In the swim
We finally made it to the pool today. Granted, we've been to a pool a few times this summer, but for the first time, we got to swim outside at the JCC pool. It only took a month, thanks to a combination of bad weather, kids' wishes to go someplace with a water slide and a rescheduled swim meet (which forced us into the JCC's indoor pool last week.
We had a lot of fun ... eventually. After arriving, we swam for about a half-hour until safety break (10 minutes in which all the kids must stay out of the pool). I wandered over to the deep end and tried to summon the courage/memory that I can do it to jump off the diving board when I witnessed a painful accident. These guys, probably no older than 20, were doing goofy dives when one of them did what I could only describe as a spinning bounce off the end of the board. But his foot slipped as he faced toward the back of the board, and he went into the water first with his shin, which bounced the board up just as his chin came into contact with it. He took a few seconds to surface as his friends swam over to help him and the lifeguard looked concerned.
The guards put him on a backboard just in case, and the paramedics were called. In the meantime, no one was allowed in the pool for a long time -- maybe 40 minutes -- during which we were getting cranky in the heat. Littlest was getting fidgety and tried wandering every place he could; Eldest was hungry beyond the snacks we brought. But once the pool reopened and we got back in the water, our irritation cooled. Littlest had so much fun -- he's becoming a brave little swimmer and for the first time was jumping off the side into water over his head. Eldest jumped off the diving board eight times and is getting better at swimming back to the side on his own (he just needs to remember to use his arms). By the time we left, we were tired but much happier. We picked up dinner at Noodles and came home.
Littlest's mood didn't last, especially after the late night last night, but he fell asleep earlier than normal despite his protests. There's nothing like swimming to tire the boys out. Or the parents.
We had a lot of fun ... eventually. After arriving, we swam for about a half-hour until safety break (10 minutes in which all the kids must stay out of the pool). I wandered over to the deep end and tried to summon the courage/memory that I can do it to jump off the diving board when I witnessed a painful accident. These guys, probably no older than 20, were doing goofy dives when one of them did what I could only describe as a spinning bounce off the end of the board. But his foot slipped as he faced toward the back of the board, and he went into the water first with his shin, which bounced the board up just as his chin came into contact with it. He took a few seconds to surface as his friends swam over to help him and the lifeguard looked concerned.
The guards put him on a backboard just in case, and the paramedics were called. In the meantime, no one was allowed in the pool for a long time -- maybe 40 minutes -- during which we were getting cranky in the heat. Littlest was getting fidgety and tried wandering every place he could; Eldest was hungry beyond the snacks we brought. But once the pool reopened and we got back in the water, our irritation cooled. Littlest had so much fun -- he's becoming a brave little swimmer and for the first time was jumping off the side into water over his head. Eldest jumped off the diving board eight times and is getting better at swimming back to the side on his own (he just needs to remember to use his arms). By the time we left, we were tired but much happier. We picked up dinner at Noodles and came home.
Littlest's mood didn't last, especially after the late night last night, but he fell asleep earlier than normal despite his protests. There's nothing like swimming to tire the boys out. Or the parents.
Comments