The first week of the Wimbledon fortnight has been, in a word, insane. The craziness in the women’s draw has been exceptional and historic – in the first three rounds, all but ONE of the top-ten players have lost. Maria Sharapova got her ass handed to her in the first round (lol) and poor Petra Kvitova – who came in as “the favorite” to win – also lost in the first round. And then there’s Serena Williams, who was given the 24th seed even though she’s currently ranked outside the top 100. Wimbledon gave her the seeding because she’s Serena, basically, and it ended up working out well. She won her third round match on Friday. She hasn’t dropped a set so far, and she’s played better with each match. Will she win the whole thing? I don’t know. But she’s easily one of the best contenders in what remains of the tattered draw. Venus Williams was in the same half of the draw as Serena, but Venus lost in the third round and it was devastating.
Serena’s husband has been with her during the tournament, and of course their baby Olympia is there too. I suspect Venus will stick around and attend Serena’s matches, and their mom is there too. Basically, Serena has settled in nicely, and she’s spending her days off watching World Cup games and going to the practice court. She was on the practice court when this happened:
She took her first steps… I was training and missed it. I cried.
— Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) July 7, 2018
OH NO. Olympia is quite advanced, isn’t she? She’s not even 11 months old and she’s already taking her first steps, and Serena also said that she’s coming close to saying her first word. I bet Serena has regrets… but also, she was training! MAMA HAS TO TRAIN.
Serena’s also a fan of Team England, and she was so happy that England won their quarterfinal:
I've spent a lot of summer weekends in London in my life but something feels different about this one! 🦁🦁🦁
— Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) July 7, 2018
And here’s a cute IG of Olympia on the court (this was before the tournament started). I can’t believe she’s already walking!
Wilson made Olympia her own little racket bag!!!
Photos courtesy of Backgrid.
Seriously, Serena
You’ve already done so much for women. You’ve proven their strength and resilience a thousand times over. Go enjoy your kid(s). God knows you’ve earned it. All of us have your back,
Well said wendywoo. Well said.
But she wants to play, she doesn’t want to only be a mother and she doesn’t have to. She can have her career and be a mom. It’s not abut us women, it’s about her. And besides, she could have missed her daughter’s 1st steps by being out at the groceries or at the dentist, it happens all the time.
Serena, you are a champion. Go Train if you want to Train. Don’t let anyone shame you about missing your child’s first steps. We support you.
Except she’s not having a career for other women? She’s having a career for herself. She doesn’t owe anyone anything that we need to tell her to go do what she wants to do. I think she’s doing exactly that.
Black women are always representing women out there in every great way
I missed my oldest son’s first steps (and lots of firsts) because I was in the military and I was deployed…and I was devastated. So when my second son was born I was determined to not miss ANYTHING. And when he took his first steps….I was at the grocery store lol. Sometimes it is what it is. I think we put so much pressure on ourselves to have these perfect parenting moments. And really, we should just find our own moments. Enjoy those when you can.
@Ally, I’m sure you have had many nice moments since. You sound like a lovely mother.
That’s such a healthy, positive attitude to have!
As an aside, that mini Wilson bag is the most precious thing I’ve ever seen.
Serena Williams is one of a kind, God don’t make many of those anymore. Like Ally says above thread, sometimes its what it is, just let it be Serena. And from here on, whatever will be will be, the future is not our to see. If you are meant to see some of those firsts, you will, if not then que será, será.
I’m so rooting for Serena to win Wimbledon, praying for her too. I was disappointed when Venus was knocked out as I love both girls, so I’m hoping and praying for Serena to win.
And that baby Olympia is soooooo incredibly cute.
Your post made my heart sing, my mom used to dance me around the house with that song:)
Exactly. I just happened, by fate, to be there when my son took his first steps. I could have turned away and missed it. You never know. I don’t even remember my daughter’s first step—I was a stay at home mother during those years, but I still have no memory of it at all. So Serena shouldn’t worry, she’s a great mother and her daughter is just fine.
I am not sure if I witnessed my son’s true first steps or not. I asked his preschool not to tell me if he walked at school. I was having a hard time balancing being a working mom and felt like I was missing so many of his firsts because of work. The request not to know was how I reasoned out the situation. If I didn’t know he was making steps at school, then I wouldn’t be sad that I missed them. He will be 6 soon and I don’t regret my decision, it worked for me.
I feel you Serena. It’s a hard balance being a working mom, but you are doing great! Now, let’s win this thing!
She’s such a legend. Would be nice if she won again.
My oldest grandson was walking at 9 months (as well as climbing out of his crib). So doesn’t surprise me she’s walking at 10 months.
Omg my daughter just turned three months and this scares me lol!
My first had hypotonia and didn’t finally take his first steps till 17 months. You might have a while.
My sister, who is 8 1/2 yrs. younger than me, started standing up without holding anything at 8 mos., and took her first steps at 8 1/2 mos., on my 9th birthday (that was the beginning of her giving me “those kind” of presents lol); she was toddling along steading by 9 mos.
