Make-up Meet: A Boon for Benjamin

It was a scorcher today, but as hot as it was, tomorrow is supposed to be hotter! 

Poor Rachel and Miriam are off to YW camp, where they'll have to suffer through the heat all week (their cabin has electricity, so they've each packed a fan and have a few more items to help keep cool). 

The rest of us only had to suffer for a few hours at the swim meet this evening. Everybody was dripping—either from having just climbed out of the pool or from sweating to death on the sidelines—but we had a really great meet!

It was such a busy day between morning practice and Benjamin's woodworking camp in the afternoon. I changed into my blue shorts but somehow forgot to change into my white top (which I have to wear as a stroke and turn official) until I was walking out the door and Alexander said, "Oh, cool! You can wear navy blue and purple to judge now?"

No—I cannot! Good thing he said something! I had time to go back and change before heading to the pool. Andrew picked Benjamin up from his woodworking camp and brought him straight to the pool...it was chaotic.

But so good!

I worked with Alexander on his backstroke last Friday. I haven't been working with the kids as much this summer—in part because Rachel and Miriam haven't been around to help with Phoebe, who is still pretty hands-on in the pool, and in part because I've had bronchitis (have I mentioned that?)—but on Friday I did pull Alexander aside and we worked on getting his arms windmilling up-up-up into the air and down straight behind his head before pulling through the water. 

And just look at how high his arm is, whizzing by his head just perfectly:

We also worked on his legs and this isn't the best shot of that action because it's right at the end of his race where he (and most of the other kids his age) slow down so they don't accidentally slam into the wall because they don't know their stroke count:

But his legs were doing better as well! He ended up trimming four more seconds off his backstroke! He came in 6th place (this will be his first time "placing" this year).

His 25 free was about the same as it was last time...just a smidge slower, but his 50 free was 2 seconds faster than last time! 

Here he is getting some hugs from Phoebe:

He's very excited because on Thursday Coach Heidi has him down to try butterfly and breaststroke. He's never swum anything other than freestyle and backstroke in a competition, so we'll see how he does. It'll be good for him to try something new!

Here's Miss Zoë:

That's not sunburn on her face; it's face paint. Here she is after Tessa (one of the older girls, and an assistant coach) reapplied it for her:

And here she is with a couple of girls on her relay team:

I think they came in second place...but just by like half a millisecond. I don't know—I don't have the full results yet (and won't see them until the morning). My app only shows my kids' personal times...but this particular relay was a close one!

She didn't beat her best time for the 25 free (her IM was just a smidge slower than last time as well), but that's okay because she did break her record for the 25 breast! Very unfortunately her time isn't quite good enough to land her in county. 

Her best time is now 24.92. The county cutoff (as of this week) is 23.70—so she was so close. Unfortunately, she's not slated to swim breaststroke on Thursday (our last meet), but perhaps enough people will drop out that she'll be able to race still—because she's so close!

Benjamin had the time of his life this meet! He got first place in multiple events (don't ask me which right now) and shaved some time off his backstroke as well. He was told five seconds...but it wasn't actually that much...because the timers didn't have the times from last week. So...he shaved five seconds off last week...and only 0.03 seconds this week. But still a good race!

He swam a little bit faster last week in his 50 free and his IM was a little bit slower today as well. 

Honestly, I think the muggy weather played a role...everyone was feeling a little sloggish. 

That said, Benjamin got first place in multiple events—again...don't ask me what...because I can't remember (we'll find out tomorrow)...but he did really well overall.

He was originally slated to swim breaststroke in his medley relay, but things got switched around and he ended up being put on the final leg with freestyle. His team was a little bit behind when Benjamin got into the water, but he caught up and then pulled ahead into a win. It was very exciting to watch! 

He had a whole section of little(r) boys cheering for him.

Even though it was so hot, Phoebe had more fun at this swim meet than she did last week. She was so mad that the playground was closed last week. We know because she told us...multiple times.

"I'm so mad at whoever decided to close the playground!" she'd fume every few minutes.

It's weird to me that playgrounds are so often off limits here. We have public playgrounds that are typically open, but we also have, like, neighbourhood playgrounds that HOAs or "clubs" run. If you don't belong to the HOA or "the club" then you can't use the playground. 

A lot, a lot, a lot of the pools here are the same. Like all the pools that we've ever competed against. 

Again, we have public pools, but...there are more privately run pools than public good pools.

It feels very foreign to me...even though we lived in an HOA neighbourhood with a pool and playground in Durham for five years, so I already knew about them, and even though we pay annual dues to be part of "the club" that hosts our swim team...which gives us access to the pool and tennis courts and playground.

So I understand that it is the system here and I participate in said system, but it still seems like a strange system to me. It gives off undertones of systemic racism—although our team is rather diverse today (not that my pictures necessarily showcase diversity today), I have a hunch that this neighbourhood pool system was originally designed to prevent such intermingling. 

And I agree with Phoebe that playgrounds should be open. 

But, alas, last week the pool we swam at forbade anyone to use the playground during the meet.

The pool we were at this week, however, allowed it and Phoebe wanted to spend every minute between her siblings' races swinging on the swings or going down the slide. We had to force her to go take drink breaks in the shade—her little cheeks were so rosy!

"I'm so glad this playground is open!" she'd tell us every few minutes. "Let's go swing some more!"

Here she is with Daddy while watching a race:

Here she is having a forced break in the shade, draping a cooling cloth over her head:

And here she is hugging this...

Listen—I know that Americans would probably call this a "cone," but does that even look like a cone?

It does not.

I grew up calling such things "pylons," and in this instance "pylon" feels like a more genuine descriptor of the object since it is not really conical. 

Whatever the case, Phoebe enjoyed hugging "it" while she was watching her siblings swim. She was in a very huggy mood!

One more swim meet this week and then we can rest!

That's one of the perks of not qualifying for county!