At the Pool

Abigail's first swim meet was a few weeks ago, and I know I already shared videos of her heats, but I finally have some pictures to share from the meet. This meet was the final meet for the Short Course season, which takes place through the indoor pool season and only includes 50 yard pools, as opposed to the Long Course season, which begins next month at 100 yard (Olympic size) pools.

Being Abigail's first meet, she was petrified. She doesn't like to show emotion that isn't self-confident, so she hid it very well, but she was scared. When it was time for her to enter the pool deck with her teammates who were also swimming the 50 Back, I was so pleased to see (from afar) that one of the older team members noticed Abigail's fear and was holding her hand as they walked to the natatorium. Abigail later told me that the girl was trying to distract her by asking her questions like "what is your favorite color?". I must say, I don't know who the girl is, but she must be a very sweet and observant child. (I took this picture from across a parking lot so it is not a great pic. Abigail is in the black swimcap and pink goggles.)


Once she entered the pool deck, I could tell from seeing her waiting her turn on the block that she was very nervous. But, there was another child who threw up from nerves, and even other swimmers who never made it to the pool due to fear. Since Abigail was just 5 and swimming in the 8 & Under group, I was so proud of her for being so brave.




Coach Adam was so attentive to Abigail, even with such a large team at the meet, he was by Abigail's side through both of her heats. Here, he's giving her last-minute instructions and distracting her from what was going on in the natatorium.


I wish I could show you more images from the rest of the day, but she was a completely different swimmer after completing her first heat. She was filled with confidence and enjoyment, but my camera was filled with a dead battery. (Ugh... Why didn't I think to charge my battery before such an event?! Lesson learned.)

In short, I think we've found Abigail's sport. I had high hopes for her to be a softball played, but her t-ball season last year gave no inclination of that ever happening. Seeing her determination, competitive spirit and work ethic come to fruition at this meet makes me think that I'll be spending a lot of time on the pool deck in the years to come.