The best decision I ever made was to lie to my kids. About summer swim club. “Well let’s just join for May and June. If you don’t like it you can stop at the end of June.” The truth? They were going to swim with the club right through to August.
Best Lie Ever Told To My Children
Up until that point both of them were in regular swimming lessons. The half hour ones. Neither was progressing very well. Meanwhile my friends had kids who were swimming with the confidence of little fish. They were in summer swim club. Not only were they swimming in the deep end they were doing four different swim strokes when they were the same age as my two. Six and seven years old. What wonderful life skills. Never mind that I could still do but two. And rather poorly at that. I wanted my children to be able to do all four as well.
Why lie and not tell my children the truth? Sanity. Mine. Summer swim club runs from May 1st to the middle of August. Swim practices are an hour and a half long and are every day Monday to Friday. Add in a second daily swim practice twice a week and the possibility of competitive swim meets most weekends and it doesn’t take a genius to realise that’s a hell of a lot of swimming. Had I told my two that this schedule was in their future they would have instantly balked. And walked. However that July reprieve option had them agreeing to dive in.
Those first few weeks were interesting. With the three outdoor pools not open until June the practices were overly crowded in the one small indoor pool rented by our club. But not so crowded that my observant and ever vigilant mother, sitting in for one practice, couldn’t help but hear my son’s frequent “How do I mooooooovvve?” as he floated endlessly on his back.
Thank the lord he was floating. It had been rather alarming to be told by the head coach “I thought he was going to drown when I first saw him swim.” Charming. If it hadn’t been for one of my lad’s two swim coaches leaping in and casually supporting his back for a couple of practices I think we’d have been encouraged to leave and try again the next summer.
His sister was a natural; yet she was the one I initially worried about the most. She’d had a rocky swimming history. It was several regular lesson sets before she’d even put her face in the water. Yes, I didn’t sleep much back then; I was convinced she’d never learn. However once we recruited several like-minded school chums to join her in swimming lessons she began to improve and there was finally hope. Before swim club time she was doing “rocket ships” on her tummy. After a few weeks of swim club practise this once reluctant swimmer was confidently swimming lengths. A miracle that would have had me happy to pay double the moderate club fees, if need be.
Looking back, the early days were a steep learning curve for all three of us. I’d never joined a swim club so lane ropes, backstroke flags, flip turns, breaststroke turns, zipper drills and sailor dives were like a foreign language. I struggled to learn the difference between the individual medley and the freestyle relays. Even the words I did know were called different names; front crawl was now freestyle and back crawl was backstroke.
There were also the odd unexpected hiccups. For example my son refused to wear the black Speedo bathing suit that every other boy in the club wore. His swim togs of choice? Huge voluminous swim trunks with side pockets that ballooned out behind him like a spinnaker in a gale force wind. No amount of gentle nudging by his coaches about how he’d “swim so much faster in a Speedo” could convince him to switch. So I worked out a deal with him. He could swim one week in the jumbo suit and one week in the Speedo. By mid June he was Speedo boy full time.
It wasn’t long before I learned the one potential downside to outdoor summer swim club. The weather. With the exception of thunder and lightning (when the kids aren’t allowed back in the water until 20 minutes after the last flash or rumble) they swim rain or shine. As the water is warm and they’re already wet the damp days don’t impact the kids. It’s a little different for the parents.
As the end of June approached I started to get nervous. Would I have a fight on my hands to get them to keep swimming through the summer? I was so impressed with the huge improvement I’d seen in just eight short weeks. I didn’t want my children to stop swimming. Neither did their coaches. We needn’t have worried. In the end everything unfolded naturally. We didn’t even discuss it. They … just … kept … swimming …
Today I’m happy to report that not only did they learn those four different swim strokes they kept returning to swim with the club for the next twelve summers. Yes, I’d have to say this was definitely the best lie ever told to my children.
If you’ve got a reluctant swimmer and are considering summer swim club, I’d highly recommend that you dive right in.
