Family swimming times - AIBU?

[FamilySwimming]

Just looking for a sense check on this one.

The two local leisure centres only have certain very limited times for family swimming, meaning in the kids' pool. So if I want to take my 2 year old swimming, the only times we can book are between 12 and 2pm.

My 2 year old eats lunch at 12 and then has a nap every day. Surely this is pretty standard for any child who has one nap per day?

AIBU or is this an absolutely insane time to schedule family swimming? I feel like I just won't be able to take her swimming until she's stopped napping completely.

I spoke to them on the phone and they basically said that my toddler's meal and nap schedule isn't their problem, but I was under the impression that this is most toddlers' meal and nap schedule, hence the AIBU.

People bringing toddlers swimming don't maje them a lot of profit so it looks like theyve allocated it as their unpopular time. I would guess all their mornimgs are allocated to local primary schools and from 2.30 onwards will be formal swimming lessons for age 4+.

I don't disagree though op. I never would have taken mine swimming at that time. Everyone i know takes toddlers swimming in the morning. Can you look for a different pool? Are there better options on weekends?

Do you think all pensioners spend their lives watching Bargain Hunt, drinking cups of tea and deliberately trying to make life hard for younger people ?
I am retired and between my volunteering job, child care , shopping for nonagenarian neighbour etc etc I will admit to sometimes venturing into shops during the sacred hours of 12-2 .
As far as GPs are concerned , if I am lucky enough to actually get an appointment I will take it regardless of time !
Ageism is alive and well on MN .

The clocks change twice a year and children and everyone else have to change their schedules then. Can you not just make nap time 12.30 Mon the 1pm Tuesday and pretend the clocks have changed

Lunch 11, nap on the car on the way then swim and if still tired then nap in the car on the way back

Haha, having the clocks actually change twice a year is more than enough!

This would be the idea solution if the pool was an hour's drive away rather than 10 minutes.

No it’s not. But also they don’t really have to factor in enforced nap schedules of children at nursery when those children are, in fact, at nursery 48 weeks of the year.

This presumably works for their other clients and the parents and toddlers not at nursery who can be more flexible about their schedule- so it’s a non-issue.

Then just sit in the car on your driveway or transfer to her cot/bed if she will let you.

Regarding nursery, mine would have said the same that all the toddlers slept at the same time but both of mine weren't doing so by the time they were old in the toddler room but too young for the pre-school room. They would read books or help the staff with little jobs quietly while all the others slept. A nursery can't physically make children sleep and it's not unusual to drop naps. We had dozens of friends in the toddler stage and only one or two were napping at age 3.

I'm actually wondering whether this is a SAHM thing

It could be.the SAHMs i knew tended to not like getting up and out in the morning. One i knew, you never saw before 11! Her toddler was a shit sleeper & constantly whingy, only ever napped for 30 or 40mins on the go in a pram. She didn't get why the rest of us stuck to nap routines but when you have a kid who naps for 2-3 hours solid and wakes up happy and easy you don't mess with it.

Its very normal for toddlers to nap after lunch.almost everyone i know had that routine.

My local leisure centre only has swim for all sessions for a few hours on Saturday, Sunday and an hour on Monday evening. I have complained to the centre, the local council (who have some undisclosed funding relationship) and their parent not-for-profit company. Not even a acknowledgement. Over Easter they had NO swim for all sessions for more than 3 weeks

This presumably works for their other clients

Honestly it will not be based on customer. It will be something like that's when they can most cheaply cover having enough lifeguards available for that pool. They don't make money off toddlers being brought swimming, they don't really want to facilitate it as a result so they have no incentive to make it easier.

This! I used to be a lifeguard. Swimming lessons are profitable.

It’s annoying but there’s not much you can do. There’ll be a time where she doesn’t need to nap anymore and you can take her swimming. Or a time she’s big enough to start lessons.
I feel your pain. My daughter does an activity for 3 hours every Saturday morning in our local city and it would be so handy to take my other two kids swimming during this time but the pool has lessons on and no public access to the it. Annoying but just one of those things.

I have to agree with this poster, a routine is good for kids but a rigid one is just setting yourself up for failure if you want to be out and about with them.

Yes well unfortunately I don't set my child's routine, the people who enable me to pay my mortgage do.

🤷‍♀️

But thanks to this thread I now appreciate that the children of SAHMs must have much more flexible routines.

For three weeks over the holidays, amazing.

Maybe I should just book in for one of the "inclusive" sessions then.

Who did you speak to on the phone? The person on the reception desk or centre manager/pool co-ordinator.

I'd say, if the reason is packed with school lessons/holiday lessons then you probably don't want to be using the changing rooms at the same time anyway. It's chaos and maybe they know that wouldn't be compatible.

If you haven't spoken to someone with actual control over planning the schedules it might be worth putting it to them that a bit earlier would work really well for the older babies/younger toddlers. 10/10.30 would be ideal.

Our borough's pools have different times each day but the convenient time might not the the convenient location but at least there is some choice. I gave up adult membership as it's been so inflexible since the pandemic, not just school/general lessons but really rigid slots. The private pools/gyms seem no better.

As a side note, I honestly can't imagine a nursery being able to enforce naps much beyond 3. Once they are in pre-school rooms I'd have thought those that wanted a nap would be in the minority. Quiet time maybe (for some kids)

Our local pool has family swim 2-5 every day, I find this annoying because i want to swim earlier than 5pm, the first lane swimming session but I understand that they prioritise according to what they can sell sessions for (non profit independent pool)

What SAHMs

Apart from sneery posts, there haven’t been any mentions of SAHM.

You are assuming everyone who isn’t on your schedule mustn’t have a job?

You really need to work on seeing things from other people’s perspective. Your children will benefit from it far more than a regular nap time.

Both my toddlers also consistently napped at that time. But then I started doing swimming lessons with my eldest which started at 12:00. So what I used to do was keep her awake until 12, swim until 12:30, then have lunch in the cafe/picnic area of the leisure centre (I used to bring a packed lunch), and then she'd fall asleep in the pushchair on the way home, about 1 o'clock.

My youngest is more amenable to earlier naps if necessary, so with her I'd give her lunch at 11:30, try and get her to sleep at around 12:00 (in the pushchair so you can walk to the pool while she's still asleep), then wake her up at 12:30-1:00 for a swim.

It is an annoying timetable, and a massive shame they have such a short window for a family swim... our local pool has long stretches, morning, afternoon and early evening that are for "free swim" or "general swim". What a shame.

Why do you keep writing the word inclusive in inverted commas @FamilySwimming?

I’m wondering if your intention is to be deliberately (not so subtly) provocative with this thread? with your comments about retired people, SAHMs and now mentioning the sessions for children with additional needs.

FWIW it’s working but I won’t be reading any further.

I’m not going to name the multitude of reasons why it is really important and great that there are sessions which cater to the needs of children with disabilities and their parents/caregivers. I would suggest that you maybe pause before you post just to consider for an instant what it is like to be in other people’s shoes. This will be a great gift you can offer your child too.

oh and FYI I am neither a retired person or a SAHM.

I wrote "inclusive" because that is what it is called.

They don't actually specify who it is for. I assume it is for children with disabilities.

But there are no other sessions which are actually inclusive of children who aren't able to swim between 12 and 2.

For what it's worth, I think they should be making more of an effort to be inclusive of everybody. Closing the kids' pool for 22 out of 24 hours a day is not very inclusive, is it?

How on earth is she jet lagged having not been there on a plane?
and travelled through many time zones - unless your local leisure center is really that far😂.

Sorry OP You are being too rigid, entitled and frankly ridiculous.