That's how they got their tan

Redang, Malaysia (October 2013)

We snorkelled three days out of five, including my 4yo. They saw sharks, turtles, lion's mane jellyfish, and loads of other fishes they couldn't name.

They played at the beach everyday while we drank beer and sipped wine.

For the first time, Terence and I didn't feel like babysitters during a vacation. We felt like we've got our old life back, the one we had before this thing called "children" came along.

It's a coming of age trip.

(Photos taken with a LC-A+ using Fujichrome Provia 400X film.)

Splash!

My angel before he fell into the pool.

(The previous blog entry was posted on my Facebook, so I thought I'd share a new nugget of a story with everyone, to be fair. :) )

We stayed in Le Jardin Boutique Village, which came highly recommended by Tripadvisor. One of our biggest fears was the personal villa pool. The paranoid, pessimistic part of me envisioned Kit falling into the pool and drowning once our backs were turned.

On the morning of the second day, I was minding Kit who just woke up and who was sitting like an angel at the side of the pool. Kai and Terence joined us, and my 5yo started asking us for permission to sit on the opposite side of the pool by himself. By the time we looked to where he was pointing and looked back down to where Kit was sitting, my 2.5yo had fallen in!

The pool was what... 1.2m deep, and I could see Kit, his eyes wide open, paddling desperately to get back up. One second passed. Two seconds. Three seconds. Four seconds. Well, ok, he's not going to be able to swim back up. (Who am I kidding right?) So I tried grabbing him from the side of the pool, thinking he's near enough.

Next thing I know, I was in the pool in my PJs, hauling Kit back up. He wasn't spitting out water or coughing. That rascal held his breath after he fell in!

Terence turned to me and said, "OK, next time it'd be my turn."

It'd better be!

Swimming with the Starfish

Here's a short clip of Kai swimming with the help of the Starfish. This was the second time he used it and should be more gungho.

As you can see, however, the second his chin dipped, he started panicking. After watching the YouTube video of him swimming at six months again, I realised the tip of his mouth went south too when he splashed water in his face.

How cute...

Tried and tested: The "starfish" float

Terence had been bugging me lately about buying this float that he saw in Parkway Parade. Many East-enders would gasp in horror when they hear this, but I hate going to Parkway Parade. It's the crowded carpark and equally crowded shopping mall--it just puts me in a lousy mood.

He finally dragged me there over the Father's Day weekend to buy the float. A debate ensued over the size to buy:

- Size A for age 1-2.5 and weight 8-13kg

- Size B for age 2-4 and weight 13-18kg

I'd have just grab Size A. But Terence weighed both the pros and the cons, plus the fact that Kai falls into both categories one way or another requires a well thought-out purchasing plan in his opinion. The bottomline, however, is that Kai weighs 10.5kg, never mind the age. So I made the 'executive decision': Size A please.

I was initially dismayed when we tried fitting "Starfish: The Original" swimming vest on dry land. It wouldn't buckle! I was reeling from the thought of having to drive back to Parkway Parade to exchange for the bigger vest.

"Never mind!" said my gungho husband, who then dragged us to the pool to try it out.

I'm glad we did! It was snug enough to give Kai the right support and buoyancy he needs, and he was paddling on his own in no time. It didn't give him a false sense of security either as he learnt quickly that there will be times when his chin/mouth might dip into the water. What's more, it isn't too bulky such that it restricts his hand movements.

And although he was excited, you could see he was frightened at the same time. We gave him plenty of encouragement along the way, and it was wonderful for us to see him enjoy the freedom in the water and paddle around independently. Terence said it was the best Father's Day highlight ever.

While I recommend this float highly, it is probably better for the toddler to be already comfortable in the pool and is paddling with the help of the parent. Throwing the vest onto a toddler who's new to the concept of swimming will be a bad idea.

We brought Kai to the pool when he was three months old, and you can catch how he has progressed over the years here.

Swimming!

Watch Kai swim

The making of a swimmer

After Vivo City, we brought Kai down for a swim and this time, he was more receptive to the water. In fact, he was kicking his legs the minute he got into the pool. I found that the best position to encourage him and give him assurance that we'll there to support him is to stand in front of him and hold him under his arms. You can't really tell from the picture but he was furiously kicking his legs.

Splash!

Notice that the only person not smiling in this photo is Kai. Poor chap! It's his first time in the swimming pool and he's in deep concentration--probably trying to figure out how come his bathtub has grown so much bigger in size!

He cried when Terence first put him in the water and the word "Abort!" ran through our minds immediately. But Terence figured Kai needed to acclimatise to the water so he persisted. (And perhaps because he spent so much effort inflating the float HIMSELF so there's no way we would leave until Kai uses it. But dear friends, do applaud his effort because it is a rather big float!)