Are we having fun yet?

So we started swim lessons again with the boys last week. Our goal is to get Connor to a basic level of independent swimming as soon as possible so Sarah and I can stop having drowning nightmares about the boys, so we signed him up for a 2-week everyday boot camp kind of thing. Jamie protested vigorously when we suggested signing him up as well, but after the first day of watching all the other swimmers and bragging about all the things he could do, he wanted to take them too. Connor cried terribly the first day. They are very loving at this place but also very direct about getting them used to being the water, putting their faces under water, etc and Connor was clearly terrified.

After the first day we talked to him about how it was OK to be scared but his teacher would make sure he was safe. We suggested to him that if he wanted to cry he should wait until after the lesson and then cry. As I watched him the second day he did some crying but was also clearly trying really hard to hold it in because sometimes he would sit on the side of the pool with an anguished expression and two hands clapped over his mouth. But he toughed it out and then came to me to be dried off afterwards. As he stood there shivering, he said, "N-n-n-now, m-m-m-may I cry please?!!!" I said yes and cry he did.

But incredibly that was the last time. By the next day he was completely fine and he has gotten better everyday since. Yesterday he went all the way under water to pick up rings from the pool floor and jumped off a little platform, going all the way under. Jamie, meanwhile, is totally fearless, diving (literally) headlong into every new thing without hesitation. He is the most advanced in his group and is very proud of the fact that he often goes first to show the other kids how to do new skills.