Weekend...

Busy weekend!

Saturday morning, all the boys had swimming, as usual.  Their teacher has started taking Ben in the big pool the last few weeks and he is none too pleased about it. Part of it is that it's much colder than the therapy pool, where he has done all of his lessons up until this point. But the other part is purely Ben being Ben. It's only 3-1/2 feet deep in the lane they use, but he's convinced he can't touch the bottom. The logic of, "Well, even if you couldn't touch, you can SWIM now." or "The pool you've been swimming in is 5 feet deep in parts and you've been okay with that!", not to mention, "You are four feet tall, the water is not." is all lost on my otherwise very logical, analytical child.  I don't really have a leg to stand on since, although not pool-related, my fears as a kid were equally irrational. (still are?)

We ignore it though, knowing he'll come around eventually. I don't even get involved, I just give him his goggles, remind him he's NINE, and send him off with the teacher. I know he cries some, but I also know he does eventually swim when he's over there.

(I will say I can tell he does secretly like the fact that being taken over to the big pool by himself means he has surpassed Simon's level.)

Simon is coming along well too! He did panic after jumping a few weeks ago and suddenly forgot he could swim. It shook him a little, but he got back on the horse.  He's also doing much better with his back float, which freaked him out for awhile.

I do think both Ben and Simon, though their skills are vastly beyond where they were last summer, will still hang out in the shallow end of the pool again this year and actually, given that their confidence level is still not all that wonderful, that's a-okay with me. I'll force them over to the deep end when I have Tom there to help me child wrangle. Otherwise, they can stay where they feel comfortable.

Jonathan, this week, started full-on swimming underwater to Tara and to the steps!! He goes further and further every week. I can't get over it! Weirdest and coolest thing ever to see in action.  He may give me grey hair with his fearlessness sometimes, but it's SO different than Ben and Simon in (and me) that it just continually fascinates and surprises me what he can do and wants to do and isn't intimidated by at his age that I never would have even considered for Ben or Simon.  I'm glad I don't have THREE Jonathans though... one is plenty.

In other news this weekend, Ben had a sleepover at grandmom and poppy's. The rest of us got sushi and Tutti Frutti. :)

We also finished our garden box (sans dirt... maybe next weekend) and Ben went to another rock-climbing party where he mastered going to the top of the wall.  :) I posted the video yesterday... so proud of that kid!

I'm proud of Simon too because is working REALLY, really hard on his reading lately!! He got a new Star Wars early reader book at the bookstore yesterday and read us a bunch of pages from it last night.  He is making great strides in that department and is doing a much better job with sight words these days too. He remembers almost all of them now! He and I have definitely put in some serious time on the reading front lately  and will continue all summer. :)  He's my project. It has been a different experience from Ben learning to read. They went about it in totally different ways and on different timetables. Kids are a constant learning experience, aren't they?

And today is Monday... ahhh... my favorite. :) Quiet. Routine. Put things back in order. Happy day!