Waterslides are not for the under 2's.

After reading about small children going down slides at 200mph here recently, (and laughing my socks off) I decided to tell a tale about my own dangerous sliding habits.

Staying in the Lakes for the weekend, at what the regulars call "start of season", that is early March, makes for a certain amount of wind and rain, particularly if, like us, you favour the coast. (For us, it's Solway Coast). So one must think of activities to keep 15 month old (at that time) happy. One who can't walk yet, but LOATHES being stuck indoors, and is in danger of being blown away if taken outside for longer periods than the house-to-car trip.

So we visited a local campsite that boasted a lovely leisure centre, and decided to take him swimming, which he loves. He learned to walk in the water 3 months before he bothered on land. The pool was great! Fountains, funny shapes, and a small waterslide, wow.

I watched other tots (granted, older than 15 m, but not that much) go down the slide, and it seemed fairly tame and suitable for my Boy. Especially if I went down with him on my knee. How very wrong I was. How lucky I am to have a child with a penchant for danger.....

I had not seen an adult go down the slide, and if I had, I maybe would have been more aware of the formula: added weight=more speed. I gingerly climbed the slippery steps, tightly holding my precious son. We arranged ourselves safely on the slide with Daddy at the bottom, ready to receive us/cheer and clap. About half way down, realisation dawned: at this speed, we were definitely going under. Or at least I was. I held Boy in my arms, way above my head, hoping my feet would touch the floor and he would be saved. Apparently, my self-preservation instinct is stronger than my maternal one, because the second I hit the water, I let go, and left my 15 month non-walker/non-swimmer to fend for himself without even a pair of armbands on...what a terrible mother!

That's what Daddies are for: he caught the bundle, and later told me how, while I was underwater, all the other swimmers in the pool howled with laughter at my mis-judgment, and how it was quite plain from the look of terror on my face that he would have to catch the baby when we hit the water.

*Sheepishly* Perhaps I should have tried the side out before subjecting my baby to it's 200mph speeds ending in submersion. He loved it by the way, and we went on it 5 or 6 more times....