Headed to the pool with your baby? Read this first
The first time I went to the public pool with my kids by myself, I panicked.
I prided myself on being willing and able to get out and do a lot with my kids without needing another adult - I truly considered it to be one of my parenting strengths. My husband was in the Air Force and gone a lot, so it was a skill born of necessity...and I was really, really proud of it.
But wrangling a wild toddler with no survival instincts and a slippery, fearless 5 month old turned out to be beyond me. I was totally out of my depth (pardon the pun). After 20 minutes of struggling to maintain a hold on my infant daughter while my 2.5 year old screamed "catch me mommy!" before flinging himself spread eagle from the edge of the pool, I was beside myself. Other moms graciously stepped in to help hold my daughter, and despite a generous amount of side-eye from the teenage lifegaurds, we all survived.
I was humiliated and defeated, and I sobbed the entire walk home. Feeling totally deflated, I remember arriving home and texting my husband "I am NEVER going to the pool again." To which he, annoyingly, responded "lol. why didn't you take that water sling thing?"
Cue the WHY DIDN'T I THINK OF THAT moment!
What my husband was recalling was a simple blue mesh sling I had been gifted when my daughter was first born. It was water safe, and for the first few months of her life it's where she bathed - every night we would shower together in the sling, snuggling and sudsing and calming down for the night. It's one of my favorite memories, and was such a natural and gentle way to maintain my sanity (and hygiene) while giving her exactly what she needed...me.
As she got older and started enjoying baths with her brother, we'd gotten out of the routine, and the sling had been languishing in my closet for a few months - mom life being what it is, I had completely forgotten about it until that moment.
The next day, we went to the pool again, but this time I had the magical blue sling in hand - and thankfully, miraculously, we actually enjoyed ourselves this time! My daughter was close and secure, able to splash around and participate without me slinging to her every second. My son was able to swim and jump and play to his heart's content because he had more of my attention and at least one of my hands (sometimes more). Instead of having moms come up to me with pity in their eyes offering to help, I was hearing "that's such a great idea! Where did you get that?"
We went to the pool almost every day that summer, and for many summers after, and we never forgot to bring a water carrier again. Once my kids were old enough to hold their own in the water, I still kept one handy just in case - because invariably someone would get tired, or need comforting, or need some "time in" with a parent. My daughter is now 3, and if a time ever comes when we don't bring the water carrier, I still always regret it.
So if you're a new parent (or new parent of multiples) wondering how the heck you're going to stay sane (and cool) this summer, learn from my story - go get that water carrier TODAY. When you're ready to learn more, check out my podcast episode below all about Babywearing and Water Play to get the down low on water carriers, water wearing safety, and more!
