Madeline Takes the Plunge

I have been thinking about putting Madeline in swimming lessons for some time, and this summer we finally got her signed up. We have some friends who are taking lessons for the first time this summer too, and they generously offered to let us carpool with them (since we only have 1 vehicle that Joe takes to work every day) so the girls could all swim together.

Madeline has been soooo excited to start swimming. After we signed her up she asked to go swimming every day for at least a week. The day she finally started, we had to sit outside and wait for our friends to come because she was too eager to hang out inside until they arrived.

I guess I sat outside while she twirled and danced.

Madeline, Emma, and Lucy

They were champions before they even got in the water!

I know this picture is awful but it was impossible to get a good picture in the pool. One day I'll have a fancy camera that could achieve that, but for now, not so much. Anyway, maybe if you click on it you can see the perma-grin that was on her face seriously the entire lesson. It was really cute. Also, I think it is really funny that when you are in swimming 1a, you wear a floating backback, and have a noodle, and a kickboard, and an instructor right on top of you. Safety first!

I'm not going to lie, she was not the star student that first day in class. She had tons of fun, but was not quite as interested in the whole "kick your legs" idea. She would rather just play in the water and let the instructor pull her around. I will say she has made some serious progress in the 2 weeks since then, and at her last lesson she was actually self-propelled. She likes the arms better than kicking, so when she is doing both, she can get going. Oh, and she loves to jump in the pool now too.

Now that she is a swimming pro, all water is appealing to her. Especially heavy rain and mud puddles. The other day she really wanted to go out in the rain, and I decided to just let her go and have some fun. Rather than rain boots, she chose fleece slippers to cover her feet. Nice. And the umbrella? Just a prop, not intended to keep the rain off in any manner.

Right here against the house is the ideal spot because the water runs off the house in a nearly constant stream, so it is the most efficient way to get drenched.