Gracie's First Swimming Lesson. . .

We have been trying to have Gracie's first swimming lesson since last Friday when it snowed 16 inches! We re-scheduled for Monday, which is when it snowed 6 inches. We were going today. . .regardless! The funny thing is we also are getting 4 inches of snow today and seriously, have hardly had any this year! So, we arrived at the rec center 30 minutes early to give her some time to get suited up and observe. There were two classes (each with several kids) going on as we sat and waited for our neighbor, Claire, to arrive. It was a perfect opportunity to show her what was supposed to happen. Next to the "lesson" pool is a kiddie water park with every imaginable sprayer and slide available. I decided I would let her play for a while since we still had 25minutes until her lesson was supposed to begin. At 10:50 we went back out and waited (and waited). She was having a blast just dancing around and dipping her feet in the pool, the time seemed to fly. At 11:15 I assumed something was wrong. I knew I would have to take matters into my own hands. . .we were going to have a lesson today! So, yes, Mommy taught the lesson:) We learned "motorboat" bubbles and even got to the point she would put her entire face in the water. We learned to monkey crawl around the edge of the pool and finally, she practiced floating on her back. She did not love it, but she did it. . .several times. I am so proud of her! Not just for doing things I know made her uncomfortable, but for doing them for me! No arguing or whining. . .just the perfect little student. I am so excited to see what happens next week when she has an actual teacher that really knows how to swim! Here are a few photos. . .