To think Saturday swimming lessons will be a bit miserable?

[MerryBeret]

DT (reception age) previously had swimming lessons but their teacher moved away and they got cancelled and we took a while to find an alternative, but spaces have now come up.

Previously it was before they started school so lessons were day time (late morning). Obviously that's not possible now they're in school.

We've been given a choice of 11 or 1130 on a Saturday or 5:30 on a Friday, and have to sign up for the full summer term.

530 on Friday will mean we won't be able to eat as a family any more, and the logistics might be slightly tricky as we also have a younger DC. It feels like it will end up being a bit of a rush, and also maybe not ideal when they're tired at the end of the week.

But I'm also loathe to give up my Saturday mornings - it means we can't go away for the weekend, or have a full day out somewhere without them missing swimming (and paying for two lessons they don't go to). The times feel like they're a bit too late to do anything beforehand, and then going out afterwards in the afternoon is also a bit tricky because of younger DCs naps. I don't know if it feels worse because it's summer and I want to have the freedom to just wake up on a sunny Saturday and go to the beach etc if we want?

Aibu about feeling annoyed about committing to this every Saturday, or will it not bother me at all once I'm in a routine?

YABU - just go for the Saturday lessons
YANBU - make Friday work so you can keep weekends flexible

If anyone wants to comment on swimming lessons and logistics and the least painful way of doing this, please do as I'm welcome to any advice! I think it's the having to commit to several months in advance that's making me concerned about it, as it's a long time if it doesn't work out.

By the time I got to my third the answer was
Don't bother til they are 7
Then 121 lessons.

Oh interesting! Would you just take them fun swimming every so often before 7, and just resign yourself to having to watch them closely/use float vests/puddle jumpers etc until then?

We've tried swimming lessons twice and found them such a pain and so expensive. All for half an hour a week, faffing around in water with no real chance to get used to it.

However, the weekend sports/activity thing is something I think you just have to do as a parent. I remember my parents shuttling the 3 of us around various activities for years, bless them.

Back to the swimming, we now take him to out local leisure centre pool which is more relaxed and we can spend much longer there. His primary school has a pool so he will have lessons there too. And we're going to look into a private block before he starts.

4 DC here and we used to do the Saturday morning thing and it dominated the morning.

Id go with the Fri night slot, get them showered and into onesies there then get a McDonald's or similar on the way home then stick a film on when you get home and collapse!

I always chose Saturday morning. You'll still have Sundays for a family day out. Friday evening I kept activity free for years, with 3DC we had at least one activity every other day. Now we've somehow managed to end up with two swimming and one at drama on a Friday. DH makes tea while I'm at the pool and hands me a glass of cold white wine as soon as I get home! At least there's less to drive them to the rest of the week now they're older.

@MerryBeret you're entering the primary years, this is peak 'pay to watch your kid do things badly' stage. Eventually they develop some skill and some preference and you won't be expected to stay and watch. You'll just have to accept weekends away won't feature in your lives for the next decade or so. Or take the financial hit of missing slots you've paid for.

Go for Friday.

We’ve had Friday gymnastics between 4.30 and 5.45 start since dd started reception 7 years ago. I think you just get used to it and it’s fine! The good thing is about Friday, you don’t worry about being out of routine and eating later etc as it’s weekend the next day.

I wouldn’t go for the Saturday - mid morning would be a pain.

I really think it is different with subsequent children though, because by then you know more or less what they are taught in swimming lessons and can do it yourself. I think that once you know this stuff, as long as your child is reasonably comfortable in the water, you can replicate most of it yourself. But it's better if you can commit to once a week rather than once every so often.

I would do Friday bring PJs for after shower and have a nice quick tea pizza or whatever they like make it fun Friday

I'm an older mother, and also my DS is now 14. I just taught him myself - is that not a thing now? He was swimming independently at 5, and very quickly progressed, though will never be in the Olympics.
Your Saturday option would have clashed with lots of parties, for DS.
Friday sounds perfect to me.

