This summer for Chase has been a good one. In fact we are already done with a full week
of school, which in most ways has also be positive. However, before the summer is a distant
memory, before I can no longer recall the details, I need to reflect on a
small, but wonderful success story.
There are two pool options for our family living in Shawnee,
KS: Splash Cove and what we call
"The Shark Pool." The latter
pool is more or less the "big kid pool," complete with a lazy river,
2 big slides and much more deep water for cannon-ball jumping. Splash Cove, however is the pool we normally
go to and because it is populated with mostly little kids it is easier to
manage for me alone with two kids. Chase
(who is closing in on 4, but still definitely 3) can keep his head above water
and his feet on the ground at nearly all areas of the pool. And for a kid with an out-of-whack vestibular
system having your feet on the ground is a big plus. Of course my nearly 6 year old, Bryce, would
so much rather go to the Shark Pool, which is only possible when I have a
parent for each kid.
Late into the summer we were off the Shark Pool--Cheers from
my kid with a solid vestibular system.
At first I tried to take Chase in an area that is marked 3 feet depth;
however, Chase can't stand there. I am
standing there getting clawed to death as Chase is dealing with the fact that
I'm holding him and he might float away at any moment (or however it might feel
to him). You see, I can hold Chase
without issue on firm ground, but in the water I think the movement of the
light on the water messes with his system.
We experienced similar oddities during a trip to the aquarium once;
where the light patterns on the ceiling where making it impossible for him to
walk without falling over. So I huff off
to the small area designated for babies at the Shark Pool. I was irritated because it was hot and I
wanted to swim too. I wanted to go down
the slides and bob around the lazy river, but no, as the mom I'm off to the
dare I say Stupid baby pool?
Quickly I had a pep talk with myself. It's not about me. This is not my childhood. This is good, cheap OT for Chase, this is a
chance for Bryce and his father to be obnoxious in the pool (I'm rarely that
fun). So I sat down in the zero entry
baby pool and watched my sweet Chase have the time of his life. We have been to the Shark pool a handful of
times over the summer and never once did Chase attempt to climb up onto the
playground equipment in the center of the baby pool. But here during my crankiness I noticed him,
right up there! Wow, did he just go up
those stairs no problems? On a prior
trip I carried him up there and attempted to shove him down the short tunnel
slide, but he protested and I didn't push it.
But on this day he was up and down many times. I was so proud. He was motor planning just like any kid would
do. All these other moms taking for
granted that of course kids climb up stairs on playground. You must also factor in all the chaos that a
pool creates and the constant sprays of water from all angles of the pool
slides and equipment. While it is
intended for little kids, it is also intended for kids with a smooth sensory
system.
Eventually I see that Chase is looking into tunnel
slide. A kid would approach and he would
retreat. 100 more kids come up, every
time the scene is repeated and Chase never goes down the slide. By now I'm sitting on a patio chair and clutching
my hands at my face. I must look like
one of the fans the camera crew finds in the bottom of the 9th inning when the
home team is down just a run. I'm
holding my breath, silently begging this kid to go down the slide. 20 minutes goes by and Chase is still
flirting with the idea of going down the slide.
He is in, then out, he's in and then pops back out and then... HE DID
IT! I was so excited I ran to the bottom
to high-five him or hug him or celebrate at least a little, and he didn't even
so much as acknowledge me or his accomplishment. (which is highly unlikely, this kid claps and
screams yea for putting a cup in the sink.) And with that he slide down, with
no future hesitation, 62,000 more times.
I was so over joyed, I had a lump in my throat. Really it was up there with watching the kid
hit a home-run. Which I hope to write
about one day too. Never have I been so happy to sit at the
stupid baby pool. I'm also proud to
report that the next time we went to the Shark pool I gladly took Chase to the
baby area and enjoyed watching him without any pretense of crankiness.
And as for our start the school year, we are beyond happy
with the school and his team of teachers.
The only slight drawback is that my sweet boy is a hair puller. We are working on it. We've been working on it and as soon as I
know how to solve that, I'll write about that too.
