By Small and Simple Things

As I write this post there's a lot of emotions running through me. And if you're a mom (or a parent) you will know what I am talking about as I walk you through this experience and accomplishment.

When Aaron first came to live with us he was 13 months. He wasn't your average 13 month old baby. He had a whole lot of life experiences that most babies do not have, which is part of why he came to live with us. One thing we discovered quickly was his deep fear of water. Tubs, sinks, pools, lakes, every body of water--Aaron really avoided at all costs.

We decided there were 2 options, not bathe him until he forgot about whatever the problem was, healed and trusted us or we had to bathe him everyday until it became routine and normal. Of coarse we went with the latter. At first we fed him ice cream and Oreos in the tub. It distracted him enough that he would stop crying and fighting. Plus it was a happy association. We bought all sorts of tub toys. Bathing was the funnest greatest part of the evening, every night for the past year and a half. We bathed all three boys all together so he wasn't singled out or any different than the other boys. Bath time was just what everyone did, every night. It was loud, wet and wild. Everynight I had to mop the floor afterwards, and often change my clothes.

Last summer we went to the pool and the lake every chance we got. Aaron often declined to get in. Mostly he watched Luke and all the kids having so much fun. Luke went to swim lessons all summer and he got to watch those too. Sometimes he would swim with me, he trusts me the most. He was most comfortable observing 10 - 15 feet from the water's edge. (It was kind of nice not to worry about him jumping in, Owen was determined to jump in and swim--at 12 months he was sure he could do it. It felt like baby suicide. Kind of stressful.)

A few weeks ago, I signed Luke up for swim lessons and they asked if I wanted to put Aaron in the beginner class. I said maybe this summer, but they talked me into it saying we can just give it a try. So half-heartily, I suited him up before lessons. I tried to act like it was all normal, but inside I was really conflicted and anxious about it. What if it was too soon? What if he wasn't ready? Could this make things worse? Or harder on him?

At the start of his lesson I walked him over and introduced him to his teachers. He was acting normal so far, I was relieved. I told them this was his first lesson ever and go easy on him. Then I slowly walked backwards, not to miss a second, back to my seat. I sat in awe and watched as Aaron got in the water--no problem, kicked around the pool with his teacher, jumped in off the side, blew bubbles with his nose and mouth in the water, WENT UNDER WATER, and even did an assisted back float with his ears under water, it was amazing. He even smiled a few times and waved to Luke, Owen and I sitting on the sidelines.

There's a scripture that comes to mind here. " . . . by small and simple things are great things brought to pass . . . " It was an inconvenience to have all three boys bathe every night altogether(they did usually need it though), but it was a simple routine. Now Aaron is comfortable with water. Something that was terrible and painful is now all healed. I am so proud of him, so happy he is ok with water now, so grateful to have been there to help him and be apart of this accomplishment for him. This is a YAHOO parenting moment.

Here's some shots from his lesson.

Waiting to get in: Owen has found where I keep my chapstick and is determined to eat it.

Talking to Tanner, one of his teachers who lives around the corner and is just great.


Pushing off from the side, (I'm against goggles at this stage in the game, but he wanted to be like Luke and I wasn't going to tell him no, I was too happy he wanted to get in.)

Looks at that happy face!

Nice job in swim class Aaron!