This was our second summer having all three girls do swim lessons. We used Ashleigh again like we’ve done for many years now. We signed Abigail up for beginner lessons, and we put Brooklyn and Savannah in beginner strokes lessons. We were excited this year because their cousins were going to be in their classes! We have been able to coordinate with Alisha’s boys some years, but not every time. Here’s the recap:
Swim Lessons Day #1 (6/13/22) – The morning went SO well!! Better than I ever expected!! Abigail’s class started at 8 AM, and Brooklyn and Savannah had their class at 8:40. Abigail didn’t cry a single bit!! I was so surprised by that.
Abigail went under water, jumped off the side of the pool a couple of times, floated (with help from Ashleigh), and did such a great job. Afterward, she said it was fun and she was excited to go back the next day! Luke and Barrett also did so well!!
Brooklyn and Savannah’s class went really well too. They both treaded for 30 seconds on the first day! Brooklyn is doing much better with her arms and kicks this year than last year. She also swam across the pool without taking a breath!
Savannah did really well too. A year has made a big difference in her confidence. After the lesson was over, she said she wished she could keep swimming another hour!! :)
Swim Lessons Day #2 (6/14/22) – Abigail jumped off the side of the pool and the diving board today! No tears again at all.
She jumped off the diving board once holding Ashleigh’s hand and another time all by herself. She swam a few feet by herself to the ladder as well. She is having fun and looking forward to each day of lessons! I can’t believe how well she’s doing.
Brooklyn and Savannah’s class went well. Carter was able to be in it today for the first time! He sat out yesterday because of a burn on his face. They started working on side breathing today, which Savannah struggles with. She is already doing better than last year, but she still got upset after we got home today because it’s hard and she’s not doing it exactly right.
Brooklyn did well – she has a hard time “slicing” her arms into the water during her freestyle and not just slapping the water. It’s a lot to put together and requires a lot of coordination though – I’m not sure I’d do it all right either! Brooklyn did a nice dive off the diving board today and loves to jump high, of course!
Swim Lessons Day #3 (6/15/22) – Abigail did great again! She floated by herself today and is doing better about jumping straight out and not trying to jump on Mrs. Ashleigh ;)
Abigail was happy to have Luke and Barrett to play with and talk to during Brooklyn and Savannah’s lesson.
Brooklyn and Savannah’s class went well. They practiced the “stingray” and diving a little bit today. They also practiced the elementary backstroke, and Savannah did really great the second time around. Ashleigh commented about how fast she was moving across the pool, which made Savannah really excited. Brooklyn did another nice dive today!
Swim Lessons Day #4 (6/16/22) – Another good day of lessons! Abigail’s class practiced fall-in practice at the steps for the first time this week. They only did one turn each, but all the kids, including Abigail, did well at getting turned around and safely back to the steps.
I have been so amazed at how Abigail has done everything this week without hesitation or any tears and has looked forward to going each day.
Brooklyn and Savannah worked a little on backstroke today in addition to diving, treading, floating, and freestyle. Their class lasts for an hour, so they have more time to work on a lot of things each day.
Brooklyn loved practicing her diving!
The kids in the beginner strokes class really enjoyed being together and got along well.
Swim Lessons Day #5 (6/17/22) – We’ve made it through the first week…woohoo! Abigail’s class worked on the same things as previous days and added in fall-in practice from the side of the pool and how to reach up up up to grab the side if you fall in where you aren’t near the steps. Abigail did it on the first try! Ashleigh said she is definitely opening her eyes under water so that’s good because she can see where the wall is.
Abigail had better kicks today and was moving through the water faster. I think it might be because we went to the neighborhood pool yesterday, and she practiced swimming to the steps the whole time ;) She is turning into a little fish!
Big kids waited patiently for their class to start! I thought this picture turned out cute :)
Brooklyn and Savannah added their arms to their backstroke today….
They are both having a good attitude and doing their best. I’m proud of their effort!!
