Swimmin' Lessons

I have not yet blogged about the "pool incident" I've been dreading since I realized I had a phobia of drowning when I was four years old (not only of drowning myself- of ANYONE I know and love drowning) Well, it actually began as a fear that my Mom was going to be eaten by a shark when she went swimming in Galveston, but eventually evolved into a more general fear of drowning. Drowning while being eaten by a shark is now just one of many ways of drowning that I fear. But I digress. I was waiting to discuss this dreaded "pool incident" when I had a happier note to sign off with- which now I do! :)

Casey's parents have an amazing backyard with an amazing pool- which we enjoy thoroughly. A few weekends ago, we were grilling out outside and playing in the yard with Ada. Casey turned his attention away from her for a split second (actually just to grab the ball that they were playing with together), and OF COURSE she half fell/half jumped into the water.

*You would think with all of my swimming/swim lessons/lifeguarding/swim coaching experience I would not be such a water-phobe- but with experience comes knowledge and I know how dangerous one little water aspiration can be to a little body like Ada's.*

I did not see her actually mid-air, but I SWARE I heard her swooshing in before I heard the splash. (Mother's instinct? Sixth sense? It didn't hurt that I heard MiMi scream "SHE'S GOING IN!") I felt like I was moving with Matrix-like speed and agility- I made it across the patio, yard, and to the opposite side of the pool in the same amount of time it took Casey to kneel down and scoop Ada out. She did so great- she probably had to linger midway down for a few seconds waiting on one of us to snatch her back into the oxygen rich, breathable air- and she didn't inhale one ounce of water. They say that that's instinct for babies....

Almost scarier than those 5 seconds, however, was Ada's reaction: Unscathed. Unshaken. Fearless. Proud? I knew she'd seize the next opportunity for another dip. And the next. And you get the point.

Which brings me to the reason for this post: we started our first day of swim lessons today!!! They teach the following things through fun songs and games: breath holding, bubble blowing, back floating, and swimming to the edge of the pool to hold on. It was such a blast, and I'm so looking forward to the next 7 classes over the next two weeks! Ada did awesome, of course. Here are a few adorable pictures of my little fearless minnow! (I couldn't narrow the pre-lesson pictures down to just one, so I'm including all of them!)