Evan Floats

Evan is my rock star swimmer.  He still tries to act like he doesn't like to swim when there is an audience, but he is just still lacking the confidence.  He can totally do it, and when he figures that out he is gonna turn into the fish that I know he is.  I have never been prouder of my sweet, determined little boy.

Drew Floats

Tomorrow Drew take his final swimming test in his clothes where they basically drop him in the water and stand by and watch to see what he does.  AKA where I sit by and try not to vomit up my breakfast.  I am over the moon happy with Drew's progress with swimming.  I wouldn't say he loves to float, but he does love to practice swimming back and forth from the wall to me.  He is so proud of himself, you can just see it in his eyes.  And most of all, I know if something horrific happens and he falls in the pool, I would have a minute or two to get to him.  Uggh, I just vomited up my breakfast in my mouth just thinking about that.  Wish him luck tomorrow! As much as I like shelling out $40 a day and spending about an hour of my precious time there 5 days a week....I hope to graduate and not look back for a while after tomorrow!!!

Baby Bikinis...Yes Please

Sorry D-Roo...looking all cute in your little bikini swim trunks is not gonna get you out of your lessons today.  You can flash those baby blues at me all day long.... you still gotta learn to swim.  I just love you in your new swimmy bikini bottoms.  I focus on that and how darn cute you are and not on the fact that I want to jump in the pool and save you from that mean ole Miss Shannon who appears to be letting you drown.....Dramatic Much...Me...YES!!!!

Swimming Lessons

Ok, I finally did it!!!  I put the boys in swimming lessons.  With a pool in the backyard and the hot Florida months right around the corner, I had to do it.  Last summer we tried Evan in swimming and he clearly wasn't emotionally ready for it, but I think he is more than ready this year.  Drew doesn't quite know he is ready, but HE IS!!!  I was SUPER anxious for their first lesson, I think I cried, laughed, threw up in my mouth all in a ten second span. But this is going to be a great experience for all of us!!! 

Birthday Suit

Evan at times prefers to swim in his Bday suit.  Luckily we have a pool to swim in at our leisure, because although I adore his two little white cheeks, I know not everyone would share in my adoration. 

And the Saga Continues

For those of you keeping up with Evan's progress with swimming... here is an update. And for those of you who haven't been (pay attention)... here is a quick recap. He started lessons about 5 weeks ago. Initially he liked it. Then about a week later, hated it. Then about a week after that, he kind of liked it. Then a few days later, hated it. We kept going, waiting for another, love it or like it stage. I kept lugging Drew and Evan to swim lessons in the freaking 100 degree weather. I kept cheering the little guy on, while holding a sweaty, fussy baby at the side of the pool for 30 minutes a day. I kept getting out the ole check book. And that, liking it stage just never came. Day after day, he kept crying and crying, from start to finish. I actually told the swim instructor before we started that Evan cried all last summer any time we even got close to water. She said she would have him swimming in no time, and only once before in her 12 years of teaching had she ever deemed a child, NOT ready to swim. Last week she deemed Evan NOT ready to swim. Ouch. That hurt. That hurt my pride, my Evan's pride (oh wait, he doesn't' care...but was concerned about the lack of lollipops he would be getting now since that was the only thing he looked forward to regarding his swim lessons with Ms. Berit), but most of all that hurt my wallet. At a dollar a minute.... carry the one, add the 6....it was expensive. And kind of all for nothing. Oh well. Maybe next summer?

MIA

Sorry I have been MIA lately. A whole week without a post!!! Meema must be going nuts!!! Our time has been pretty much taken up with swimming! I spoke too soon a couple of weeks ago when I said that Evan liked swimming. We hit a major wall last week and he pretty much refused to enter the water with a major tantrum for the last 6 or 7 lessons. Miss Berit, his teacher, is so patient and loving. She has been taking it very slow, so as not to enhance his fear of the water even more by pressuring him to swim. And I think her tactic is working. Since she is taking it at a snails pace (AKA Evan's pace), he is starting to get more confident and starting to get back into the water. Today he swam without a single tear shed. And Drew is loving it too, now that he can sit up at the side of the pool and watch Evan swim. Just look at his smile? These pics are taken with my point and shoot, so I apologize for the quality. But I really need to start taking more candids and less posed shots, so here goes!

By the way, I failed miserably at the 5 day embrace the camera challenge. I was suppose to take a picture of myself with the kids once a day for 5 days, I made it to 3. I guess that's better than nothing. I just hope I can keep it up, maybe once a week or something!

Evan's First Swimming Lesson

We finally put Evan in swimming lessons. I started a bit late, living in Florida. Most of my friends put their kids in when they are infants, or at the very latest, one year old. When Evan was a baby, I read some new research on the subject that proposed that early swimming lessons can cause a fear of the water. And I have actually seen it happen with many of my friend's babies. But you gotta weigh the pros and cons. Living near so much water, the risk of drowning is definitely there, no matter how "on top" of your baby you are. I am a bit over protective of my boys (me? what? no.). So I think I will use any excuse to not do something that is scary for me or for them! I sware, everything I dread in life, never turns out to be as bad as my vivid imagination will make me anticipate. And this experience is no exception. I found an amazing private instructor for Evan (yes, we will soon be living on welfare, she is so pricey). But every penny is so well worth it. She is so loving with him. It's all about creating a love for the water. It's a very gentle way of showing him that water isn't scary, all the while teaching him how to swim. He actually cries very little and so far, he looks forward to his lessons. The only thing he isn't too fond of is "monkey hands", as you can see in the picture. That's what she teaches him to do if he falls in the water, you grab on to the side of the pool and shimmy your way down until you hit some stairs. She makes the funniest monkey sounds when he is doing it to try and make it a game, but he just isn't having it!