Part of the Job

Today Aleena had her first swimming lesson. She can already doggie paddle, and is not afraid of jumping right into the water. We wanted to have her take a class with her friend on Monday, but the instructors wanted to see her level first.

When we got to the pool, Aleena just didn't want to get in. I think that she was a bit afraid. When her brother or sister are around, she had little fear. This time, however, she was there by herself (not including me). For the first half of the lesson, she sat outside the pool. Then the instructor moved over to the smaller pool and played a game with some coins. Aleena started laughing and enjoying herself at that point, actually participating.

Finally, before we left, she agreed to get in the pool and show the instructor how she can swim if I would get in. Of course I had not worn my swimming suit. I had planned on spending the lesson listening to my ipod and relaxing. So I stripped down to my shorts and hopped in. The water was a bit cooler than I would have preferred, but honestly, I've swam in colder weather in Cincinnati in July and August. Aleena surprised me a bit by jumping in, going under water, then surfacing and swam to me.

Hopefully the next lesson will be better. I think I'll bring my swim suit though, just in case.