Free Wheelin

Another big thing happened last Sunday, besides my awesome pizza/no plates surprise birthday party. Fueled by the gorgeous weather, a few party beers, and Landon's growing annoyance over his big-boy-bike-turned-balance-bike with the pedals removed that he couldn't make go very fast, we found ourselves agreeing to an impromptu adding back of the pedals and chain and sending him down the driveway with nothing but a shark helmet and two big wheels on which to balance precariously.

We tried this several months ago and it was epically disastrous. There was a lot of crying, there was no balancing and no pedaling, and it took us all a while to get over it. (And by get over it I mean, we stopped going on walks for a while and then he got a scooter for Christmas so the walks could resume.)

So I was nervous on Sunday, but Landon was supremely confident. He was Master of the Bike. Wonder on a One-Speed. He clicked on that helmet and TOOK OFF. No practice, no JP or me running behind him holding onto the seat- he started riding so quickly I barely had time to whip out my phone and get a picture.

 

No falls, not even a wobble. He high-fived me as he turned loops in the street. I had just spent the day before buying him new clothes- clothes now found in the official Boys section at Old Navy. Size Smalls, no more "T's" for him ever again, and I was still kind of reeling from that. He is a man now and soon he will ride his bike off to college.

 

Claire wanted to ride a bike too, of course.

 

Purse and baby in the trunk, riding along in flagrant violation of child safety laws.

 

Where to next? The park? Target? Papa and Gigi's house? The whole world was before them.

 

Luckily, where they wanted to be happened to be our own street, looping circles in front of our house.

They rode around until dark, JP and I standing on the driveway cheering and getting some video and pictures, but mostly just standing with our arms around each other smiling and marveling at our nearly-3 and almost-6-year-olds. Smiling and marveling and wondering when the hell that happened.

 

From first steps to riding a bike around in circles and over curbs down driveways. Being a parent, being an essential part and also a third-party witness to all those little steps of independence and big kid-dom is a little hard, a lot fun, and sometimes truly a bit of an honor.

Just look at them go.