Family Swimming Adventures
For as long as I can remember swimming has been a part of my life. It's a huge part of my personal history: I swam for fun, competed into college, taught lessons, and coached at different points in my life.
Swimming has become a past time that we enjoy as a family. We are lucky to have an awesome indoor pool called the Tamarack Wellness Center available for family swims a bunch of different times during the week. It's an indoor, salt-water therapeutic pool with a water temperature of 92 degrees. Yes, 92.
We first started going to Tamarack a few years ago when Simon was receiving services through the local early intervention agency EC Cares. Since then we have been fairly regular at different parts of the year and it has become one of Simon's favorite activities.
During the winter it's awesome because it is so nice and warm. During the summer it's awesome because most people are outside and
it's a lot less crowded.
Simon is so happy now that we are all going again. Waiting
for Anna to be old enough probably felt like forever when you are
living in "kid" time. He and Chris went a few times on their own but I think it's just more fun when we all go.
We took Anna to the pool for the first time just about a month ago. She's a total water baby and is happy to be in the water both at home in the tub and in the pool. Again, that warm water is a total benefit especially for little ones.
Yesterday I remembered to take the camera and was rewarded with awesome light coming in from the windows and an almost empty pool.
I am so very thankful we have a place we can go that seems such a great fit for our family.
Tomorrow : a brand new weekly series that I am really excited about.
Attention Locals : Come Play Eugene & The Create Boutique will be happening at Jill's house this weekend. This time they are offering a crop on Saturday from 9am to 9pm and spaces are still available. The boutique will be open from 10am to 4pm.
I think it is an environmental thing ;).
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What great family photos you've shared. Thanks. Can't wait to see what you have in store for us tomorrow. :-)
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Ohhh--I'm so glad to hear that we aren't the only ones who have family swim time. We started my daughter young too. The local Y has a heated pool--only 86 degrees though! She was 9 months when we started going to Mommy & Me classes there. She loved it and still does. She now takes lessons by herself at only 3 years old. She says her favorite part is floating on her back, haha. :) Love the pics!
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Hello, Nicole, you might want to try this... http://www.babytoothalbum.com/ (I'm not connected to this site, just a mom who loves to save her children's teeth! :)
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Hi Ali,
my daughter and Anna are just a week apart in age and I'm planning on taking her to the pool this summer too. I was wondering what you used for Anna as a diaper for the pool? I looked for some swimmers this weekend and she doesnt quite make the weight/size cutoff for the smallest ones I could find. What do you use? thanks in advance!
Jamie
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All three of our children have loved the water from infancy and still continue to today. I have never brought my camera in the water with me, just photos from the sidelines. I love the angle of your photos by actually getting in the water. They capture the moment on a beautiful level.
Thanks for sharing.
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Oh what fun pictures. I adore the photo of you and Anna and her sweet gaze at you. What family bonding:) We have a salt water pool here and it is super lovely:) Thank you for sharing your weekend photo's.
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Ali -I LOVE these photos. Can you share exactly how you took the photos? I am always such a wimp about bringing the digital SLR to the pool and into the water. I end up using the point and shoot we have (which I do not love btw) and get crummy photos. Did you wrap it in a plastic bag? Do you take photos only at the beginning of the swim session? Are you and Chris both in the water when one of you is handling the digital SLR, or is one of you ready to grab the camera and place it in a safe, dry poolside location?
The one of you and Anna is great--congratulations to Chris for capturing that one...
With the pool season upon us, we could probably all use a primer/refresher on taking pool photos, both indoor and out, for digital SLRs and point + shoots.
Thanks! Love your blog!!
Carol
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Hey Jamie - this pool requires non-disposable swim diapers so we bought one they were selling there. Here's a site that sells a similar one: http://www.cottonbabies.com/product_info.php?cPath=114&products_id=1060
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Such a beautiful experience. Thanks so much for sharing. ms.cheryl
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Hi Carol - we took these photos right when we all got in the water. Chris had the camera first (in the water) as I carried Anna into the water. He took the first round of shots and then we swapped the camera and the baby :).
I did not wrap the camera or do anything special to protect it. After we swapped the camera & the baby and I was done taking shots of them I climbed out and put it in our bag on the pool deck.
There were maybe 10 other people in the pool at the time and almost all of them were at the other end. Good timing :).
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Ali-
Those pics were awesome!:) Boy, Anna is growing so much! :) Treasure these times! :) Simon is looking so handsome too! :)
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Lovely photographs! So nice to have the pool nearly to yourself.... and no need to slather on sunscreen and reapply!
Roban
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I worked for several years with a little girl who has a seizure disorder. She was always a little bean pole, so going to a regular pool was always a bust because they are way too cold and she'd be chattering teeth and blue lips in 2 seconds.
Last summer we found a pool like the one you go to. We loved it - she'd stay in for hours! The time and the facility is worth it when you get such smiles and elated faces out of the kids!
Great pictures!
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Oh, I just love those sweet pictures!!! Beautiful colors, Ali!!!
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anna is stunning! thanks for sharing your beautiful pictures and stories. :)
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Love the photos - especially those with baby Anna. :)
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This is what we are using Nicole: http://www.notionfarm.com/products.php
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oh Ali it seems like last week that you introduced us to Anna. I can't believe she is growing so quickly.
I also love your pool photos. I am amazed at the clarity and the lovely colour. The last time I took photos at the indoor pool they were very blue and had to spend a lot of time correcting. So I have to ask,
1. did you shoot manual or av?
2. did you change the white balance?
3. what lens did you use?
congratulations on achieving what I have been trying to do all summer!!!
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Hey Christina,
1. Auto :). Usually use the "running guy"/action setting.
2. Nope.
3. 28-105
I think really we were just very lucky. The light was awesome. They have big windows/sliding glass doors and we were in the perfect spot...any other location would have been much, much darker. I have some others from this same pool and they are no where near as nice as these turned out.
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Such wonderful photos!!!
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How adorable is her little bathing suit!!! Awwww! So cute!
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thanks for answering my questions Ali. You took some great photos and I love that lens. My cousin bought that one (on my advice after a lot more knowledge than I had when I bought mine a few years ago). But you know what they say "the equipment might be great but you also need a good photographer using it". Keep the photos coming.
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Beautiful photos Ali!! That's soo great that both your kids like the water.
I was wondering though... has Simon always liked the water? Or has gone through any phases (especially when he was in the toddler age) that even touching the water bothered him at all?
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What beautiful photos! Your children look so comfortable in the water! It's winter here in Australia and my kids are loving their swimming lessons, the water is nice and toasty ;0)
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