Hannah and I have been “traveling” a little bit since she’s been here. First she went to Lay Academy with me, then to my presentation in Steven’s Point. Both trips required us to stay in a hotel, with a pool of course.



Hannah got to sleep with me at both hotels. She considers this a major privilege. The better part, but she doesn’t know it, were the trust exercises we did.

Hannah loves to be in the water, and so do I, so we both packed our swim suits and headed for the pool. Little did she know we were working on attachment and trust building.

I don’t remember who I learned this from, it might have been Nancy Thomas or Nancy Spoolstra, but the pool is one of the best places for a child to build trust. If they can’t swim, they count on you to meet every single need and to keep them safe.

The first thing we did was have Hannah go into a back float position with my hands underneath her. This will give you a great indication of your child’s trust level. Do they hang on for dear life, or relax and know that you will protect them?

At first she held on for dear life, then was able to let herself relax. Gradually, she was able to let go of me, but would not let her head back. Slowly she was able to do that. She finally let go, and completely relaxed enough to enjoy the feeling of “floating” but knowing my hands were right under her.

Next we worked on the “monkey walk”. This is a technique I learned in swimming lessons with Kory. The child hangs on to the side of the pool and uses their hands and feet to hold on and “walk” their way around the pool. We started with my hands on Hannah, and slowly she was able to have me just standing behind her.

One time gave her the chance to see that Mommy is there, and will catch her. She slipped during the monkey walk, and I scooped her up immediately. She was not scared, and saw that I was there to protect her.

Next we switched to front side down, and attempting to kick and paddle. She is not close to mastering the strokes, but it was far less about the swimming lesson than the trust lesson.

Doing this fills just about every part of bonding and attachment there is. You have skin to skin contact, you are a protector and the child is learning trust, and best of all, you’re having FUN!

Grab those swim suits and head on over to the pool.

No, the photo is not us. I won’t be photographed in a swim suit.