Last year the one thing happened to us that we swore would never happen; our two year old fell into our gated pool when no one was watching.
It was a Saturday morning and our friends were over for some summer swimming fun. I went inside to start making lunch and asked my husband and friend to watch little Emy. She had just finished swimming and was wrapped in a towel playing with her toys on the side of the pool sans water wings. Lila, our older daughter who is a strong swimmer, was still in the pool when I heard her yell, “Mommy Emy’s in the pool!” As we all looked up Emy’s head was just going underwater and her face was filled with terror. My friend Kristen bolted through the screen door, jumped in the pool, and pulled her out of the water. And thankfully our two year old was fine. In just a split second she must have slipped into the pool while the adults were chatting on the porch – not even ten feet away.
I try not to imagine what could have happened if our smart Lila hadn’t alerted us to her little sister being in the pool. We learned the hard way that accidents can happen to anyone, even when adults are close by. And the experience frightened the daylights out of us. Emy hasn’t set foot near a pool since without her water wings on, and an adult by her side. And she’s always resisted swimming, lessons, and putting her face in the water…but this spring break it was time to change that.
I was contacted by Baby Otter Andre Dawson Aquatic Center to teach Emylia swim safety. I had heard of the company whose slogan is, “Our School, Your Pool” from ‘the Hawk’ Andre Dawson at the Miami Marlins. The former Major League Baseball Player and Hall of Famer learned how to swim at age 50 from Marlene and Mindy, the founders of Baby Otter, and loved it so much he became the face of the business. He told me, “When I took lessons I was in the pool with babies! It was entertaining and I was amazed that after just a week they would go from fearing the water to swimming. Mindy and Marlene take a lot of pride in their concept, they give a lot of one on one attention to all of their clients. It’s very personal.”
Dawson isn’t their only celebrity client, Mindy also taught Gwyneth Paltrow’s daughter Apple to swim. She wrote this letter afterwards:
Our friends and family watch flabbergasted as they watch this little two year old swimming like a little fish. The best part is, I know that if she ever fell into a pool, she would know exactly how to save her life. How can you ever thank someone for teaching your child that skill? It is impossible. But we are so very grateful to you and Marlene. Thank you a million times over. We hope that in the autumn we can bring you over to teach phase two. ” – Gwyneth Paltrow
I admit I was a little skeptical when they told me it would take just five straight days to teach Emy what to do if she fell in the pool, but I decided to give their trademarked “Turn, Kick & Reach” program a try. What I loved about the school is they came to our pool. We are all so busy these days and the convenience of doing this in our back yard was so comforting to Emy. Miss Stacey worked with Emylia alone for the first day, and then mom or dad would get into the pool at the end of the lesson the rest of the days.
Emylia wasn’t learning the backstroke or how to float in the first program, this was strictly about survival. On day five I had to drop Emylia into the pool and watch as she turned, kicked and reached for the side. My heart was in my throat the day before when Miss Stacey practiced this with her, but here’s how she did with mommy.
It’s pretty amazing that our sweet girl who couldn’t stand to get a drop of water in her eyes in the bath tub, and cried every lesson because she didn’t want to go underwater, now begs us to go swimming every day! She even asks to go underwater, and has graduated to letting go of the wall and swimming back to us. And today she left the steps and swam to her daddy. Turn, kick and reach works, and any homeowners with children need to learn this program early. I can’t wait to start both our girls in the next level with Miss Stacey.
Baby Otter Andre Dawson Aquatic Center has several different program options for individuals and groups, from infants to adults. They are state and nationally certified, and have even begun licensing their schools. If you don’t live in South Florida, look out for Baby Otter Andre Dawson Aquatic Centers popping up all over the country!
Remember drowning is the leading cause of death of children under the age of eight. With so many of us getting ready for swim season, now is the time to get your little swimmers safe. Don’t make the mistake we did…ditch those water wings and learn swim survival.
Disclaimer: I received a discounted swim program, but all opinions are my own!
So very important and we did swim lessons with the girls when they were babies, but were actually just talking about doing some this summer with them as they are getting older and want them to be more aware of swim safety, especially since my husband’s mom has a pool in her backyard that they go in as the weather warms up. So, thank you for sharing and will totally check out what you shared here.
Wow this is so scary! Sounds like an awesome program and something I really want to look into for my boys. So glad your precious peanut was ok, and good job teaching your girls What to do in the water, and then sharing it with us!
We live near the beach and have a pool, I really believe in the importance of swimming lessons, it’s a life saving skill.
This is my biggest fear. I had a dream once that Eli drowned and it was so terrifying and traumatizing. We’ve done one round of swim lessons, but I really wish they had this program up here. Sharing this all over!!
This message is CRUCIAL! So important! Emy is adorable, BTW. 🙂
This is so important for people to understand! Though my son can swim, I am putting them in swim lessons this summer to learn the safety tips that I may have overlooked. We spend nearly everyday in our pool.
Great post and SO important!!! Thanks for sharing your story, I’m sure that was a frightening few moments….I always worry about stuff like that happening.
Crazy, but good ending to your story. I’m so happy that Emy is now comfortable in the water and that you can be for her, too. There is a similar program near us and I truly wish I would have put my son in it. He’s having such a hard time now learning to swim, I wonder if he had the comfort level at a young age, whether he’d be a natural in the water now.
Oh I can’t imagine how scared you must have felt! I have heard of this program before and I have a few friends who swear by it. I’m thinking about signing up this summer. You really never know when there’s a pool around. Thanks for sharing.
It was awful and I’m so glad we got her in the pool safely!
i’m totally doing this soon too… it’s been on my list for a while. each of my kids had VERY CLOSE CALLS!!! it happens too fast!
Wow! She’s so good in the pool! My oldest is scared to death of the pool without water wings (even at 5 years old). This really makes me want to get her enrolled in swim school ASAP. Congrats to Emy for such a great accomplishment and thanks for the reminder!
Oh my goodness that story is terrifying! I am so glad this program worked for you! We have one similar in our town and I have done it with each of my children and after only 1 week they know how to swim. It is amazing!!
Aww!! Those videos! She’s so strong.
Such a chilling story, and so amazing that Emy could be helped, and fast.
I know of such casualties in this world. They happen too often.
So scary! I need to teach my youngest how to swim this summer. We don’t have a pool but my parents do and we go to the beach a lot.
I don’t even know where to start on this, let’s start with… wow that is SO impressive that she learned survival mode so quickly. This sounds like a truly amazing program. I didn’t realize drowning was a leading cause of death in kids all the way through the age of 8. That’s so scary! I love that you shared your (horrifying) experience and the great outcome with us! This is wonderful!
I know – swim survival is soooo important! It really is an amazing program!
A very godd lesson to bring out in the open. You can never be too safe. This product looks wonderful! Thanks for sharing.
A very godd lesson to bring out in the open. You can never be too safe. This product looks wonderful! Thanks for sharing.
Omg….my hear was racing just reading the first part…. yes I am a strong believer in swim lessons…it can save their life!!! I fell in a pool at 3 and didn’t know how to swim. My mom was very watchful as well. All it took was a second.
It is very scary! Thank you for reading!