My daughter was born into water after her thirty nine weeks and one day stay in my uterus (which is slightly inaccurate given how the weeks of pregnancy is calculated) also in water; she is water baby. After a week and a half of sponge baths, I finally brought into the bathtub with me. I was not sure how she would react to the water but I was very interested to see how she would react. She was immediately calmed (she did not like being naked when she was a newborn). I supported her head and shoulders and she just floated perfectly content in the warm bath water. Every since her first bath she has loved being in the water. Her time in the the bath evolved as she grew. At first she enjoyed both floating in the water while I supported her head and neck and snuggling up to me and dozing in the warm water. After a few months she started to enjoy splashing in the bath and demanding more freedom. She would kick off of me to allow herself more freedom of movement. At about four months she seemed to prefer being in the bath by herself in just a few inches of water so that she can float, kick, and move her arms to her hearts content while I sit outside of the bathtub with my hands ready to grab her if necessary. She will kick, splash, and float her way one end of the tub and back giggling and laughing the entire time. Knowing that my daughter seems to really love the water, I was excited to get her out in the pool this summer. I made preparations for her “first swim.” However, her first experience in the swimming pool only required a swim diaper and her new swimming suit.
(To be continued …)