With children this is how it is really.My DS went to Swimming ,and we just had Fish and chips that evening.Not everything is going to fit in perfectly! These are the least popular times, presumably why they have a slot.I would do Fridays,take out if possible or just fish fingers and oven chips .DS will thank you when hes older.My DS is in his 20s now ,still fondly remembers our activities inc swimming .Went on a lads holiday swam out to the boat .Didnt have to but all his friends were .Its a life skill in many ways

My 8 yr old foes Friday 5:30pm. Unable to book 1-2-1 as swim school is popular and they have no slots for this. Not ideal but we've sucked it up. Refuse to give Saturday up for swimming.

Imbusytodaysorry We live by the coast,and by 12.00 the car parks/parking would be bursting by then! Also in Summer young children burn easily and midday sun is not recommended.

First world problems 😂😂😂😂

I looked at taking my two children swimming this Easter holidays while visiting my parents as our pool is closed for a year for upgrading.

For the three of us... £24 for a 45 minute session.
It makes the £30 a month for the weekly lesson loom cheap.

We like our Sunday morning (11am) swimming lessons!
At first I felt like you but now they really fit our schedule well:

• we sleep until late, hang around in pajamas, take our time getting ready (such a luxury!), then DS + one of us go for swimming while the other parent prepares the lunch. Bliss!
• we realized it's super rare we have the need of staying out all day both Saturday and Sunday. If we plan an all-day outing we just do it on Saturday. And, anyway, if we want to do something on a Sunday we have plenty of time to do it straight after swimming.
• DS is now in Y1 and he's way too tired at the end of the week. He's tolerating his Thursday afternoon activity but we had to cancel the other club he had on Friday.

Same! Thought I’d hate them, but really like Saturday morning lessons!
No rushing around in the evening, fitting dinner in, going out in the dark in the winter… we have a quiet couple of hours and then go to swimming in the daylight and well rested.
Still possible to go out for the day or whatever and we do miss them occasionally if need be.

We do Saturday at 9, i like it as then do the supermarket shop straight after and feel like I'm back home by about 10.30 a.m having achieved loads 🤣
We miss occasional lessons if we have something on but it seems to work and Sunday is our sacred day of being lazy and not having to set an alarm!

I found Saturday morning much easier than 5pm Friday.

Id do the Fridays as there's also often birthday parties on Saturdays now they're at school x

Saturday is much better in my opinion. Everyone is tired and grumpy on a weekday evening, and on a Friday people just want to chill out and relax.

Don’t bother with swimming lessons until they’re super confident in the water - lots of fun sessions, holidays with access to pools etc and splashing about if that’s realistic/affordable for you. Then intensive lessons. My 6yo DD is currently blasting through swimming levels having spent lots of her life splashing about after two much older siblings.

Also, I’ve learned that situations with classes never last forever. Our Fridays were jam packed for a couple of years, now they’re completely free and Sunday mornings are a riot - 8-9am swim, 9-10 gym class, 9-11am gymnastics (3 kids). This will pass too, so we’re just going with it for the time being and enjoying fairly productive Sundays after being up bright and early.

Also, if you’re missing out on family dinners together, plan nice breakfasts or brunches and these will substitute for the time being.

These comments about - just wait and do it when a better slot comes up or get private lessons are living in dream land. Getting swimming lessons (private, local authority, 121, 1 to many - any type!) is harder than getting Glastonbury tickets in some places. I am on every waitlist in an hour driving radius, am willing to pay basically anything, and have been for nearly 1.5 years. Anyway, id take the 5.30 pm Friday slot. No brainer. It’s one meal a week. Make it your takeaway night. Leave your weekend free.

That's fair @Sunseeker83 . We've taken the rubbish slots before to get first dibs on the better ones next time. They tend to offer slots to existing customers before waitlist ones. If you're hoping to just do it for a term in the summer, that would favour the Fri night I think. Then hope to switch to a better slot in Sept, because Fri nights in December are pretty grim.