How A Little Yellow Raft And A Rude Lifeguard Ruined My Day

I have a 9-month-old son named Charlie! Charlie was born in October 2017 when the weather started to get cold out. Now that it's summertime in Minnesota, his favorite past time is going swimming--he's practically a fish.

I took him to a wading pool the other day. I noticed that there were children swimming in the pool that had little floaties with them. I didn't bring a floatie for Charlie...but, I did make note to do it next time because it looked like something he'd enjoy.

Before I left the pool, I made sure to double check with the lifeguard if floaties were allowed. He assured me that they were as long as they were little.

I ran to the store, bought a little yellow floatie raft and immediately went home to blow it up. A few days later we were back at the wadding pool...but, this time there was a different lifeguard on duty.

I grabbed Charlie, a towel and our new yellow floatie and started toward the pool. I realized there was no one else at the pool, we had it to ourselves. All at once I was stopped by the new lifeguard who wanted to take a look at my floatie. I was a little confused--because, I took several steps to make sure I wasn't violating any rules. The lifeguard was reading the warning label on the raft. Then finally, after what felt like several minutes, she says, 'you can't use this in the pool because I don't see anywhere it says it's 'lifeguard certified.'

I was shocked at this point. I assured the young lifeguard that I was going to be in the one foot-deep water with my son the entire time he was using the raft. Not to mention, we were the only people at the pool. Between the two of us watching him, I think he would have been fine.

The lifeguard insisted that it wasn't safe for me to use. I asked the lifeguard how it would be more safe for me to hold him in the water without the raft. I realized at this point that I was going to lose this argument...one that seemed ridiculous.

I decided to just take my son home and fill up his little blue pool in the backyard--and I let him use his yellow raft which he really enjoyed.

Do you think the lifeguard was reasonable when it came to standing her ground about the raft? Or, do you think she could have handled things differently given the circumstances?