swimming

These are pics from a couple of weeks ago at our team's time trials. I couldn't take any pics this past Saturday at our first meet because I lost our camera the day before. Plus, my dSLR is broken.

We learned so much from the time trials. First of all, if it's too cold (the weather has been unseasonably cold here in Sacramento as of late), skip the early morning warm-up. Elise was so cold afterwards, she cried and kept saying she wanted to go home. Apparently, Coach Daddy did a good job pumping her up because she came in first place in the backstroke for the entire 6 and unders!

Secondly, we need to tighten the kids' goggles before a race. After Elise dived into the pool for her freestyle event, her goggles slipped up her face and she stopped a few times during the race, trying to adjust them.

This boy is an awesome swimmer. This is his first year on the swim team so he's competing against kids who have been doing this for years. He has natural ability, both Giao and I can see it. We know he's just going to get faster and faster as he builds up his strength. Plus, he has these huge, flat, size 5 feet that are like flippers! Whenever his feet hurt from too much walking or standing and he wishes his feet weren't so flat, we tell him they're good for swimming!

Swim team is a huge commitment. There's practices everyday during the summer, the meets are an all-day event on Saturdays, and the parents have to work at the meets. We're going to have to wake up REALLY early for some of the upcoming meets because they're far away. That is going to suck. But, it's worth it. It is so fun watching my kids and all the other kids swim. I am so impressed by all of them. I can't even get across the pool without stopping (several times) to catch my breath. I've always wanted to learn how to do the butterfly. Giao tried to teach me once. It was not pretty. And, here are my kids doing endless laps of all the strokes during their practices.