Last week, all four kiddos finished up two weeks of swim lessons (just in time for Brianna to go to summer camp where she is swimming every day!). It's amazing how much difference a couple weeks of lessons has made in my kids' confidence in the water - as well as their swimming skills - so I thought I'd share about our experience!
Brianna and Brenson have both taken swim lessons before, but not since the summer of 2015. Chris and I both believe that knowing how to swim is an important skill for our children to have, but life was really overwhelming for a few years . . . in the summer of 2016 we were building a house, trying to sell a house, lost two grandpas, and Chris had health issues. In the summer of 2017, we had just lost Bristol and I was overwhelmed with grief and daily life. The summer of 2018 came on the tails of another miscarriage and losing Chris's grandma. All of that to say, swim lessons were put on the back burner for a few summers!
However, I was determined that we would make them happen this year! Brianna could kind of swim, but she thought she was a better swimmer than she really was, and Brenson was in that same {dangerous} boat. Brooke and Brecklyn really had no skills and needed to start from the beginning. We decided to do lessons in a town about 20 minutes from us where they offer lessons through the school (which means it is very cost efficient for four kiddos). This is the same place where we've done lessons in the past.
Brianna, Brenson, Brooke, and Brecklyn ready for swim lessons!
I waited a few weeks after sign-ups opened to get my kids on the list, so that meant I didn't get my first choice in time slots. Ideally, I thought I wanted them all four to have their lessons at the same time, and I wanted it to be mid to late morning. However, Brianna and Brenson had their lesson at 8:00am, and Brooke and Brecklyn had their lesson at 9:00am. We left the house around the same time we have to leave for school during the school year, so that wasn't a problem at all. I was really thankful that our lessons were earlier instead of mid to late morning because the gym wasn't too hot yet. It was just beginning to really get hot each day when we were leaving. Also, I ended up really liking that the lessons were split over two time periods because I could give more attention to each lesson. The hardest part was that Brooke and Brecklyn had to wait every day for their lesson . . . they were always SO ready to go!
Brooke, Brecklyn
Brooke and Brecklyn had Ms. Angela as a teacher, the same teacher who taught Bri and Bren when they were younger! For the most part, the twins did great, but Brooke did have to sit away from the edge one day for messing around and falling in the water. Brianna did the same thing when she was four! I was just happy there were no tears and very little apprehension from my girls (not every parent is so fortunate).
As I guessed she would be, Brooke was fearless in the water. She loved putting her head under, and was always eager for her turn to practice her skills. One day, Ms. Angela was trying to get her class to swim with their heads under water. Most of the kids were very resistant to this, but not Brooke! She straightened her body, put her head under, and when Ms. Angela gave her a push, Brooke torpedoed right under the rope and out of the tot-dock area where she could touch. It surprised everyone, haha!
Brecklyn was a little more reserved (no surprise), but she was a great listener and truly tried her best. I was very pleased with both of them!
They did pretty well waiting for their turn to be in the water. Brooke struggled a bit more with this, but overall they did fine.
Brecklyn, Brooke
Brianna and Brenson are 2nd and 3rd from the end, sitting on the edge
Brianna (in pink) swimming
Bren (in blue) practicing floating
During the second week of class, the level 2 students started jumping off the diving board and swimming to the side of the pool. Brenson wasn't too sure about this, but he was brave and did it!
Brianna was more confident from the beginning, and had no problems swimming to the edge of the pool.
As the days went on, their confidence just grew! By the end of the week, jumping off the diving board was their favorite part of lessons!
Brianna
Brenson
After Brianna and Brenson completed the two weeks of swim lessons, they both graduated to level 3 for next summer. Best of all, though, their confidence and abilities went through the roof! I would call them both true swimmers now!
On the last day of lessons, Grampy and G-Jo came to watch them showcase their new skills. Grampy threatened to throw them in the water, and that's okay because they can SWIM now!!!
Brooke and Brecklyn also had the opportunity to jump off the diving board on their last day of lessons. Their teacher waits for them and helps them to the ladder after they jump, but most level 1 kids are too afraid to go through with it. Not my girls, though! They both jumped, and I was so happy for them! They also both passed to the next level for next year.
I'm so glad we finally did swim lessons again! Knowing that my kids have these valuable skills, I can actually relax a little when we go swimming now. We hope to continue with lessons for several more years, so we can keep building those skills!
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