Swim Lessons Day #6 (6/20/22) – Today was a special day because Daddy and Cici both came to watch. They had the day off for Juneteenth since it’s now a federal holiday. Abigail did great again today and was excited to have her daddy there watching her. She had been talking about it for days leading up to it.
Brooklyn and Savannah had a good class also. They worked on treading, freestyle, diving, and more backstroke today. Ashleigh was really proud of Savannah’s backstroke today! She is improving so much. They also practiced pushing off the wall for the backstroke (like they do in the Olympics), and Brooklyn rocked that on the first try! She did so well, and Ashleigh was so proud of her.
Savannah also gave it a try!
This year at swim lessons, Savannah really let her silly side out when jumping off the diving board :)
I love seeing her have fun!
Swim Lesson Day #7 (6/21/22) – Today was a good day of lessons! All four of the kids in Abigail’s class are rocking and rolling, Abigail included. She is really kicking well when she swims and moving through the water pretty quickly. I’m so proud of her!
Brooklyn and Savannah’s class started learning the breaststroke today. The kids had fun on the steps while waiting for their turn.
They only learned the “frog legs” today and didn’t try their arms yet. Brooklyn did pretty well with it!
It doesn’t come naturally for Savannah, but maybe as she grows, it will get easier. I’m not sure I’d do very well at it either!
Swim Lessons Day #8 (6/22/22) – Abigail had another good day! She is able to jump off the diving board, swim to Ashleigh in the middle of the pool, take a breath, and swim all the way to the steps. So proud!
All the kids in her class are really doing great. This has been the best beginner class ever because all the kids are excited to swim and are doing so well that they are getting lots of turns and lots of practice.
Today in the big girls’ class, they added their arms to the breaststroke in addition to practicing all the things they’ve already learned (treading, floating, freestyle, backstroke). Brooklyn did really well with the breaststroke. Savannah had a hard time and got upset during the middle of class and cried afterward again. It’s a lot of coordination, and she’s just not able to do it yet. She is really doing so well though compared to last summer, especially with the side breathing for freestyle and how well she is doing with backstroke. I’m proud of her! Brooklyn has made so much progress too. She has had a good attitude and had fun. She likes to make jokes and entertain the other kids…I guess you could call her the class clown of the bunch ;)
This is the first year that Savannah has done any wild, fun jumps off the diving board. In past years, she would always just gently jump in. But this year I’ve gotten some fun pictures of her jumping in and being silly! Ashleigh said she can tell a big difference in her confidence. If it weren’t for the breaststroke, she would be enjoying all of it, I think!
Swim Lessons Day #9 (6/23/22) – Abigail had a great day again!
No tears from Savannah today! She had a better attitude and didn’t get frustrated. She is still having a hard time doing breaststroke arms and legs at the same time, but that’s okay.
Brooklyn, on the other hand, thinks backstroke is harder than the breaststroke. It’s interesting how different strokes are easier for some than others.
Swim Lessons Day #10 (6/24/22) – Last Day!! Abigail said she liked “everything” about swim lessons and didn’t have a favorite thing. She has fast, strong kicks and is swimming so well. Ashleigh said Abigail and the others in her class will be ready for refresher next summer and won’t need the whole 2 weeks of lessons. Woohoo! It was a great last day for her.
Abigail and her classmate, Ruby, had fun playing together during the big kids’ lesson :)
Brooklyn and Savannah had a fun last day too. They did 3 relay races with the girls vs. boys. Each of them swam a different stroke each time. The girls won the first race with Brooklyn doing freestyle, Emma doing breaststroke, and Savannah doing backstroke. The boys won the second and third races. It was fun and exciting! The kids loved racing.
The girls made a lot of progress over the two weeks of lessons and especially since last summer. I am proud of how hard they’ve worked! We had fun, but I was also looking glad to not have to get up at 6 AM the next week! ;)
