I am sleep deprived. Why do they always have to put gymnastics on so late? In a twist of fate, our TiVo has decided to be as obedient as Charlotte, which means that at exactly the moment where Simone Biles is about to do her vault, it goes black and restarts the system. It turns out that when the TiVo system resets, it also stops recording whatever I asked it to record. I have attempted to circumvent this problem by watching the live streaming from the NBC website, but apparently the NBC website is in cahoots with my TiVo, because every time the excitement is about to begin, it freezes up completely.
I love the Olympics. I feel like my Grandma Sonia, who would repeat endlessly whatever inane comment came to mind at the moment while she watched TV. For me, I cannot stop saying, "These people are incredible! I can't believe these bodies! This is unbelievable!" Every night. Strangely, Eric has been spending a lot of time in the basement, away from the Olympics and me.
In addition to the continual astonishment, the Olympics are a way for me to measure time in 4 year increments. 4 years ago, I watched the summer Olympics with a fetal Charlotte swimming and flipping inside of me. This summer, I get to watch the Olympics with my daughter on my lap, oohing and ahhing over the gymnastics just like I am.
As we watched, I commented to Charlotte that 4 years ago, she had been inside my uterus while I watched the Olympics. After a quiet moment, she asked, "How did I get out of your uterus?" I said, "Through my vagina." After another quiet, longer moment, she said, "I don't think I want to have any babies." I told her she has plenty of time to think about it, and that I kind of hope she will change her mind because I really want to be a grandma, but that ultimately, it will be her choice.
The kids are all watching with me, when they can- it is a special treat for good listeners to stay up late and watch Olympics with mommy. They ask me would I be proud of them if they went to the Olympics- of course!
Charlotte thinks she can do half the things the gymnasts can do, but when she gets up to try them, she finds out she can't. I told her- "Practice, practice, practice!" and then I see her try her skills and hear her say to herself, "practice, practice, practice!" She's signed up for gymnastics for the fall, and I keep asking her if she is going to be the next Simone Biles- she says yes. So look out for Charlotte in 2028 or 2032!
