I am loving the Olympics! It is nice to take a break from watching the crazy political race or latest terrorist attack coverage on the news. The Olympics are inspiring and have been a breath of fresh air for me. It also has been fun to experience the Olympics with my 2.5 year old son. I normally am not a huge proponent of TV although we do watch Paw Patrol and Disney Junior occasionally (let’s be real) but watching him watch the Olympics is incredible.
Each night, I let him cozy up next to me, and we watch 15-20 minutes of whatever I can find (sometimes even going to the on demand coverage). I try to mix it up, so he is introduced to a variety of sports- some he has never even seen before. Can you imagine if you’d never seen synchronized diving before? His mind was blown. He jumped up with joy after each dive clapping and cheering! He then tried to dive into our hardwood floor (note to self: must explain you can only dive into water,) but he was filled with so much excitement.
Yesterday, we watched Men’s Swimming and we yelled “USA, USA!” at the TV, cheering together for Michael Phelps and the men’s relay. My son even yelled “Go, Marco Polo!” which was hilarious! Today he wants to watch “Nastic” or as I called it, Gymnastics.
I love spending this short amount of time each day with him, inspiring him, and teaching him there is something bigger than just play dates and preschool. “Look at those athletes. They are from Brazil. Let me show you where that is on your map.” I love telling him that these athletes practice and work very hard to become the best they can be. I love teaching him that we are from the United States of America. “That’s our flag. They are representing us!” I love pointing out the sportsmanship between the countries, especially in world today with so much segregation and hate. These are beautiful lessons to teach our children even if they are small. I know he doesn’t fully understand, but kids are smarter than we give them credit. He understands kindness, excitement, and of course, sports!
We still have more time to celebrate the Rio Games, and I highly recommend taking some time and watching them with your children. Inspire them. They are the future. They are our future Olympians.
