Swimming classes started up again this past week. Nicholas is now enrolled in their Octopus Class while Wesley is enrolled in their Jellyfish Class. Nicholas was thrilled to find out that Mr. Adam will be his teacher again. Nicholas got 3 new classmates for this session, and all 4 kids seem to be at the exact same skill level which is wonderful and exciting to see.

Wesley on the other hand was distraught over a change in teacher for this session. Worse yet, two of his previous classmates are in the same session but no one showed up for class this week except him. He started freaking out the moment the teacher came to retrieve the kids. I practically had to rip the T-shirt off his back as he struggled to get free from my grip. The distress in his voice and body language was quite a sight to take in if you can imagine. The teacher suggested that I walk into the pool area with him so I did just that, but the moment I put him down he started up with the same fit of panic again. It was embarassing being the main attraction in those moments especially since my sweater got pulled up/down in the process exposing more skin than I imagine anyone would’ve wanted to see. Nicholas’ teacher Mr. Adam even came over on his break to help out. Finally, the teacher brought him into the water after getting my ok and I quickly made my exit despite hearing Wesley’s cries because I knew he’d be ok soon after once he’s entered the water. Mr. Adam stayed with them for quite a while until Wesley started laughing and smiling again. Wesley’s teacher, Miss Amy, did lots of fun things with Wesley and he was definitely spoiled by all the attention this week. Hopefully he will act more cordially next week when he attends class again. My friend Elizabeth, who was witness to all of this, said the same happened to her older son previously and suggested that I pre-prep the kids ahead of time next time and warn them at the beginning of each session that they WILL NOT be getting the same teacher so that they are better prepared. I guess this is a lesson I had to learn the hard way.