Swimming with baby

[SpikeMomma]

What do you do? It's the first time we'll take him. Got him a swimming nappy. Do we need any floats or stuff like that?

Novice needing advice...!

where did you get the mesh sling?

Redtartanlass,laughed and felt a bit sad about your 'crying in the corner' comment.
May I just say that I don't see the point of over intellectualising it? If you like swimming,then it will rub off on your kids. Don't get the special baby swimming groups at all (apart from the mothers socialising aspect which is great.)

Took dd last week. Pool closed at 4 for kids' lessons. At 3:40,we were the only ones in the pool having a whale of a time,while scores of similar aged kids shivered on the side waiting for their lessons,whilst the mums just sat around.
Why didn't they just get in with them? (Know it's difficult with babies as well but plenty were alone and also,quite frankly,looked as if they could do with the exercise!

Moondog thanks for your concern was only exaggerating the ?baby blues? bit. . Take your point over ?intellectualising? it but, it is wonderful fun and has given my 20 month ds2 amazing confidence and fun in the water. He does not use wings and when we?re on holiday it?s amazing the way he jumps on and off the li-lo, completing submerging and knowing to grab onto the sides to prevent himself going under. My ds is 20 years old and there was nothing like that available to him and he also has a great confidence in the water.

However as a person who has been deeply affected by a beach drowning of one of my family, I want to give my child every chance I can. And as long as he continues to enjoy and learn from it, I will continue to hand out my hard earned cash.

RTL..just related to the baby blues stuff.Snivelled for weeks at anything when my two were born.
You're right,I'man old misery! I just love swimming and have spent hours in the pool with dd (plenty of neglect in other areas though!)

Must be a big gap between your two?!
Hideous to hear about the drowning.May I ask who it was and in what cicumstances? One of my biggest fears,hence my insistence on being able to swimv

Very close male cousin, he was on holiday with female cousin. Sneaked dingy out from under parents' nose. Swept out to sea.... 12 years old. 6 years later female cousin who survived killed my drink driver.

Life is cruel.

BY drink driver

redtartanlass.....

For the record, we didn't take dd swimming until after 6mths, as she's was all harnessed up with dodgy hips, but she loved it from the word go and still does! We've just started aqua babies 12 weeks ago, and she can now 'swim/float' on her own, with 3 of the nice orange armbands the pool give them to wear on each arm, and a big tube float underneath her, without panicking because I'm not holding her!

I have been taking ds1 since he was 12 weeks. He loves. We use a float seat and /or hold hime in arms. I always take him in the shower afterwards. He also uses the shower at home and now he's 8 mo - sits on the floor whilst we shower playing with toys. Legs strategically placed in case he topples.

Well, i bailed it this weekend, although i bought a cute swim nappy from mothercare, so i sort of did something!

Really good idea to shower together. Might try that this week to get him used to it and then take the plunge (see what i did there..!)

I don't know of any classes near me, and i think it may be slightly less stressful to take him with dh on our own.

I had a bath with him the other day, it was the nicest bonding experience i've had. Highly reccomend it. My friend suggested it, to gently introduce water to them before going swimming. He LOVED it!

I took ds swimming at 10 weeks when living overseas, went to local place last week and ds hasn't been for 3 months, he loved it. The instructor was great and all sorts of toys were provided plus all the floats, armbands and rings etc. Instructor basically said that if you show the baby that you are not scared of water by blowing bubbles and putting face under etc, then they will copy you when they are ready. No problem - I just hate going underwater!!!

I have the book "What to expect in the first year" which says that it is not a good idea to let babies go under water as although they have the dive reflex which means they hold their breath, they still swallow water and this can lead to "water intoxication" - ie. dilution of the blood which can dangerously reduce sodium levels and cause swelling of the brain . Not sure if this is true but it's certainly put me off. Also, submersion increases risk of infection of ears and sinuses.

Also - take your baby car seat/buggy in with you - then when they are dressed - you can pop them in it while you get dressed and they won't roll away! although some pools have playpens.

Ds went swimming from 12 weeks old and loved every minute of it - but he is a Pisces!

Spikemomma

Have you tried yet? I agree about the bathing - I bathed him with me form the first week and it's lovely. I used to feed him in the bath as well. Not so good when he poohed...

When you try swimming I found that the best piece fo advice anyone gave me was to get yourself dressed first. The first few times I went were lovely until it came to getting us both dressed. I would do the baby which would start him off crying) and then he would scream blue murder as I tried to get myself dressed etc. Now I wrap him in a big towel, get myself dressed and then see to him. Only brief tears.

I found this works everywhere and I alsways see to myself when dressing etc otherwise I never finish anything. Good luck!

ALso try a swimseat. DS loves it. He sits in it and I can even do some lengths pushing him along with my chin (which he finds hilarious).

taking ds swimming on monday for first time, going with another mum. he's 5 months but small, more like 3 months in size (5.5kg). need to get swim nappy but can only get to supermarket - huggies little swimmer sml are too big according to website. what should i go for?

we started swimming when DD was 4 months old, there's a parent and baby class at our local pool two mornings a week, they have floats, balls and toys etc in the water, and they do lots of nursery rhymes where you're pulling the baby through the water - Jen loves it! we're not encouraged to use armbands, but they have those noodle type things we can use - DD is now 22 months and almost swimming alone (if only mum was brave enough to let her go!). if we go at other times, we take a ball and a noodle with us, but sometimes they'll get stuff out for you if you ask the lifeguard.

make sure you have a warm towel on the side of the pool so you can grab it as soon as you get out. if baby is shivering when you get to the changing rooms, maybe hold him under the shower, if it's too hot, you can stand under it and splash it onto him - warms them up a treat, and just get him dry and dressed as fast as you can.

we use huggies swim nappies, mainly because she grew out of her reusable and i haven't been able to get another one, but i think Mothercare do the reusables one for about five pounds, you just swill them out and then throw them in the washing machine.

also - when Jen was tiny, if she was tired, she sometimes fell asleep in the pool, it doesn't matter, they're safe with you! I always have a drink and a biscuit ready for when we get out, keeps her busy while I'm getting dressed!

hth - hope he loves it, it does wonders for their confidence!!

Fishie,
my DD was also tiny so always had small nappies but the swim nappies seem extra small, so the bigger size might fit him. sometimes the pool sells swim nappies but they tend to charge a lot more, but worth a try if you can't get them elsewhere?

lel, thank you you've answered all my questions in one go, fab. i know can get big (well med) nappies locally, just have to hope they don't fall off!

Good luck!

I was put off by reading that if they do the swimming under water thing too much they swallow too much water and knacker their kidneys. I think it was in a water safety leaflet.