Back and almost well!

We are back from our journey to Aurora. It was great fun and now we are non-contagious, everyone has crusted over. I will have to do the math and see about quarantining Erika. It is not going to be as easy with her, because unlike the others, I have no idea when she was exposed or even if she will get them again. I will do the best I can. Anyway, I wrote this blog entry at Aurora, the dark ages, so I am posting it today.

I was a little girl, about 8 or 9. I was sitting at the deep end of the pool with my feet dangling in the pool. It was some sort of holiday because my Uncle Vernon and his son Jeff were at an Illinois State Park at a pool picnicing and hanging with my Dad, his wife-at-the-time Jean(#2 of 3), my sister, Linda & me. We had just been swimming and chatting. My sister came up behind me to scare me and tapped just a little too hard. I went off the deep end (pun intended!). She and Jeff waited for me to bob right up but I did not. I recall thinking how hard it was to scream underwater. No telling how much water I took in. Thankfully, at some point my cousin realized I was not coming up and he jumped in, swam me up and put me on the side of the pool. My saviour for the day. I don't think Linda even got into trouble because she looked so scared to death. Of course we dreamed of killing each other and often tried-but for real was a whole other thing. So intensified my already rampant fear of water.

I did finally learn to swim a little at Camp Currie and then many summers of FFA camp made me a stronger swimmer, but I never jumped in or got water on my face if I was in deep water. I could do all sorts of tricks as long as I could touch. In deep water I just swam or floated.

When we first got our boat from Erik's uncle, my biggest hope was that I would not pass my water terror to my children. We also got an easy-set pool in our backyard. We watched our kids go from terrified, to a little more confident with floaties or a lifejacket, to fish with nothing in shallow water. It has all been very gradual and very scary for me. For the last 3 summers, they have jumped off the boat with life jackets on as often as Dad would stop the boat and let them. Last summer, after much prayer and staring into the water, I finally joined them and was able to jump off the boat as well. LIFE JACKET of course!! Not something I did alot and this summer I have done it a little more than last. Slowly, I am feeling a little more comfortable and confident.

Today, at our "resort" in Aurora, I got to watch my girls jump into the deep end of the pool without life jackets for the first time. I thought my heart would explode waiting for them to come up and yet I knew they could and were very strong swimmers. Erika went first, did great and then it was Kayla's turn. Of course Kayla made the deal that if she jumped in, she would get to keep Tabby-the only remaining kitten. Then she jumped in and swam great as well. Lilly is not there yet, maybe next year. I told the girls how proud I was, that they had just done something I had never done-jumped in the deep end. I never really even wanted too. I would climb into the deep end via the ladder and that was fine with me.

Erik said, "You could,you just won't." I don't guess I had ever thought of it that way and it occurred to me he was right. I am a strong swimmer just like the girls. I just never really got over that deep-rooted fear of water. So after many assurances from Erik that he could save me if I didn't come up and many emergency plans laid-just in case-I donned the girls nose plugs and I JUMPED IN!!

I shared a milestone with my girls and I am proud of all of us!