I have a 1 year old and I'd like to take her for swim lessons but I'm not sure where to take her. Should I take her to one of the Parks Dept. pools or a private company? Does anyone have any recommendations or stories (good or bad) about places they took their baby for swimming lesson. Preferably in Seattle, around Queen Anne, Ballard, Magnolia, Wallingford, etc. Thanks!
Re: Baby Swim
Queen Anne Community Center has swimming lessons. We have not been swimming there yet, but I have walked in and watched from outside.
https://www.seattle.gov/parks/aquatics/pools/queenanne/swimming_lessons.pdf
I recently took my daughter to a swimming pool in Sequim where my inlaws live. And she really liked it. I got her a used Iplay swim diaper for her cute swim suit. And they had a shallow pool that had moderate temperatures so it was perfect for both of kids to go swimming in for the first time.
I have taken baby/child swim classes at most of the community centers (Mountlake Terrace, Greenlake, Queen Anne, Ballard). They are all a great option for getting comfortable with babies in the water. They also lead to nice long naps in my experience.
My overwhelming favorite is Mountlake Terrace because they keep the water warmer, the swim classes are in the "lazy river" section so you move around in a big loop rather than back and forth (it felt a little less tedious) and after class they let you play for 10 minutes? in the kid section that has lots of toys, spouts, fountains, and such. With toddlers and infants, 10 minutes is all you need so it feels perfect.