… or rather, watery activities.

Several mums at the Tower Hamlets NCT coffee group mentioned going swimming with their babies. I thought that sounded like fun, so I signed us up for a baby swimming class at the nearest pool. We had our first session last Tuesday, and the second one today.

To call it swimming is really a gross exaggeration. It’s more like floating and bouncing around in water. Or rather, being floated and bounced around in water, because the babies do not participate very actively. The parents do most of the work.

The activities were surprisingly varied. Firstly there were ways to get the babies used to the feel of water: splashing water on their heads so it trickled down their faces (which led to some serious grimacing and nose-wrinkling) and pouring water on them from small plastic watering cans. Then “jumping” into water from the pool edge. And then of course various ways of moving across the pool: bouncing up and down, floating on the front, floating on the back with mum holding baby’s head only (so they can feel what it’s like for the body to float freely), floating on the back with baby’s head on mum’s shoulder and mum making kicking movements with baby’s leg, etc etc.

Ingrid was the youngest participant, as she barely clears the 3-month threshold. (Not the smallest, though.) So she’s not able to do any of the more “advanced” exercises such as kicking her legs, or gripping the rail on the side of the pool, or pushing a ball in front of her – mostly because she has no clue what is expected of her!

That doesn’t matter, though. And it doesn’t matter that what we do is nowhere near swimming. If this gets her used to water, and if she comes away with the understanding that water is pleasant and fun and not scary, then swimming can follow later. For now we’re just having fun.

At least I’m having fun. Ingrid mostly just seemed totally overwhelmed. New sights, new sounds, new smells, all this water everywhere… After both sessions she’s been quite exhausted and fallen asleep as soon as the pram started rolling. I hope she will get less tired as she gets used to this, and then enjoys it more. Still, even now, I think she has been interested in this new experience – she has not shown any signs of not liking it.