Phoenix is scorching, topping at 112 degrees today and over the last few days. As luck would have it, we are pool-sitters this week and part of next week too. My pal Julie and I took the boys over to the pool this afternoon for a dip. She was able to finally take some photos of Connor in the pool swimming around for me.
Connor is a little fish. He isn't afraid to get into the water (working on obeying and waiting until Mommy is actually with him in the pool-scary!) and he will jump in and actually go under and come up very happy. He swims about and has started trying to push my hands away from holding him. Apparently safety is a low priority for him. I do allow him to swim untethered but close to me and he treads water very well and keeps himself afloat with the floaty suit.
He must hold a boat or a car in one or both hands, so using arm power has been a bit of a question mark. Since he is wearing a flotation suit, I think the next step (and I have conferred with my swimming consultant, Aunt Terri) is without the floaty suit tomorrow. We'll see how confident he is without that. Honestly, I don't think the child is afraid of anything except maybe missing a snack or meal.
A final note-always watch kids around water. This particular pool is not fenced and Connor, one evening, made a beeline for the edge of the pool. He also doesn't care if you are not in the pool when he wants to go in. Kids have minds of their own and safety isn't high on their consideration list. As much as I let the boys have a bit of independence on the steps and close by, Tom and I are always there. Always. Ian is more afraid of the water as we finally discovered he worries that he will go under and no one will catch him and he'll go to the bottom. It took awhile to figure out why he was so afraid, but honestly, as a parent, I am afraid that he might go under too. I actually worry about him more than I do Connor because Ian panics where Connor finds a sense of adventure and rises to the challenge.
My thanks to Julie for the photos and for taking Connor for a few laps about the pool so I could swim with Ian too. You are a great friend.
3 comments:
Some very good advice on safety around water. Especially with autistic children who, for some reason, many seem to be drawn to water -and the "no fear" thing is often an issue with them as well.
Nice job to have in those temps! Glad you enjoyed it.
It was my pleasure, Linda! I'm glad I could get some photos for you; I'll have to send you the ones from my camera, too.
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