This wraps up my post for Finish the Sentence Friday. The sentence prompt this week was of course “the best decision I ever made was …” Many thanks to my marvelous hosts Kate’s Can I Get Another Bottle of Wine, Janine’s Confessions of a Mommyaholic, Stephanie’s Mommy, For Real and Kristi’s Finding Ninee. This week’s guest host is Lizzi Rogers
36 Responses
gosh…I have a confession to make…I have also lied to my kid many times and although he is only a pre-teen but, I am proud of his achievements cause of that lie since things would not have gone smoothly in our household…lol
I am sure you must be so proud of your son and daughter…yeah!!
Yes, we do what we can to smooth the way – for both us and our children – don’t we!
Sometimes, we just have to do what we have to do as parents to get our kids to do certain things. Seriously not going to argue with you on that and couldn’t agree more. And by the way, I used to teach at a summer day camp before having kids and you are right about swimming outdoors in all types of weather in the summertime and was always interesting to try to get the little kids into the pool on cloudy, cool overcast days!
Summer Day Camp! Oh I’ve bet you’ve got a story or two about those days!
In my grocery store they have a kid center which is a glorified daycare while you shop. It’s great when i have lots of time but dropping off your kid in the daycare center takes 10 minutes. They need Identification and signatures and contact numbers…it’s ridiculous. So sometimes i tell her that the kidzone ladies called me before heading to the store and said they were sick today and no kidzone was available. After doing this three weeks in a row, she finally asked me why these ladies were so sick all the time…next week I need a new lie. The moral of that story is not as meaningful as yours but all the same we tell lies as parents, lol. Great story though, sometimes the lies are for the better. 🙂
Laughing out loud here. So funny. Yes, they call you specifically to say they are ill. Oh that’s good. You do need a new lie. Perhaps the kidzone is out of order? After a morning of strawberry picking my son shut down McDonald’s ballroom. For 3 days. Oops.
So funny, but I totally get this! I’ve had to lie more times than I can count. In fact, until they could read, my sons believed what I’d told them when they were little: that all that food by the check-out stand they were always so enamored with was for dogs.
LOL
Oh don’t even get me started. My two believed Orange Crush only came out at Hallowe’en because I called it Hallowe’en Juice , that Fruit Loops were only available in the city of Victoria because I called them Victori-os’ …. But “dog food”? Stellar Beth. Stellar.
Oh, man, Kelly, I just talked with another mom who was raving about summer swim club. My seven-year-old is still not an independent swimmer, and she really resists lessons. Perhaps just “diving in” as you recommended, would be the best choice. 🙂
Go for it Stephanie. It sounds just like my daughter. It was so so hard to get her to take lessons much less swim at the lessons. At summer swim club they place the swimmers with swimmers of similar ability (just like in lessons) but the length of the lesson is what makes the difference. I can’t say enough about them – they are amazing. Huge growth in swimming over the summer. Huge.
I fully believe that with certain lies- especially this type- the ends justify the means. I wish i had been forced/bribed/talked into swimming on a team as a kid. I got into triathlons as an adult and the swim has been my biggest challenge. Generally I think it’s important to treat your kid with respect and honesty but really, swim team is one of those “For your own good” type situations.
Swimming was always a challenge for me at triathlons too! I did a couple of mini ones and man the swimming was daunting. My daughter does them now and she loves the swimming part the most.
The collection of lies on this page is hilarious! I don’t know which I like more — your post or the comments. Love you, Kel!
Aww thanks Harmony. Ya made my day – truly. Thank you.
I love this! And it got me thinking about starting swimming lessons with my little ones, so thanks for the motivation!
I was cringing for most of this post wondering what your kids would do once the halfway point hit. I’m glad to hear they kept swimming. They got me beat! My dad would make me go to swimming lessons every winter at an indoor pool but I still hated it! Your kids actually swam in inclement weather…expect thunderstorms of course.
I am so happy that my two took to swimming. Those indoor pool lessons in the winter weren’t much of a treat – I did that too Bianca. However swimming outside in inclement weather with their new pals was so much fun for my kids. Go figure!
