From swimming to flying!!!

Well we all know how adventurous boys can be. Ethan proved to be no different. His mum brought him on his first open water swim today....he was positively bouncing with excitement and could not wait to get his wetsuit on and no sooner had Michelle given it to him then the burst of speed he developed to get to the changing room would have given Mr Bolt a run for his money!

Before you could turn 360 degrees, he was back with it on......grinning, now the battle would be on to prevent him getting in before everyone arrives and also before Michelle was ready to get in! To prevent him spontaneously combusting he was permitted to go in up to his ankles in the shallows.....but being a typical lad ....that soon became almost thigh height.

Thankfully everyone arrive before Ethan set out on a marathon swim with his mum in hot pursuit. We all got changed...Ethan hopping from leg to leg with excitement and cries of 'can i get in mum' every two seconds! This was a lad who clearly took after his mum in the wanting to get in the water stakes!

A quick safely briefing and we all set off, some trying to pile up the mileage, others going for a splash, Keith  Midgley was celebrating his 60th birthday and had a new gps toy to play with to map his swim, the results are great as you can see....how he managed to swim on land is amazing but that will be the placement of the satellite at the time i am sure and not a poor sense of direction!

But that being said i might have to save up and get myself one of these toys....what good fun they are!!

It was lovely to meet a new swimmer too Vicky Marlow, on her first open water swim, she never stopped grinning the whole way round, two laps of the buoys, stopping to chat and going through the weeds not to mention getting over the fear of putting her fact in the water, it was lovely to hear that she had come to the lake after reading my blogs too. Very touched by that Vicky!!! Hope you enjoyed the swim.

Alison Darley flushed by her recent success of being chosen to be a swim Shaw teacher came for a swim, and brought her monofin for us to play with....now i love this toy and need to get one for my own amusement not to mention the possible injuries i will pick up using it!!!!

Me doing butterfly

And thanks to Alison for her generosity Julie had a go too!, Here she is putting one foot in...that's the easy bit, getting the other foot in and attempting to remain upright in the water is the issue!!!

 

After swimming for a while it was time to get out for food and drinks, this strange yellow ball in the sky had paid us a long overdue visit so it was lovely to stand around in the its warmth for a bit, chatting, the plan being that we would double dip, Jackie and Kate managed to! Ethan having been so eager to get in was ecstatic with his swim, he had loved it!

After returning from the car with a towel round my neck i noticed a young man on the floor face down near a tree, oh no it was Ethan, clearly in distress having given himself a shock at climbing a tree and finding that he couldn't fly as he came tumbling out of it from about a height of 12 to 14 feet! Both mum and child were clearly shaken. Ethan having been told not to climb did that in the split second his mum turned around. Boys will be boys and if there's something to climb, crawl under or over or into, if they can get muddy, stung, wreck clothing, go fast, go slow, in short...they live life on impulse (rather sounds like most of the male adults i know too!!!), well this little speed demon had climbed a tree so fast no one had seen him do it, once up a branch had snapped and sent him plunging to the ground.

Quickly the swimmers dashed to cars to bring their towels to keep him warm, his head secured by hands that also monitored his heart rate, clearly his pain was coming from his upper spinal area. Anxious for him not to move we talked calmly to ease his fears, and checked his body for outward signs of bleeding, a nasty grazed arm and elbow where the only visible outward signs of trauma, but to be safe rather than sorry i gave my mobile to Tracy Myrtle for her to phone an ambulance.

Ambulance en route it was just a matter of keeping Ethan calm and still and alleviating mums fears which you could see where mounting rapidly.  No one wants to see a child in pain but when its your own all rational thought disappears, mum you see has had as big a shock as child! Thankfully there were enough of us to keep both occupied!

After a more thorough assessment it was decided that even with gas and air the pain in the spine might be cause for concern. Mum thankfully had taken herself to the side where Ethan could not see her as she allowed her distress to flow. Every parents heart will have gone out to Michelle  at this point, and even more so when the ambulance staff rolled Ethan on a spinal board where even gas and air would not help. Even at this point i could feel the tears starting to form but the staff had this little man moved swiftly and soon had him alot more comfy.

At this point the effects of the gas and air kicked in big time, eyes like space ships this young man suddenly liked the idea that he might have to go in a helicopter as was trying to be arranged....not to happen due to heavy fog at Newcastle. That being said i am not sure Michelle's nerves could have stood a helicopter journey.

Taking more gas and air on board this brave young man who a short while ago had been borderline hysterical at the thought that he had broken his back, was giggling at nothing....time to remove the gas and air!! Ethan meanwhile was being trussed up like a Christmas turkey to prevent further movement or injury!

Paramedics brought the ambulance onto the grass to take Ethan to hospital, mum rushing round trying to find the simple things that at that vital moment decide to hide themselves from you. Martin Holland retrieving them and averting more stress, it was Martin who went to the hospital with Michelle.

And into the awaiting vehicle he goes off to enjoy his gas and air adventure....  leaving mum to make frantic phone calls before getting in herself.

And finally off they went, no sirens though...hope Ethan does not think i have broken a promise to him, but ambulances with spinal injury patients do not speed rapidly through red lights instead its a slow and steady journey.

As you can imagine all us adults were very anxious hoping to hear swiftly from Michelle that Ethan was fit and well, this came later that night and the flood of well wishing hopefully has shown Michelle the love we have for her and her wonderful son...who has promised faithfully not to climb any more trees!! Well i suspect that the promise will end with the next succulent tree that takes his fancy...but just maybe then next time when mum says NO ...just maybe he might listen!!

Once everyone has calmed down from the excitement it was decision time, to swim again or get changed. For most the worry of such a lovely lad meant we did not want to return to the water, however there was no stopping another gorgeous little person, badgering mum Tracey to get in....dressed and ready and in this little water babe got, giggling the whole time. And even tried to beat mum....excuse our voices!!!   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hb8yrWPT6Uc&feature=plcp

Next time Ethan and this little water babe can swim together...although Ethan....no tree climbing!!! We are all so glad you are injury free if not a little sore.....i am sure that when your mums nerves have returned to normal we will see you back in the water!!!