Serena Williams is giving fans an unfiltered look at the realities of motherhood.
On Tuesday, the tennis legend took to Instagram to share a couple of photos of herself and her daughters, Olympia, 9, and Adira, 3, in the backseat of a car. In the sweet shots, Adira sits on Serena’s lap while Olympia lies across her mother with her head resting on her thigh. Serena has one arm around each girl as she closes her eyes.
“Unfiltered. Raw. Just a tired mom with a full heart holding her whole world….. Ready for whatever comes next,” she captioned the post.
Serena shares Olympia and Adira with her husband, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian.
The 45-year-old has spoken openly about how much she prioritizes being present for her daughters. During an appearance alongside Michelle Obama on IMO with Michelle Obama & Craig Robinson earlier this year, she revealed that she rarely spends more than a day away from them.
“I’m never gone more than 24 hours, ever,” Serena said. “I didn’t leave Olympia until she was 6 for 24 hours. That may have been a little extreme, but that’s who I am.”
She went on to explain why showing up for her daughters matters so much to her.
“For me, I show up as much as I can every single day for the girls, because I feel like they mean the most to me, and I feel like they need me,” she shared. “I want to raise my children. I’m a person that’s raising my kids, and that’s teaching them how I want them to live, and how I want them to be.”
That commitment has remained important as Serena returned to professional tennis this summer after nearly four years away from competition. Olympia and Adira have been along for much of the journey, from training sessions to watching their mom compete.
Having both girls old enough to experience this chapter with her has made it even more special.
“It’s been really special,” she told ELLE. “Olympia grew up watching me play, but now that she’s older it’s a new experience, and she’s really wise and gives me advice! I love that she gets to now share this with Adira, who is so fun to have in the stands. I’m happy they’ll be able to remember their mom playing.”
