I did it - Signing up for unlimited sessions (1 year) at BabySPA

That day, I was contemplating if I should top up (while I still can), and convert Lil' J's BabySPA membership to a unlimited one (for use within one year).

It was a tough choice between that and sending her for swimming lessons, or other enrichment fun classes when she hits six months old. Now that we are living off a single income, we got to plan out our resources "($$$  ka-ching!) carefully.

Some of the things we considered:

If we do sign up for the Gold Card, how long do we think Lil' J would enjoy swimming in the tub?
For as long as she is allowed in the neck float. Perhaps 8-month-old?
As long as I can take Lil' J to 40 or 50 sessions before she turns one, it will be worth it.
She loves swimming doesn't she?

And exercise is good for her.


Gold Card ($1090) vs signing up for an additional 10 sessions ($590 + $360 = $950)
It's only a difference of $140.
A gold card is more worth it, isn't it?
And if she spends less time in any session, we won't see it as one session wasted?
Gold card means that if she gets bored, I can entertain her with swimming. Anytime!


Edit:

WRONG. I did the sums again today. The gold card gives us a cheaper rate per session if we attend at least 40 sessions. If I were to hit 40 sessions before Lil' J turns 8 months old (assuming they will put her in a regular float after that and assuming she doesn't enjoy that), I'll have to go at least three times a week. She has only gone for 10 sessions and she is already 5 month old.
Math fail.
If she does enjoy herself even if she is in the regular float then it's good, though it will defeat the purpose of letting her get some exercise.
AND... It is not a good idea to take her there everyday, it seems.
Oh.


It's commitment to take Lil' J to the BabySPA twice a week. Will I be able to do it?
Well, of course!
It's not easy coming up with activities to entertain Lil' J with. And she has a lot of energy!


What other enrichment classes would Lil' J be able to attend? Baby gyms?
The little sister reminded me that Lil' J is too young for baby gyms.
As for other enrichment classes, that brings me to the next point.


Structured vs unstructured play?
After a discussion with the husband, we decided that we should involve Lil' J in unstructured play rather than structured ones since she is still so little.
Sending her to swim class will teach her some new skills.
But what if she just loves the water and not the structure?
We can send her to classes when she is older. She can decide for herself what she wants to learn after she is done exploring.




So....

We decided to provide Lil' J whatever resources we can (she likes to 'swim' and be in the water, we give her a big pool) and signed up for the unlimited sessions at BabySPA.
Not too sure if this counts as good parenting, or bad parenting.
But we believe in giving our child as many resources as she requires to her best of our abilities.
So that she can EXPLORE.


Now with the miscalculations, I do hope it is really worth it.


EDIT:
Shortly after Lil' J turned five months old, she seemed to be enjoying the swim less. She still pretty much enjoy the water but is not as enthusiastic and 'carefree' as she was.
We are not sure if it has got to do with
1. developments (heavier, the ability to recognise people and environment, the need of attention), the 2. environment (on the days she seemed less happy and more fussy, there were more people at the Babyspa. Still the same number of babies, just more adults)
3. interest (she simply doesn't enjoy it as much anymore)

I'm still taking her to the BabySPA twice a week.
She swims for at least 20 minutes.


******

28 September 2015
In case any parents are wondering how J took to the sessions at BabySPA, J really loves water and we actually managed to hit 40 sessions and made my money worth. I know of some babies who went for as many as 100 sessions! That said, it is not so much about the quantity but the quality. The babies need to be happy to be there!

BabySPA has been a nice outlet for J to expend her energy whenever she needed to, especially before she started walking. Because we are regulars at a few branches, chatting with the friendly staff over at BabySPA also provided J an opportunity to interact with more adults other than family. We visited BabySPA up till she was 14 months old but only because she was getting bigger for the tub. I was also on tenterhooks whenever we have younger babies sharing the same pool because my excited toddler would be splashing around and creating quite a "storm" within the tub. We would have continued our sessions if there was enough space for J!