Of all the things buzzing around in my mind these days that I should be blogging about, for some reason I feel the most compelled to talk about
how much we are going to miss Gavin’s weekly swim lessons at Evo Swim School and his awesome instructor Patrick.
We signed up Gavin for swim lessons at Evo in March of last year (2017) when he was 19 months old. At first the class consisted of him being in the water with one of his parents while the instructor taught us how to teach him to be comfortable in the water and learn breath control. He cried the entire time at his very first lesson, but was all smiles at each consecutive lesson thereafter. It was fun cuddling with my squishy baby in the water and getting to watch his daddy do the same.
His very first lesson - nothing but tears!
Swimming with Daddy
He quickly fell in love with the water and his swim lessons became something we anticipated and enjoyed every Thursday morning. In only two short months he graduated from the “Pufferfish” class into the Sea Otter group where he was able to swim in the water sans parents. Again, he cried his entire first lesson solo, but quickly discovered swimming without mom and dad is fun! Especially with his awesome instructor, Patrick!
Pufferfish Graduate! (May 2017)
Patrick was just the right kind of guy to teach our little man to swim and love the water. He’s loud, enthusiastic, encouraging, patient, personable, and most importantly, he’s a bit of a goofball who loves playing with the kids. You could tell he genuinely cared about each of his students and loves what he does. It’s quite admirable, actually. I found myself almost envying him... Think about how many people would kill to have that kind of passion for what they do! I really loved watching it all unfold each week. He was the perfect fit for Gavin’s personality - who basically doesn’t take things too seriously and is all about playing and goofing off.
All of the instructors we had at Evo were fantastic. They’re all so great with the kids. I felt good about everyone I let Gavin in the water with. All of the staff are very friendly and professional. The facility is clean. Just overall I have been very happy there and am glad we chose them for our son. Maybe it’s not as “quick” as the ISR lessons you can do, but I enjoyed having our special swim lessons to look forward to each week.
For the last 7 months I have thoroughly enjoyed bringing Gavin to Evo and watching him “swim” and goof off in the water with Patrick. Maybe he didn’t progress with his swimming skills as quickly as he should have, but the enjoyment he got out of his lessons each week made it all worth every penny to me. The truth is, Gavin knew what he was SUPPOSED to do, but much preferred playing around and making everything into a game instead of taking his lessons seriously. Sometimes you could even catch him looking through the glass into the waiting room at the tv on the wall to see what movie was on! Rather than jumping into the water horizontally toward Patrick, he did “cannon balls” and or “pencils” and sank right to the bottom. Patrick once told me he was “the best rock in the class!” - and to this day I find that hilarious... And I am ok with that! I know he eventually would have gotten to where he was supposed to. But in the meantime I am glad he had fun and is no longer afraid of the water.
All of the instructors we had at Evo were fantastic. They’re all so great with the kids. I felt good about everyone I let Gavin in the water with. All of the staff are very friendly and professional. The facility is clean. Just overall I have been very happy there and am glad we chose them for our son. Maybe it’s not as “quick” as the ISR lessons you can do, but I enjoyed having our special swim lessons to look forward to each week.
For the last 7 months I have thoroughly enjoyed bringing Gavin to Evo and watching him “swim” and goof off in the water with Patrick. Maybe he didn’t progress with his swimming skills as quickly as he should have, but the enjoyment he got out of his lessons each week made it all worth every penny to me. The truth is, Gavin knew what he was SUPPOSED to do, but much preferred playing around and making everything into a game instead of taking his lessons seriously. Sometimes you could even catch him looking through the glass into the waiting room at the tv on the wall to see what movie was on! Rather than jumping into the water horizontally toward Patrick, he did “cannon balls” and or “pencils” and sank right to the bottom. Patrick once told me he was “the best rock in the class!” - and to this day I find that hilarious... And I am ok with that! I know he eventually would have gotten to where he was supposed to. But in the meantime I am glad he had fun and is no longer afraid of the water.
Sadly, Gavin had his last swim lesson with Patrick this past week. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t cry. I am going to miss watching my son swim. I will miss the joy on his face as he walked into the pool area and exclaimed “Patrick!”. I will miss watching them joke around together. His enthusiasm. His excitement for the yellow boat ride at the end of each class. I have such a sweet, cute little boy!
I wanted to see him graduate as a Sea Otter. I wanted him to join the swim team some day. I know he could still do all of those things someday, I just always pictured in my mind that it would be at Evo with Patrick. Once again I am challenged to remember that just because one good thing comes to an end doesn’t mean there aren’t more good things ahead - potentially better things! It’s just hard for me to imagine anything better than what we had when what we had brought us so much joy.
Who knows, maybe we’re trading swimming lessons for horseback riding lessons! That would make mommy very happy indeed! We will see! But for now, farewell Patrick and Evo. You have been good to us.
I wanted to see him graduate as a Sea Otter. I wanted him to join the swim team some day. I know he could still do all of those things someday, I just always pictured in my mind that it would be at Evo with Patrick. Once again I am challenged to remember that just because one good thing comes to an end doesn’t mean there aren’t more good things ahead - potentially better things! It’s just hard for me to imagine anything better than what we had when what we had brought us so much joy.
Who knows, maybe we’re trading swimming lessons for horseback riding lessons! That would make mommy very happy indeed! We will see! But for now, farewell Patrick and Evo. You have been good to us.
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