water safety Archives - Smiedendipity

Mini 2 Class at Goldfish Swim School

Posted on August 31, 2018

This post is brought to you by Goldfish Swim School. While I was provided lessons in exchange for this review, all opinions are 100% my own.

Can you believe summer is almost over? The weather says otherwise, but I’m seeing back to school and Halloween (!) items everywhere in stores…so I know fall is coming.

I don’t want to name drop, but yes. ELMO is in our class!

This summer has been a whirlwind of fun. Our little lady is learning so quickly, is super curious about everything, and always on the go. We’ve really just been trying to keep up, and wear her out with fun outside activities, trips to the splash pad on the weekends, and our favorite: swim class at Goldfish Swim School of Ann Arbor!

Not having any fun at all.

Yep, we’re back and having so much fun! Last year Isla completed her Mini 1 classes, which got her comfortable in the water. At 16 months, the little ones move into the Mini 2 class, where we start focusing on the mechanics of swimming unassisted.

High fives with her teacher!

Classes have a 6:1 student-to-teacher ratio, with more focus on unassisted kicking with a barbell, pulling paddle, underwater dips, unassisted gliding, wall holds, jumping in the water, rollover breathing, back floats, – plus more water safety skills.

I’ve talked about water safety before in previous Goldfish posts (you can read them here, here, and here), but after reading about Bode & Morgan Miller’s daughter last month I’m even more vigilant about water safety.

In the 4 weeks that we’ve been back in the Mini 2 class, Isla has progressed to kicking and pulling on her own, almost reflexively which is so impressive! We’ve noticed her practicing these skills in the shallow pool at the local splash pad pool here, she knows to keep her mouth closed and head above water. Obviously none of these things replace close, constant supervision…but it’s a step in the right direction.

Jeremy and I are still switching off who gets to get in the water with her each class, since it is a lot of fun. On top of the safety skills we’re learning, we often end up laughing a lot – it is great bonding time.

We’re enjoying watching her continue to progress, and have fun!

If you’re looking for swim lessons for your water babies (or big kids), you can find a local Goldfish Swim School at their center locator, and more information below:

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Have you had an awesome experience at Goldfish Swim School? Would love to hear your stories in the comments!

Goldfish Swim School of Ann Arbor – First Lesson Recap

Posted on August 22, 2017

This post is brought to you by Goldfish Swim School. While I was provided lessons in exchange for this review, all opinions are 100% my own.

Isla is turning 9 months old this week. Our laid back, easy going baby has turned into a super mobile, energetic little monster! I wrote recently about how she visited Lake Michigan with us, and went swimming in a pool for the first time.

Since then, we’ve gotten a little kiddie pool set up at home and she loves it. If it is full and she sees it, she squirms and squeals until we get her in.

This is Bubbles, the Mascot at Goldfish Swim School.

It’s amazing to see her having fun and being so fearless. But as a mother, having a baby with no knowledge of the dangers water can pose strikes an unbelievable amount of fear into me. Water safety is so important, and we wanted to teach our little one early.

So we got her signed up at Goldfish Swim School of Ann Arbor, and were excited to get started! It’s just a 15 minute drive from where we live in Chelsea, and well worth it. We recently had her first 30 minute lesson. Registration was a breeze!

Goldfish offers numerous classes based on age – from 4 months all the way up to 12 years old. Isla is in the “Mini 1” class, which goes from ages 4-15 months.

There were 2 other babies in the pool with us on Saturday, and 2 instructors – so we really felt like we got some great 1-on-1 time with each teacher. They were so good with the babies, making sure that safety and fun were the top priorities.

The instructors were amazing! So interactive and cheerful.

The Mini classes are a gentle introduction to the water, where Isla is starting to learn the basics of swimming and water safety. They also keep the pool at a very comfortable 90 degrees – it feels just like bathwater! I love the idea that we’re easing her into this, at her own pace.

Conditioning! Getting her used to having water on her shoulders and head.

I got in the pool with her, while daddy watched and cheered us on. Isla worked on the basic swim stroke, floating on her back, getting used to having water on her head/face, and even a few quick dips under the water! It’s so amazing how intuitive babies are, and how they reflexively know to blow bubbles and stop inhaling when they’re under water.

Practicing floating. She’s not so sure about this skill yet.

Isla was a little hesitant, but that’s why it’s great we’ll be coming back every week – so we can work on these skills and build on them so she can be safe and confident in the water.

I have to give a special shout out to the staff. They were so friendly, helpful in getting us checked in, and letting us know where to go. At the end of our lesson we realized that our car battery had died, and one of the staff members went out of their way to find us and ask if we needed help. That is sometimes hard to come by in those situations, so thank you!

At the end of our lesson we left with an adorable little baby swag bag, and smiles on our faces. If you’re looking for swim lessons for your water babies (or big kids), you can find a local Goldfish Swim School at their center locator, and more information below:

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See you next week, Bubbles!

Can’t wait to share with you how our little Goldfish progresses through her next few months of classes!

Have you had an awesome experience at Goldfish Swim School? Would love to hear your stories in the comments!