No Fear: The Joy of the Jump

I can still remember the first time I had to jump off of a diving board. It seemed so high and I was terrified. It took a lot of practice tries (sitting and holding someone's hand-- I presume my swimming instructor) and finally I did it. I never really loved it though. I knew I had to do it, so I did. Some kids like to step into the water slowly. To slip in a bit at a time until we get used to it. I was one of those kids. Of course, I took my swimming lessons when I was about 5 or 6 years old. I loved the water and was never afraid of it, but the jumping... not so much. Of course, I've also never jumped of a bridge or out of a plane and that is not likely to ever happen (unless the plane is in the process of going down and there is no alternative).

Peanut is nothing like me when it comes to that. She is far more like my daredevil husband. He loves roller coasters, scary movies, jumping out of perfectly good planes... It terrifies me to think that one day Peanut might want to do these things... But for now, she's sticking with jumping into the pool and loving every second of it. I can't get over how much has changed in just one year. Remember this girl?
The little girl who was terrified of the water now can't get enough of it. We're back at Aqua Kids for another fabulous summer of swimming and fun and Peanut.... well, let's just say she's not afraid of the water any more! This year she's blowing bubbles, floating, and learning everything she can about this wonderful thing called swimming.






This week she learned the basics of diving. Arms up...










knees slightly bent...










bend forward...













and...





Splash!













But really, who wants to just dive off of a stair when you can jump off of a diving board?




Ready? Steady?


Go! There's nothing quite like that look of wild abandon on her face as she leaps from the board... I can only imagine what the look on my face must have been like, but it certainly wasn't this pure expression of joy and triumph. As terrified as I am about what she might decide to jump off of in the future, I know I have to just let her go. For now though, I'm glad it's just the diving board.

Jump away my little fish!