Water Babies

The girls have been taking swimming lessons again...they did one session over the summer, and now they're signed up for two more sessions thru the fall.

It's a different place, a new pool & new teachers, but the girls love it.

Arissa, of course, is an old pro:

Mariah....a little more aprehensive:

She cried & screamed thru the entire first two lessons, and begged to be put in the baby class. I wanted to switch her so the crying & screaming would stop, but I didn't want her to be scared forever and never learn....and be 15 years old and still in the 1-2-&-you class!

So we went over to Audie's house, where there's a pool which is pretty much private because apparently no one uses it. So we went there and Jesse watched Arissa & Mallory jump in & swim, while I spent 2 hours showing Mariah that she will not die just because her feet don't touch the bottom of the pool. We practiced holding her breath over and over, and at the end of the 2 hours, she was able (with the help of a floaty toy) to float on her own without grasping onto me for dear life. She eventually could push off from the side of the pool and glide to me. She was very brave and I think she almost believes me now that she won't die. :o) And at her next swimming lesson, although she was still aprehensive, there were no tears or screams. Success!

Mallory, because she's a year younger, is in the lower level class. She, like with everything else in life, is pretty much fearless!