On Monday I took him to Hilton Brown Swimming Pools in Onehunga for his first swimming lessons. The reason for that is because Oma will be looking after Nico on Mondays when I start work in 2.5 weeks, and she's quite keen on taking him for a dip.
Things we needed to bring:
- A baby, preferably the one taking the swimming lessons
- An adult to hold the baby
- Swimming suits for both
- Water-friendly nappy, such as Huggies Swimmers or cloth swim nappy
- Towels
- $115.65 for the 10 lessons (30 minutes each)
- $2.50 per visit for the baby
It was pretty warm in there - pretty much the first time I've attended a swimming pool in New Zealand and it was a good start. There were about 5 other babies with their mums and the one dad, all coached by two instructors.
We learnt to paddle and kick and float (face up) and do the monkey walk (don't ask) and dive. I think Nico enjoyed himself, he certainly slept well during his nap. It was all done with songs, sometimes with squirt toys and a foam mat. Nico didn't get dunked straight away - first-timers just get splashed on the head, right before they pull a funny face.
His eczema flared up again, I'm guessing because of the chlorine in the water - looks like we won't be doing that too often.
