I've mentioned our *very tiny* swimming pool before, so I thought I'd show you some photos of it today.
A couple of months back, Richard had the brilliant idea of converting this small space into a water play area for the kids so that's what we did. We do have a decent-sized swimming pool as well as a kid-sized swimming/wading pool in our condo so this is really an extra, although it serves a slightly different function.
I said that it's tiny, but to be fair, it is a little bigger than it looks in the photos! It is big enough to fit four of us quite comfortably and if we fill it up deep enough, Ryan can even swim in it. Usually we fill it up to the level of babydoll's shoulders when she's sitting down in it. We drain it out after every use after using some of the water to water the plants.
It is long enough to fit both Richard and I sitting stretched out, one at each end, with plenty of space leftover between and beside us for the kids to romp around. Of course, it's not meant for adults to swim - if we wanted to do that, we would go down to the proper swimming pool at the condo. For us adults, this is meant to be a chill-out place where the kids can also have fun. Richard and I usually have long and meaningful conversations in the pool, even with the kids splashing about around us, because we are so relaxed and comfortable.
It is surrounded by walls and very private, which means that we can get into the pool wearing just a t-shirt and underwear/shorts. Richard and I have imagined sitting in our tiny pool late at night, when the kids are asleep - just the two of us, with candles burning on the ledge and drinks in our hands. I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon though!
We've been using it once a week, almost every week, and usually, it's the four of us in the pool at the same time. The kids absolutely love it.
A side note on babydoll's water skills. Babydoll is not doing any swimming lessons yet, but she does have a lot of water time. She goes swimming in the public pool with her nanny's family once every fortnight (one of her nanny's daughters is a swimming instructor) and she has lots of water play at home. As you can see from the photos, she has a lot of water confidence and, although not a swimmer, she is independent in this pool.
We made some inquiries last year with Aquaducks to enrol her in a time slot near Ryan's lesson time, but didn't have any luck. Our plans for the family's routine this year are still a little uncertain, so we are holding off for now. We do still hold the view that swimming is a critical life skill to have, so that is definitely on the cards for babydoll in the near future.
If you're wondering, Ryan started lessons when he was one year old, mainly because we did not have access to a swimming pool at that time. I didn't expect him to learn to swim at that age; I simply wanted to ensure that he retained his water confidence. Now, four years later, he can swim pretty well. I am forever grateful that we did expose him to the water at a young age because there's been so many occasions where he's been able to go into the water independently - birthday parties at swimming pools, trips to water parks like Waterbom Bali, holidays with swimming at the beach or in the hotel pools, etc. Quite apart from the fact that I don't worry (too much) about him, he also gets to enjoy himself and have fun, instead of stressing about being in the water.
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