Petit Poisson

Last fall, I would have said that the activity I am most looking forward to doing with Isla is swimming. Most of the programs require that the baby be at least 6 months old for lessons and the classes fill up quickly so, on the first day of registration in November, I diligently set my alarm and signed the family up for classes in February.

For Christmas, Isla got a few little swimsuits, some swim diapers and a plastic diaper cover (required by most of the pools around here) so we would be ready when the big day came. During bath time, we would encourage Isla to splash and get her face wet and she was loving it. By the time February rolled around, I was all ready to get in the pool and show the world what a great natural swimmer my kid was.

Uhhh, not so much. Actually, I think I could sum the whole experience up as a disaster (complete with a trip to Dairy Queen afterward for a sundae to soothe my nerves). We took our first classes through the City of Calgary and unfortunately, unbeknownst to me, the Parent and Tot class ranged in age from 6 months to 4 years and we were the only people there with a child under the age of 3. The change rooms were a disaster with nowhere to put the baby while I was getting dressed and nowhere to change her (thank goodness I brought Dave with me and could pass her out to him in the lobby to change). The pool we went to was also apparently the coldest pool in the city and within the first 5 minutes of our 30 minute class, Isla was blue and in tears. We pulled her out early and began the whole changing process again (only this time I was turning blue since I had to get her dressed and warm before I could deal with myself).

I cried the entire way to Dairy Queen and decided in the end that there was no way we could do this for another 8 classes. Fortunately, when I called and explained the situation to the City of Calgary people, they were very understanding and let us withdraw from the class without paying the withdrawal fine.

Needless to say I was more than a little gun shy about trying again and it took me several weeks of drilling my friends on what their tips and techniques were to work up the nerve to get back in the pool. I tried again on my own at a Wednesday morning Parent and Tot drop in swim at Cardel Place and it was like night and day to our first experience. The change rooms were lovely with playpens to put the baby and large benches to change her on. The pool was nice and warm and there were a lot of different areas to check out which kept me interested. Isla loved it and so did I.

Since then, we've gone swimming several times at Cardel Place and we've also gone to the Family Swim at the Big Hill Leisure Centre in Cochrane. The Cochrane pool isn't quite as fancy as the Cardel one, but they have nice family change rooms for us to use and quite a big toddler pool to play in. I also like that the Family Swim times are on evenings and weekends so Dave can come along as well.

A few tips and tricks from friends that I've gathered along the way:

• Bring two towels for the baby and one for yourself. Bring one of the baby's towels out to the pool with you so you can wrap them up as soon as they get out of the water and then you still have a dry one left over to get them dry. You can also use the first towel to lay on the bench and make it a bit softer for the baby.
• Bring simple clothes for the baby to change into (i.e. a sleeper or a onesie and sweatpants). Trying to wrangle a damp baby into jeans or a frilly dress is a pain.
• Use the playpens. They're the perfect place to safely put your baby while you get dressed and ready and you don't have to worry about them rolling off a bench or eating something off the disgusting floor.
• Don't forget to bring a fresh diaper to put on the baby after you're done (the swim one gets super waterlogged). I also like to bring a bottle of lotion for myself and Isla so that we don't get itchy from the clorine.
• Don't forget to bring a pair of flip flops to wear to the pool and around the change room. There are some pretty gross things on the floors at pools. Also make sure to shower and soap of your feet as well as your child's.
• I like to bring a cloth carrier into the change room (we have a BabyHawk). I find that it allows me to bring Isla with me when I'm doing things away from a bench or playpen (putting shoes on, going to the washroom, washing hands, etc). Because it folds up small, it's easy to store in the locker.
• I also bring my own lock for the locker since it saves me 50 cents per swim time.

Location: City of Calgary Shouldice Pool; Cardel Place; Cochrane Big Hill Leisure Centre
Cost: The City of Calgary classes were $34 for 8 classes (which we obviously didn't finish). At Cardel Place, the Parent and Tot swim on Wednesday mornings is $5 (the price is significantly more at other times). The Cochrane Pool charges $6 for our family on Friday and Saturday evenins.
Gear for Isla: Bathing suit (which is totally not necessary but I found some cute ones for $3 on the clearance rack at Wal-Mart this winter), Rubber Swim Pants (which I bought for $12) at Bo Bebe in Calgary, and Swim Diapers (I used Huggies Little Swimmers which are about $10 for a package of 10), 2 towels, lotion, and a fresh diaper to change into afterward.