Beach Trip, Part 2

About midmorning, when enough of the kids were bored with the beach, we'd walk back up to the boardwalk, rinse the sand off of us, and spend the rest of the morning at the pool. Caleb took the next step in his swimming proficiency by jumping in the pool from the side, going all the way under the water, resurfacing without help, and swimming to the side. Always before, he insisted on someone in the water catching him and keeping his face from going under.

Ethan, on the other hand, jumps in all the time, completely without fear. He is independent in the water when he is wearing his swim vest (see the pic of me and Ethan from yesterday). He can jump in the water and go completely under, and then he resurfaces with the help of the swim vest. This all works perfectly, except for the rare occasion that he doesn't have his swim vest on (like right after going potty, right when we get to the pool, or as we are preparing to leave). One night, the boys and I were hanging out in the hot tub with our friends, and I hear a splash just behind me. Ethan had climbed onto the side of the hot tub and jumped into the adjoining pool. Because the boys' have identical swim outfits, I initially thought it was Caleb who had jumped in, but quickly realized something was wrong when he didn't resurface. It took me less than 15 seconds to step into the pool and pull a startled Ethan out of the water. He didn't cough or cry, so I guess he had not had time to inhale any water. He didn't seem scared at all, and I didn't make a big deal out of it because I didn't want to cause a fear of the water if he wasn't freaked out.

Anyway, the rest of our hours at the pool were much safer and filled with water shooters, jumping, swimming and laughing. After all the kids (and adults) were worn out at the pool, we'd head back upstairs for lunch and nap time. Once the kids were asleep, Al, Quenta and Marcus would bust out the PS3 while I read a book. Check back on Monday for the final installment of beach stories and pictures :)