Get excited to read this review about our home pool! Our kids call it the “U” as in “usual,” and Erica and I call it “a way to stay sane this summer.” Overall, well received, the East Nashville YMCA’s pros and cons are delineated below.

Zavier - age 10
★★★★★

When I walk into the Margaret Maddox YMCA, I feel excited because it’s a really cool pool. Sometimes the water is the cold, and that’s a negative, but you can always go inside. The inside can be a bit too chloriney, and it will hurt your eyes. Most of my friends go to this YMCA, so that’s fun, but sometimes it’s boring because I’ve been there so much. The water slide is really fun and they have really cool parties with pizza, fruit, water and dancing.

Carter - age 9
★★★★★

I always go outdoors first and see if it’s cold or warm. If it’s coldish, I just swim, if it’s too cold, I go indoors. Indoors is super warm and it can be hard to breathe in there. A good way to get used to the cold water is to use the water slide. I say that because you can’t just swim to the side, you have to go all the way to the ladder thingy.

Jacob - age 7
★★★★★

The girls at the Margaret Maddox YMCA, well, there is one of the girls who goes to my school and her name is Aslyn. She is in my grade. BUT, the locker room is cold. If the pool is too cold I just go inside and swim laps. I love swimming laps and today I swam laps for like the whole time. I was really fast.

Cali - age 6
★★★★★★★★

The swim test is really fun and the indoor pool is fun even though it’s hot in there, because the pool is so deep. When I’m not at the Margaret Maddox YMCA, I really want to go there because I love swimming. My favorite thing is the water slide because it is very fun to go down it and you can say hi to someone on the ladder when you’re sliding in the middle of it.

Henry - age 5
★★★★★

I give this YMCA 5 starts because I am 5 and 5 is best.

The most fun thing is having a life jacket on and kicking your arms and legs. The least fun thing is having to go in the deep end. Over six feet. I have been four feet deep and it’s really scary but earlier today I lifted up the rope and was in the deep end for not even a second and then went into the shallow. I was proud of myself.

Max - age 3
★★★★★ (it’s his favorite number)

I went swimming and I liked putting a life jacket on and going in the deep water with Henry, and Jacob, Cali and Zavier.

Erica - old enough to be their mother
★★★★★ (my highest score for a pool without a babysitter, beach, or bar)

The YMCA in East Nashville is by far my favorite so far. If we have an emergency, like a toddler melt down or a thunderstorm, I can get home easily. It’s also possible to get there and back in less than two hours, which is nice on days when I need to get the kids out of the house, but don’t want to spend all day at the pool. And sometimes, my husband comes to sit by me and play word games on our iPhones.

Best of all, I get to be a magazine mom.

“Magazine mom” is an elite class of moms that doesn’t have to swim with their kids because they’re all certified as safe swimmers or wearing life jackets. It’s a pretty desirable group to be in — it means that I don’t have to get in the water with my kids. I can zone out with Southern Living or Facebook and peek up over my water bottle if I hear someone being raucous. I’m pretty lucky to get to lounge, bronzing my legs while all six of my kids swim.

Margaret Maddox YMCA, I love you.

Jackson - Thirtysomething
★★★★★

There is a great community at the Margaret Maddox Y. I am really grateful that we have such a great resource in our community.

Since we spend a lot of time at this Y, I have some tips for you:

• The chairs along the building get shaded shortly after noon. This could be a good or bad thing.
• Show up 10 minutes to 30 minutes after the hour. Swim breaks are on the hour for 10 minutes.
• The pavilion outside the pool area is a great place for snacks during a swim break.
• The slide is for adults too. Have some fun