I tell my son that the playground is closed for cleaning sometimes. He believes me. I think it’s awesome that your kids ended up being into swimming and learned all four strokes! My son has thus far flunked three “mommy and me” swim classes as he won’t put his face in the water. I’m thinking of trying private lessons this summer.
Oooooh – “playground is closed for cleaning!” I like that one. Very clever. I also like your idea of private lessons for T. He’ll get the one on one care that just might make him put that face in. “Look at the fishies on the bottom of the pool” kind of thing.
Oh the lies I’ve told my kiddos. My mega roll of Charmin couldn’t hold the list. In the end, it’s all for their good, right? Ok, ok, ok… sometimes it’s for our own good. BUt, in the end, that’s for their good, too, right? 🙂 (Visiting from FTSF!)
Hahahah! Lovin’ that mega roll of Charmin concept.
Great story Kelly ! I am quite sure that we have all told those little white lies, or at least exaggerated the truth ! I definitely lied to my girls when they asked whether Santa was real, we weren’t quite ready to give up the magic !
Yes! With you on the Santa front lie Jane. I was lucky for a bit – my daughter told her somewhat doubting brother “Don’t be silly. Mom would never buy all that stuff. There IS a Santa!”
This was a really interesting twist on FTSF! So glad things worked out in the end 🙂
I am too Tarana!
I think every parent has told a lie to their kids….most for their own good. I know I have told my fair share…but funny can’t think of any right at the moment….LOL! What popped into my mind was your mention of your son not wanting to wear speedos. I had the same problem with my son and I never did convince him to change….LOL! BUT….he did actually become a lifeguard for the YMCA and ended up teaching other children how to swim. He only did that for one summer which was a shame because he was so very good at it.
I think the reason my son did opt for the Speedo in the end was … Peer Pressure! Kind of awkward when you’re the only guy on the relay team wearing jumbo shorts…. That is a shame your son stopped coaching. It’s hard, isn’t it? You just want to nudge them to keep doing something but that just doesn’t work anymore when they’re adults. Uh well.
My daughter was in swim and swim club for 2 years. We absolutely loved it. This year, at 14, she decided not to swim. We, as parents, miss it tremendously! It was so much fun. Enjoy the club, they learn so much!
Yes – it is an amazing experience as parents isn’t it? I’m sorry for you that she’s chosen to not keep swimming however hopefully you can stay in touch with some of the other parents. After 12 summers my two are done. They are too old now! However some of the parents are my dearest pals!
You played that one just right, Kelly! Think of all they gained that summer and all the summers that followed! Yep…that was TOTALLY the best lie ever. A mom’s got to do what a mom’s got to do!! 😀 –Lisa
Thanks Lisa! I’m with you – a mom’s gotta do what a mom’s gotta do.
Love these tales from when your kids were little. I just had the soccer people move my son down a level. Down! That’s what I get , of course, for starting them all in soccer at the same time. I got to watch my kindergartner play soccer for the first time with 2nd graders (dismal!) and my 3 year-old with 4 year-olds (where she kicked their rumps… By kindergarten she’ll be a professional.) I definitely concocted some white lies in order to move her up a team and him down one. That song “the things we do for love…” keeps rolling through my head. Charming post, as always!
Now there’s a story = move one up and move one down. Love the “things we do for love” comment. Of course, now it’ll be stuck in my head for the rest of the day …
This helps alleviate some of the guilt I feel sometimes, about the lies I tell my kids. But I feel bad that I haven’t signed them up for swim team – it’s a big thing where we live, but it takes up the whole month of June, and that’s when we take our annual road trips. May have to re-think the scheduling, for next summer.
Hi Allie. Thanks for stopping by and commenting. It is tricky fitting everything in. We were lucky – here you can sign up and swim the days you want. While most of our summer vacations took place after swimming was done we did do some vacations in June the first few summers. Love the idea of road trips. Such a coincidence- my daughter and I were just looking at old road trip pictures this afternoon. That particular one took place fifteen years ago! Man alive where does the time go?