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Elbow, elbow, tummy, knee.
I repeat these words all summer long. It is the phrase Addie’s first swim instructor, when we were on a vacation last year, taught her for climbing out of the water.
I cannot begin to tell you how important water safety is to me and my husband. Obviously it is to every parent that has a child, but for us, we have a VERY DEEP POOL in our backyard (came with the house) so safety is SUPER important to us. When I hear of a child that has drowned, I cry for at least a week whether I know them or not, as it is HEART WRENCHING to even think about.
For that reason we have had our girls in swim lessons from the earliest time we could. It’s not to train them early to be the next Michael Phelps, but to give THEM the tools to HELP themselves, and to give US/YOU the few extra SECONDS we/you need to reach them. As my younger sister recently said, “My son is 2 years old, EVERY time he is in the water he should be getting a lesson – whether it’s a parent, a swim instructor, a babysitter, anything that gives him skills to make him safer around water.”
We started our oldest daughter (so bizarre to say that about a 2 year old!) last year when she was 14 months. We did lessons for 4 weeks, 4 days a week, 15 min a day. Then after her lunch and nap, I took her back in the water and we swam even more, all summer long. She thought she was getting infinite play time, but it was really much more than that.
(This was super fun BTW for mom since I was “secretly” pregnant with #3, claiming I was struggling to lose the baby weight, and had baby Hayden to keep track of while Addie ran around a pool! You KNOW the people at the pool LOVED seeing Mama and her extra “post prego” lbs running around chasing Addie! Oh well! I was going to give Addie every chance I could to swim).
People were amazed at our community pool seeing Addie swim to the wall and then diving in to the shallow end for rings. And we felt better knowing she was comfortable holding her breath and being under water.
We actually had an incident when Addie was 17 mos and Hayden was 6 mos. Addie accidently fell into our pool. She was walking around the pool when we were having a pool party and missed the corner, falling into the deep end. I was the parent in charge of watching the pool at the time, but I was also holding Hayden.
(Future tip – don’t hold a baby while you are the “lifeguard”…)
I got to Addie in 2.2 seconds, but could not reach far enough into the water to grab her and she wasn’t strong enough at 17 mos to kick herself up from the deep end. I knew I couldn’t put Hayden down because she could roll into the pool and I wouldn’t be able to find her. I didn’t want to take my eyes off Addie long enough to take Hayden anywhere else, and to call for help would have take longer than Addie might have had…
It was that moment, when as a parent, you make the best choice you possibly can.
So I jumped in with Hayden, and reached down for Addie.
By the time all 3 of us were out of the water, the rest of the adults at the party where at the pool edge to help.
As I watched Addie run off again with the other kids just as they lifted her out of my arms from the pool, I knew her lessons had been worth it. Neither of our girls were phased the slightest by the incident. Both had held their breaths and didn’t so much as cry when they got back out of the water.
So I knew this spring we would be back at the lessons again, which is why I’m writing this post. For all of you that don’t live in OC, I’m so sorry you don’t have this resource, but please, please talk to other moms in your area and find someone for your Littles….otherwise, email Dan and FLY him to your home! (There was in fact one family that was here from Chicago on vacation that had their child swimming with Dan in our session this past week as he had taught their older children and they knew how fabulous an instructor he is.)
In Orange County we have a few great options, but MY FAVORITE is Dan Osborn!
Dan is a teddy bear of an instructor…always comforting the Littles, always reassuring them, but all the while he has them under the water, grabbing the wall, kicking to the side. His goal is independant swimming and depending on the age of your child, he works on a different skill set for that stage. I was so thankful to meet him this year!
And even better was hearing Addie say, “Where Dan go? Big kicks wif Dan?? Swim at Dan’s?”
Dan instructs all over Orange County and has for YEARS. I kind of feel like his name is a secret code within the inner circles…”Oh you swim with DAN…you are soooo in the know!” (People don’t really say that, but it feels that way!) Dan teaches at private homes, for 10 days straight, in 90+ degree pools, for about 15 minutes a lesson or however long is beneficial for your child that day. On the final day the parents swim with Dan and your Little so that he can show you his tricks with the kids. As one dad said while we (read “while Dad”) was doing the final lesson, “You make this look a lot easier than it really is!” So that final day is definitely important.
