We were two hours into NBC’s coverage of the Olympics when my 9 year old observed, “They spend more time trying to get your emotions up than they do showing sports!” Word. And normally, this over-the-top repackaging of sport as story annoys me to no end. But when they highlighted how mother and recent silver medalist Noel Pikus-Pace toggled between late night skeleton training and early morning toddler duty, I turned into a total sap. Ate. It. Up.

I particularly liked the exchange between Noel and her oldest, six year old Lacee, in the hours before her final two runs.

“You’ll remember this the rest of your life,” said the Olympian to her daughter, referring to the momentous event her little girl would witness that day.

“What’s for lunch?” replied the first grader.

In spite of having just two hours per day to train — complete with interruptions from poopy diapers and needy toddlers –Pikus-Pace went on to win a silver medal that day. What Lacee had for lunch remains undisclosed.

Their conversation struck a familiar chord, one you don’t have to be an Olympic athlete to understand. In short — no matter how grand and exciting our goals and achievements might be, our children are mostly just wondering about chicken nuggets. Noel’s inspiring story got me thinking about the challenges we face as women in pursuing our personal goals in the midst of raising young kids and/or maintaining a career. Finding time to train and balancing it all with the needs of family in mind is so much easier said than done. Read more >>