Things That Make a Mom's Heart Glad

All of our children have started life with two basic fears: the fear of water, and of cats and dogs. Nothing else. It has taken time, patience, and regular exposure to help them overcome their anxieties.
I think Elizabeth has done better than the rest in overcoming, but she is still unsure in the water.
She hates to get water in her ears.

This week the neighbors kindly invited us over for an afternoon swim. We decided that Elizabeth needed to learn to let go of the side and still be safe. The time was right to move up to 'waterwings'
.

I wasn't swimming so I asked Mr. Boots to help her. He did it patiently and with a cheerful attitude! It was so sweet to see my big 17 year old carefully tending his little sister. At first she held on tight. Then gradually she started to try them out.

The breakthrough came when Mr. Boots thought to put on a second pair. Elizabeth is a very tall girl for being five, and one pair is just not enough to hold her up. She can actually get two wings on above her elbows. A bit more patience and she was independent! Yeah!!

She took off and thoroughly enjoyed the rest of the swim. She was the last Mango out of the pool. The boys were out pretty quick as they got cold. She was cold also, but she was having such a great time trying out her new skill that she didn't want to stop.

Thanks for being such a great big brother Mr. Boots. You'll be a great dad someday.

~Mom