Addie and Hay loved it! They learned so much that once again people were amazed watching them swimming both at our community pool over the past week, and at a resort we were at over the Easter weekend.
(The above photos are Hayden BTW – She is 13 mos)
And again, not that we are trying to train the next Michael Phelps, but if our kids LOVE the water at 13 mos and at 2 years, and they learn the skills to keep themselves as safe as they can at each age, then SIGN ME UP! (We in fact signed up again for continued instruction in June…).
And parents, leave your egos at the door. When you find someone that can teach your kids about the water, and you see the amazing progress, stop talking and LISTEN to what they have to teach YOU. My very wise younger sister also said that it was amazing to watch a good instructor with her kids (in reference to snow skiing) because they know the right things to say that triggers kids learning skills. Something that looks so simple for us to teach, is in fact difficult. Even when you think you can do it, the instructor will always know more than you, we really need to listen to THEM.
For those in Orange County, get on Dan’s schedule for this spring and summer ASAP
(he actually teaches until October)! Trust me, it fills up!
Dan Osborn – swim2dan@flash.net
Happy safe swimming everyone! Get ready for summer and have LOADS of fun in the sun!!!
Now go have some pool fun with your Littles!
(My apologies to all those still in the snow,
I wont tell you about the week of 80 degree weather we just had….)
Oh, and yes, Piper and I were at the pool too -
but you are CRAZY if you think we were ANYWHERE NEAR a bathing suit!!
(Disclosure – I was not paid to write this post. And Dan didn’t know until I called for permission to show my photos. As always, I’m promoting someone that has provided a service for my family that I believe was invaluable! I would be remiss in NOT passing on this contact information to you.)
WOW – you we’re just reading my mind! We are heading to the Outter Banks this June and I am in desperate need of brushing off rusty swimming practices immediately for all three. I would call Dan this very instant but it it 10pm and the Littles have bronchitis. Thank you for hearing me – great timely post.
Kathleen´s last blog ..Have fun fun fun til her daddy takes the T-Bird away
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He is fabulous! Hope it helps your family out! I think Dan’s email is the best way to get him, just remember he teaches during the day, so you probably wont hear back until later in the evening.
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Thanks Shanna for the invaluable information! I wish I can find a “Dan” here in New England (it’s supposed to get to 80 tomorrow, yay!).
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hi bridgett,
feel free to contact me. while this summer is filling up rapidly, i teach all over the country including arizon, colorado, northern cal, and possibly new york and even europe. it may be possible to set something up in new england and, if not this year, we can definitely see if it can be worked out for next year.
dan
swim2dan@flash.net
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If you find him in New England, specifically Boston, let me know!
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I am also in the Boston area and would definitely be interested.
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if you any of you boston-ites want to shoot me a mail, i will happily discuss lessons in your area!
swim2dan@flash.net
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I 100 percent agree about pool safety and teaching them young. I have a great woman in Irvine that sounds as if she gas the exact same teaching methods. She had Cole swimming like a champ at almost 19 months and holland is a fish now. People would freak out last summer when they saw them at 1 1/2 and 2 1/2 swimming around the pool.
We too are signed up again for June lessons. My instructor does 3 weeks in a row 15 minutes a day with an option for a fourth week. She teaches June through September.
It’s the best to have fun – not anxiety – at the pool!
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Jessica,
Can you share the name of your instructor? I am going to try Dan but if schedules don’t work, would love to have another name.
Thanks!
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Love the photos! you are lucky to have little fishes, mine (just turned 4) struggles with a fear of the water. She has NEVER liked the pool, as a baby as a toddler and now as a 4yr old. It’s been a long road, we did swim lessons for 8 months last year and stopped when it became cold. We spent time in the pool this weekend (I wouldn’t disrobe either and I don’t have an excuse!) we were actually swimming when the quake hit! She did really well but as her younger cousin was DIVING for rings I was reminded she is FAR from pool safe.
