The start of the Olympic Games always makes me feel nostalgic.  When I was young, I had big dreams of becoming a synchronized swimmer. I’d spend hours in the pool (by myself) practicing (in the shallow end, so my toes could touch), and then call my mom into the backyard to watch. She was so encouraging– never once telling me what “synchronized” meant or that I was supposed to be doing those moves without touching the bottom of the pool.

This got me thinking about my girls’ future. Will they ever be Olympians? They need to be at least athletic enough for a college scholarship, because I’m certainly not paying for it—unless they go to the University of Texas; I’d make an exception for the best school in America.

What would Lira and Zana compete in? I think they have a few good options, based on their current activities, which are:

• Fighting. They’re both really good at this, so I’m thinking Wrestling might be a good event for one or both of them. They might get disqualified for scratching or hair-pulling, but I think it’s worth a shot. This picture kind of reminds me of them:

  

• Scaring the crap out of me. This is Zana’s specialty. She jumps, flips, balances on things and has absolutely no fear… kind of like the Olympic gymnasts and divers. Also, she doesn’t eat, a critical part of the Karolyi training plan. [Read more…]