Chelsea Memmel is my best friend

Not really. But due to the Olympic competition today, I feel compelled to share my story of having seen her in person.

Her parents gym is a few miles down the street and my kids have been to birthday parties there. I may have seen her there, but I don't remember -- I wasn't looking. The time I do remember is when she was at "our" gym.

My girls both take gymnastic classes on and off at a local gym that has an Olympic coach and a former Olympian (from Belarus?) who is now a coach. I think there are a couple of Olympic coaches, but the one I think she was there with was Jay (can't remember his last name, but I know he's a big deal). Look up Salto gymnastics and read the coach bios if you are of the need to know variety.

I know her dad is her coach, but who knows -- can't get enough prep work in and she was there working on something and I would have never known (because so many of those kids are soooo amazing), but one of the mom's who was in the know pointed her out to me and I watched her on purpose due to the Olympic potential factoid.

I forgot all about it until I kept hearing her name associated with the Olympic team and I was like, "Why does that name sound so familiar?" and I looked her up and saw her parents own the M&M gym and I put it all together :o).

I love getting my kids going about it -- whenever she is on TV I'll say, "You guys shared the gym with her you know." And they make me tell again how that all went down. Winnie does anyway -- she's got her own rise to fame to think about and I think she is happy and feels on the right track whenever fame brushes her way in any way, shape, or form.

Pretty cool though, huh? Wonder what's in the water around here -- first the Hamm brothers, now Chelsea Memmel.

...there is that one natural spring in Dousman, hmmmmmm.