Back Float

Today we worked a little on water safety, the kids got to try on life jackets.  We also worked on going underwater which Holly could do but usually once once a class and not for long or deep.  By the end of our one month session Holly and Olivia must have went under water while waiting for there turn with the teacher at least 50 times a class session.  In practice with Mommy now Holly can "swim" under water to me.  And although she doesn't hold her breath as long as some of her friends, she can see and look and opens her eyes under water which a lot of kids don't do.  None of that happened on this day, but it was the start of learning to do all that.  We practiced belly floats and back floats.  Holly can actually do a much better back float with mommy then she ever ended up doing in class just basically due to the way they held her under her arms not giving her a chance to relax.  With me in the pool I can put one finger under the center of her back to help push her stomach up and she almost floats, but she has a tendency to scissor in half.  I think another reason it was hard for her to do in class was the extreme sunniness, it was so bright I have no idea how they expected the kids to look into the sky while trying to float.  That said I was happy with her progress simply because I was glad it wasn't me in the water with her and she was having a chance to learn and hone these skills with a more unfamiliar person, which is a challenge to Holly as well, but she rose to the occasion and did fabulously.