End of an Era

Between Swimming and Basketball our lives have been pretty occupied with Impala sports for the past 3 months.

Bay finished her last season with the girls swim team. Since she was able to drive this year, that meant less back and forth to the pool for us and fewer bleary-eyed 4:30 mornings. I don't think getting up during the 4am hour (in the dark/cold winter to boot) ever gets any easier. I won't miss the scheduling demands of the swim season, but man has being on that team been good for her!

Her events were the 200 IM or Free and the 500 Free which is a bugger!  She's discovered after all these years of swimming that her strength is endurance and not speed. 

Swimming has challenged her both physically and mentally. While she LOVES to swim and likes going to the meets, she does not like swimming at the meets... confused? She doesn't like competing or the pressure ... she suffers with a bit of anxiety before every meet and every event she is in. She is tough and pushes through for her team!

 She has made some wonderful friends and while she is not social by nature,
she has loved being with these girls.

She has been lucky to have an AMAZING coach who really "saw her" from the very beginning and recognized her abilities both in and out of the pool. 

From her first meet as a CKAT to her last as an Impala, it has been fun to watch her evolve from a little girl to an (almost) adult. Always full of grace and character.
Always excited to be a part of something bigger than herself.

Who would have thought that our little toddler who was terrified to get too close to the water would turn out to be a swimmer! Thank goodness she did .... we have had the opportunity to be a part of a world that was foreign to us (and we know she could save us if we ever need it;)