Tips for keeping your baby warm when swimming through the cooler months

Your baby spends nine months in your tummy floating and growing in water, it is only natural you want to reintroduce your baby to that environment. Research supports the earlier the better when considering what age to start swimming lessons for your little one.

Did you know that half of all 10 year olds in New Zealand can't swim 25 metres and a quarter of them can't keep afloat. That's a sad fact for our island nation which is ribboned with rivers, streams and lakes. Keeping your little one in lessons year round is one step closer to ensuring they do not become a drowning statistic.

A love of water starts with baby's bath time. Begin with some gentle splashing and kicking and get him used to water trickling over his head and face.

Plunket recommends babies be at least six months old before swimming in a public pool. Their immune system will have developed enough to protect them from diseases, they can hold their head up and their ears can cope with water. Their little bodies can also cope with the change in temperature when they get undressed and into the water and again when getting out.

With that in mind i have put together a quick fire list of ways to keep your little one warm after their swimming lesson.....

-Bring along a nice warm hot water bottle in your bubs swim bag keeping their clothes while you swim.

-Hooded towels are perfect to wrap around your bubs when getting out of the water, especially if you like to dress yourself before dressing your bubs. Personally i preferred to dress my bubs first as that way i knew they were warm.

-Dress your little swimmer in a long sleeve woollen thermal top and pants underneath their swimming togs to keep them warm in the water.

-If you can find a neoprene wet suit or wrap these are a fabulous way of keeping your bubs warm in and out of the water.

-Ensure your bubs is wearing a coat, hat and socks when leaving the hot humid swimming pool environment and going into the colder outdoor weather.

-And finally, enjoy full use of our brand new baby changing ledge equip with a wall mounted heater above it. Very exciting!

If you have any other tips or suggestions please let us know.

And most importantly enjoy your special one on one connection time while in your swim lesson with your precious wee one.