Olympic Fever - By Sarah Barnett

My family and I have a bad case of “Olympic Fever”.  We have spent the last 10 days planted in front of the television each night, watching some of the best athletes on the planet, perform at their best.  Personally, my 2 favorite sports to watch are Swimming and Running.  The photo finishes, and underdog upsets keep me GLUED to the TV. 

My children are no different.  Our normal nighttime routine has us watching SpongeBob or Mickey Mouse Clubhouse before bed.  However, since the Olympic Games began, my girls have been as obsessed with watching the games as I have.  They ask to watch swimming instead of SpongeBob. They jump up and down in front of the TV, rooting for “their” athlete to win.  It is probably the cutest thing I have ever seen! 

This demonstration of Olympic Spirit is proof that they inherited my competitive spirit.  Which may, or may not be a good thing, depending on who you ask!  This whole charade prompted my husband to ask; “Do you think any of our girls will ever make it to the Olympics?”  I responded with the correct response of; “I am sure if they want to, they will!” Deep down inside, I think it would be really neat for one of my daughters to choose to train for the Olympics.  But it is never something I would pressure them to do.  However, I think it is my job as a parent to open doors for my child and help them find what they are good at and what they enjoy doing. 

This Fall, I will be enrolling my children in an assortment of activities at the Manassas Park Community Center, in the hopes that one of them may spark an interest in one of my children.  My husband and I are both runners and swimmers, but we don’t know a lot about Art, Tennis, Basketball, or Gymnastics, all or which are offered at an affordable price at the Manassas Park Community Center.  There are a lot of great activities planned for the Fall and Winter that will be featured in our MOSAIC, which will be out in the next couple of weeks! Some of the NEW activities include Pre-lympics, lil’ dunkers, No Fuss Mess Art for Preschoolers, Scrabble Club, Chess Club, Karate, Tennis and Cheerleading for school aged children, Cycling, Dodgeball, Wiffleball and Volleyball for teens, plus many more activities for adults and seniors too! If your family has Olympic Fever, use this time to introduce them to new hobbies and sports.  Because even if they don’t choose to be an Olympian one day, you want them to be good at something they enjoy!

I hope to see you around the Community Center. Stay updated on our website for our Fall/Winter Mosaic.

Sarah

*Sarah Barnett is the Aquatics Supervisor for the Department of Parks and Recreation. She can be reached at 703.335.8872 x 4672 or via email at s.barnett@manassasparkva.gov 

Community Matters is a blog created by the City of Manassas Park Department of Parks and Recreation. The blog features program updates, announcements of new services, special event notices, or information of general interest.