As a pool owner too I know the FEAR that haunts you. :)
BTW – YOU LOOK GREAT SHANNA in your SUNNIES! ;D
Lindsey (aka Modchik)´s last blog ..Rock n’ Roll Easter
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I’m so glad to know I’m not the only mama putting her kids in the pool so young! I had my 6 month in there last summer and am signing up for a month of swimming lessons up here in Rancho. The city does them every day for 30 minutes for 2 weeks at a time. I’m due with #2 in July so I’ll just be doing the two June sessions! My daughter will be 16 months at the time so I hope she’s as good a swimmer (and her instructors are as good of instructors) as yours are! So good to see what’s possible. Thanks for posting the pics!
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We definitely don’t live in the climate for year-round swimming, so I forget how important it is. But seeing your 13 month old swimming by herself inspired me to research swim lessons in my area. I want to get my two year old and six month old swimming in case anything would ever happen… and because it is just a lot of fun. Thanks for the encouragement!
Kim´s last blog ..Starve a Fever, But Fill Up On Love
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Thank you for the info. Just curious, is this the method where they put them under the water to swim to the side or roll to their back to float? It sounds like your instructor might be a little more compasionate than the guy we used here in OC last summer. The kids were gagging on water, coughing, even vomiting (which had me scared of ‘dry drowning’ (thanks Oprah!)) and he would just tell them to put their head on his sholder and rest. No compassion at all, which is hard for a mom. The first 3 lessons I was in tears. He DID teach my 2 year old to swim like a champ and with a pool in our backyard this was my goal. However, I think I might call your guy for my youngest. Not sure I can go thru the bootcamp approach again!!
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No it is not that method. I did look into that last year, but chose instead to go with actually teaching them to swim. At Addie’s age Dan focuses on her kicking to the wall, grabbing the wall, being able to turn herself underwater to get back to the wall, etc. No rolling on your back to float. Hayden was more about getting used to the water, and being under water, but by the end of the 10 days, she was moving onto kicking to the wall, etc. But by day one could easily hold herself on the wall. When we went to our community pool after her 4th lesson, she walked right up to the pool, turned herself around and lifted herself down into the pool while she held the wall. Crazy! The first 3 days are tougher, and kids do cry which causes more air to to be swallowed, therefore more burps, etc. He does push them past what may seem is their comfort zone, however he is always fully aware of what each child is capable of and how much air/water etc they have taken in. Dan most certainly has compassion for your children, even through firm instruction. I truly recommend him as a favorite! Easiest way to reach him is by email. Good luck with your little one!
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Ironically we are signed up to Swim 2 Dan for 10 days in May! He comes highly recommended by a neighbor! Super excited to get my 4 yr old water safe! Great pics!
Jen {Tiny Oranges}´s last blog ..Spring Break
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Great little fish! Amazing photos!
BTW our neighbor filled in the pool [with dirt] when they moved next door. They were afraid of their little boy falling in even though there was a good fence around it.
Then at a party they found that same son floating in their friends’ pool, not knowing what to do.
In a panic, they signed him up for swim lessons, and consequently he loves the water and swims like a fish. Now they know that he knows what to do.
Like you say, Shanna, swim lessons are really important, I agree!
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I am SO glad I read this! I’ll have to give Dan a call since I’m in the process of looking into a private swim instructor for my toddler. We have a pool as well and the stories you hear are so scary. I don’t even feel comfortable with a pool gate and a back door that my toddler can’t reach!
What a scary experience you had with your little one and I’m so glad everything was OK.
-Aimee
Aimee @ Ain’t Yo Mama’s Blog´s last blog ..Favorite iphone Apps For Toddlers
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[...] The correct answer to today’s clue was My Favorite Everything: April 5, 2010 – Elbow, elbow, tummy, knee [...]
Is this business related to swim2pete? I thought I recalled that maybe they were brothers??
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I’m sorry, I don’t know. I have not heard of Swim2Pete, I’ve only used Dan.
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Hi,
Great post. All the photos are so nice. All children are learning well. All the best for all students.
Thanks
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Unlike you, I have had a very bad experience with Dan Osborne. I had paid for a swim session that my son was not able to make. Dan said he will refund the money in full, no problem. But was that far from the truth… You bet. After over 10 e-mails and 6 months of waiting, he returned a partial amount of what I had paid and when I asked for the rest, he stopped responding to my e-mails. This is not how anybody should do business. My experience with him was far from pleasant and I will not be referring him to anybody. I think swim techniques are one thing and having ethics is another, but both are needed if I want to interact with someone !
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