Disclosure :: this post is sponsored by Love Swimming.
Love Swimming This Summer {One Mom’s Experience With Swim Lessons in New Orleans}
You know those videos of little babies blissfully swimming underwater? My parents tell me I was one of them. Through swim lessons, swim team and spending summers at my neighborhood pool or in the Atlantic, I became a strong, assured swimmer. Years later I learned about the healing properties of swimming pools. When I was so pregnant I could barely walk, yet could huff and puff through a water aerobics class. While in the water, I liked to think I was connecting with my daughter as she floated around my belly.
Start Them Early
Naturally, as soon as I had the opportunity I enrolled my daughter in a swim class in New Orleans. I want her to grow up knowing how to be safe and confident in the water, while also having fun. I chose Love Swimming because of its reputation for having excellent instructors; its indoor, heated saltwater pools (as much as I love the water, I don’t like cold water!); the fact that their classes begin at age six months; and its convenient Uptown New Orleans location with easy parking.
My daughter especially liked the skin-to-skin snuggling we did while she floated on her tummy and back. If you’ve taken a class there, you’ve likely had the song, “Put a ducky on your tummy and float on your back” on repeat in your head. The weekly repetition of activities with accompanying songs created a predictable routine. Each part of the class, like jumping off an underwater platform, was intended to be fun but also teach safety skills.
Our Love Swimming teacher was sweet but didn’t baby the children, or the parents for that matter. She was empathetic but firm the first time I nervously dipped E under the water for a few seconds and passed her to the teacher. Even though E and I were both a little scared, I knew she was safe. Those few uncertain seconds of letting go were a good lesson in early parenting.
Let Them Grow
As E grew older, I realized I was holding her back by being in the class with her, so she moved to a group class, which starts at age 2.5. During her first group class, she cried and called for me the whole time. I stayed out of sight but could hear her teacher gently but firmly talk her through the lesson. I had brief thoughts of taking her out of class or jumping in the pool with her, but I knew she was in a supportive environment. If I wanted her to learn to swim, I needed to give her teacher the space to teach her. It was another good lesson in parenting.
Because Love Swimming has classes six days a week, from morning until early evening, they can be flexible about allowing a swimmer to move around to find the best class for them. When our family’s afternoon schedule changed, I moved E to a group class taught by Coach Will. His charming, silly personality really clicked with E.
With Coach Will guiding her, E has begun to swim underwater a few strokes at a time. It took her many months to feel ready, but recently she began to jump into the pool unassisted. I have no doubt that these successes make her more confident in her daily life and show her what hard work can accomplish. I hope she grows up to love water as much as I do. More importantly, I know that the safety skills she’s learning at Love Swimming will last her a lifetime.