Pike and Parent

Tai and I are enrolled at a swim class for 3-5 year olds in which the parent also goes in the pool. It meets Saturday morning for six weeks and I'm hoping that at the end of six weeks he'll want to sign up for the "regular" pike class and I can just sit on the sidelines and watch.

I think it was a good choice for him to take the class with the parents, because the first couple weeks he was clinging to me and always making sure I had a good grip on his waist. But last week he had a breakthrough. With a bubble on his back and noodle under his armpits, he "swam" all over the pool. When I first let go of him, he noticed and panicked. So I held him lightly. But then I let go again and he was kicking those legs and moving himself across the pool, so I whispered in his ear "I'm not holding you -- you're doing it on your own."

He had reached the edge of the pool, and it was time to turn around and swim back across. I positioned myself in front of him and held out my hands. But he said, "No, Mama. Don't hold me. I can do it." I was so proud of him. And during the "free time" portion of class that's all he wanted to do. He swam over to the toy bin, then across the pool, and then batted a ball back and forth with the instructor (on whom he appears to have a huge crush). All the while with no adult holding on to him. I wished I could take a video to show everyone, but I was standing in 42 inches of water and my phone was on dry land.