Isla started swimming lessons yesterday. She was freaking out before we got there, saying she didn't want to go in deep, and she didn't want to put her head under the water. She has been terribly afraid of water since NYD 08 when she was in an inflatable backyard pool at the IL's place.

I was down the back taking photo's of my niece and nephew, FIL & Ian were in the pool with her. Both boys got out of the pool and left Isla in there, thinking she was holding on to the side, she tried to walk across the pool (the water came up to her armpits) and she slipped. I came up from the back and saw her completely under the water, on her own and trying to get up. I didn't know how long she'd been under, single-handedly the scariest moment of my life.

Putting Isla into swimming lessons is something I'd been meaning to do for the longest time, but I finally decided that we've wasted enough time and made an enquiry at the local swim school. As luck would have it, there is another girl at the pool having lessons who has Spastic Diplegia too, and her mother agreed to Isla joining the lesson (which saved her $35 a lesson!). The other little girl, Sarah, is gorgeous. She is 6 and can swim freestyle and can almost do breaststroke. So great to see another person with the same condition as Isla, it gives me great confidence in what Isla will be able to do.

Isla loved the lesson by the time it was over, she was scared when she first went in and kept calling out, "Mama, I need you!" in a very high-pitched screetching voice! The instructor, Nicole, had no chance getting Isla to blow bubbles, and I thought we were going to be in for a loooong lesson when Isla asked me to give her a towel and wipe her face because it was a tiny bit wet!

But, once the teacher took Sarah for a little paddle, Isla very slowly put her face in the water and started blowing bubbles! And the rest, as they say, is history! She was floating on her back with the instructor, and even tried diving in!

When the lesson was over and she was out of the pool, little teeth chattering away, she said "I want to go back in the pool" LOL

She even insisted on wearing her swimming cap home and plans on taking it to show Michael her physio this afternoon!

I have some video of her using the kickboard too, will upload it shortly. I am so proud of her, she was so incredibly scared at the start of the lesson, and now she can't wait to go back!