By contrast, my oldest nephew wasn’t even rolling over and scooting by 8 months, just doing that “shaking” thing on his hands and knees. My sister called me, almost hysterical, saying he’s never going to walk! lol. I told her to just wait, watch, and let him do his thing in his time. Sure enough, by 10 mos., he just stood up and off he went! Didn’t go through the crawling stage at all! Every kid is different.
Serena seems like an involved, loving mom (loved the vid of Olympia in the sink, “helping” her get ready for Wimbledon 😊). She’ll be there for many other “firsts”. Just enjoy everything as it comes.
Jan, I never crawled either! It still seems like a bit of an anomaly from my perspective, but I bet there’s plenty of kids out there who didn’t crawl or have the ‘conventional’ approach to their first steps. There is so much pressure on parents for kids to be hitting milestones and though not a parent myself, I really feel for parents concerned about developmental milestones. Sometimes, things just need to happen in their own time.
I feel for Serena. It’s very true she has done so much for women as another poster suggested, but I really understand that feeling of being so conflicted, of having two passions in life (in her case, tennis and her family) and trying to excel in both. I think there is incredible strength and vulnerability in expressing her emotions about the feeling of missing something she considers so special. There is a truth in what Serena said that many people will relate to.
Serena is such an incredibly talented and committed woman, not just in sports, but I suspect in everything that she does. It doesn’t mean it all comes easily, and feeling conflicted can be very hard to resolve at times.
Both my kids walked at about 9 1/2 months, and it’s terrifying because they get into everything. And they fall down a lot. They are adorable at that age but I’m glad those days are over!
I must admit I work in a museum and we have a 0-5 year old gallery with a number of interactives / climbing structures and the like. I see a lot of kids who are still coming to terms with how to use their legs. It’s fascinating to watch them, because even though they are still unsure on their feet, the bursts of speed they can get, their resilience when they do fall and get straight back up again, is really entertaining and endearing!
Olympia has almost 400K IG followers!!! She’s adorable.
I missed my oldest’s first steps while at work, too; I was a restaurant manager and my husband said he debated telling me because I already felt like I spent so much time away from them. I cried too.
My younger child walked at not-quite 10 months (and I got to see the first steps!) so Serena’s little one is right in that timeframe! She’s a beautiful little angel, and her amazing mama is showing her that women can be and do anything.
Aw, that had to be hard. Balancing work and motherhood is really hard. Olympia is a doll and hopefully after the tournament they’ll get some quality family time.
Olympia looks like she found a Cheerio on the Wimbledon grass.
Knowing kids it might be a little beetle that went directly into her mouth. I think I pulled three bugs from my kids’ mouths. Shudder.
The pic with the little racket bag is too much! What a cutie 😀
Baby is so cute. She shouldn’t have to stay at home. I’ve seen comments on DM that she should stay home, she has enough money. Doesn’t matter how much money she has, she can have a baby and a career. Men do
I just…I can’t with this kid. She is soooo freakin’ adorable in her little outfit and that Wilson bag. I’m officially on ‘Awwww!’ overload and loving it!!!!
Omg Olympia is so beautiful and adorable!!!! I could stare at that sweet smile all day!
Babies vary so much, 11 months is considered pretty normal for walking. I know someone who’s son started walking at 8.5 months(considered early) , my little one didn’t start walking until 15 months (considered late, it’s like he knew they wanted to start physical therapy in the next few weeks if he didn’t start trying lol) They’re all different 🙂
Her baby has an Instagram following?! Lol
Yeah, that’s a little off-putting IMO. Save the ‘name’ if you must but other than the occasional photo I just think parents should always err on the privacy side of things.
My son took his first steps at 10 months and my husband missed it because he was in the kitchen cooking! But I know how Serena feels. Working full time and trying to balance your personal and work life is difficult. I constantly have mom guilt but I know I am doing the best I can for myself and family.
Ha, ha: the day care worker told me with a playful smile: “It’s AMAZING how many of these babies take their first steps at home!!” In other words, they’re not going to tell the parents their kid took his or her first steps and they missed it! WHY did they tell poor Serena that?? They should have all just squealed anew the SECOND time the baby took a step, and taken it to their grave that it was the second first time. 🙂 <3 Best wishes to this SUPER athlete and wonderful mom!
It would be amazing if Serena wins! I’m rooting for her.
My son started crawling when he was 6 months old and then standing up/cruising a 2-3 weeks after that. Started talking/babbling at 8 months or so with phrases like who is it? who’s there, misty cat and daddy. His first couple of teeth came out late though, after his first birthday. They all developed differently. It evens out eventually.
I really hated that my first walked at 10 months but apparently I did the same.
The older one was in day care so I well may have missed his first steps ..,when my daughter walked I was consulting working from home so I may have seen it ..but damned if I can remember if I can remember either of them talking their first steps. Bad mom alert.
Fun fact – walking is not a developmental milestone but crawling is.
Damn, that is a really cute baby.
Don’t worry, Serena. You won’t feel as bad once you see how much more trouble they get into once they can stand and walk, lol.
Olympia is sooo darling – and she always looks happy.
I usually don’t go gaga for babies but this little one is one of the cutest out there. She always looks so happy! I check that Instagram for photos. And she has cool outfits (heavy metal band t-shirts).
Serena is the G.O.A.T.