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a little fish

the cutest fish in the tub.
and yes, those are my feet.
last fall, we took john to some swim lessons at the ymca. he did pretty well - he liked the water ok, liked to splash, and his only major complaint seemed to be that he didn't like not feeling the bottom. (to be fair, that's me interpreting his actions, since you'll note he wasn't really communicating so much back then!)

since then, john has gotten more and more comfortable with water, at least in the bathtub and in kiddie pools. he has increasingly put his face in the water, blown bubbles, laid on his belly and/or his back to get his hair wet.

and just recently, he LOVES the idea of "mommy bath." which is just what it sounds like - a bath with mommy. so tonight when i told him it was bath time, he ran excitedly into his bathtub, then turned to me and said in his most commanding voice: "mommy shirt OFF!"

now from recent experience, i have learned one thing: trying to fit my slightly-more-than-svelte booty in the same tub with a wiggling, splashing, active bug is NOT the most comfortable. it's pretty much a guarantee of a split lip or busted nose - for mommy! so tonight i had a brilliant inspiration. we would bathe in the larger garden-style tub in mommy and daddy's bathroom!

at first, it was an unmitigated disaster. as the water ran, we climbed in the tub, and john stood in the far end screaming "get out! get out! rain off! get out!" (rain off is johnese for turning off the faucet.) i tried to soothe him, and finally gave up. i figured i'd have to turn the water off, wash him in a hurry, and hope to get him out and calmed down.

but as soon as i turned the water off, he jumped (not allowed - and he got a reprimand) and then sat down splat in the water. and he proceeded to play and have a grand time. daddy brought him a plastic cup to play with, and he dumped it on his face, on his hair, on his back. he sputtered and giggled and laid back and put his whole head under the water. the he got wise and started dumping the water on mommy's head. which of course was the single funniest thing that he had ever experienced. (and i admit it made me snicker as well.)

the moral of the story is twofold. 1) we need to schedule another round of swim lessons, since this little bug is actually a little fish. 2) don't EVER get in the tub with a two-year-old and think you're not going to get splashed and have buckets of water dumped on your head. prepare for the giggles of glee.

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