had tubes. We used the wax plugs with Hannah for awhile when she didn't like water in her ears.
Hey...what EVER works to get them taking lessons. When I was a kid EVERYONE wore bathing caps - the UGLY ones, with the chin straps!
goggles, noseplugs, swim cap, LOL! Yep.. we used all of those things... one dd in particular had a really hard time learning to swim.
ReplyDelete