Advice on swimming lessons from moms with twins or LO's close in age.

e74

How do you handle swimming lessons or going to the pool for that matter when there is only one of you and two of them ( I also have a 7 yr old)? I usually have help for swimming lessons but my mom is sick and this got my wondering how others do it...

kbeach82

I would look into a mother's helper if that is an option for you. They are very affordable (like $3/hr if it is their first MH's job) and usually there are tons to choose from in the summertime.

e74

@kbeach82‌ .. Is there a website where I can find them?

kzawisl

I wouldn't even attempt to take the twins by myself (they just turned two). Do you have a friend or relative or a trusted babysitter who could come with you?

kbeach82

Sorry @e74! I haven't checked back since yesterday. You can post a job on Indeed.com where they can respond to your ad. Or do you have a community newsletter or something similar? If not, you can also post an ad at your local YMCA, swimming pool, grocery store, etc. I hope you can find someone!

Ruthie04

Like PPs, I could never do it alone. But, I think the mom''s helper would be a great idea! Since colleges are out, I'm sure you could find a reliable student to help out. Maybe try a local university's education or nursing dept, as some of them have online job postings for students. Many of those individuals are always happy to get some hands on experience with LOs and I remember lots of local families using that route to recruit babysitters when I was in school. If all else fails or if you need an urgent helper, I'd definitely ask if another teacher were available. It seems like many of these places should have a plan in place for twins. 

Saraevh

My first two kiddos are 15mo apart and I took them to the pool by myself almost everyday last summer (ages 1 and 2 at the time) and never had an issue BUT now that I have three there is no way in hell I would go by myself.  Like @kbeach suggested, I would try to find a mother's helper to tag along with you.  I'm sure your 7 year old is pretty independent but you can never be too safe around water so it definitely wouldn't hurt to have another set of eyes and hands to tag along.  For us, our neighbor's daughter is home from college so I've been paying her to help me out here and there (ex: she's watching the kids while I mow the lawn tomorrow afternoon).   

As far as lessons go, we had our older two in a parent child/class together.  My husband took one and I took the other.  This year my daughter is old enough to do the lessons on her own and MH and I will each take a kid again .