Everybody and their brother ride their bikes here. Well, and their sister, mother and father. It's just packed with bikes. No matter what the weather is. There are more bikes and pedestrians, even on horrible rainy/windy days than cars. And if you haven't tried to ride your bike on a windy day, try it. You'll have a huge amount of respect for how difficult it is. I did it. I hardly moved forward. It took the wind changing direction (thankfully it does that too) before I could move forward!
But this Sunday was the day. Emma was determined and ready to ride her bike. This was the day for the training wheels to come off. Did she do it? Yes! Emma had practiced all week in our neighborhood and Philip "finally" got back from his work meeting in Iceland to remove the "stabilizers." Up and down, round and round. She rode her bike that is nearly 2 years old. Thank you Grandma Cathy for this 3rd birthday gift that is finally being put to REALLY good use!
During the past weeks, her training wheels finally broke on one side. It forced Emma to really learn to balance or to just give up and stick with her scooter. She is stubborn and did it and did it well. She fell many times, but always had the determination to get back on. Woo hoo!
She's looking forward to picking out a bike lock and a bike bell when we're in California. I figured it was a safe bet to make her wait until then....otherwise, she'd be wanting to ride her bike to school. I'm finally getting used to her riding her scooter to school, but none of us are ready for the bike! Not only do drivers have the right of way (can you even believe that????), but Emma does not have street sense yet. I barely do! Everything is backwards.....ok, maybe not backwards, but it's all on the left. All of it is opposite for me. And the roundabouts! Geez! These people have got to give me a break! Oh and zebra humps (I think that's what they're called). These are crossings for pedestrians and "bumps" for cars. Needless to say, the poor kid will have to wait until her "street challenged" mom works up the confidence first.
We tried going to the Port Meadow yesterday for a bike ride (it would've been a bit more entertaining than going round and round and round our circle/oval neighborhood). Emma made it up to the top of the bridge, but was very hesitant to go down the hill. Even knowing that she could see Sheila (one of the horses she's named and adopted). So, we turned around and went back, up and down, round and round our neighborhood. Maybe next time!
I'll keep you posted on the bike riding adventures as I'm sure there will be many!
But this Sunday was the day. Emma was determined and ready to ride her bike. This was the day for the training wheels to come off. Did she do it? Yes! Emma had practiced all week in our neighborhood and Philip "finally" got back from his work meeting in Iceland to remove the "stabilizers." Up and down, round and round. She rode her bike that is nearly 2 years old. Thank you Grandma Cathy for this 3rd birthday gift that is finally being put to REALLY good use!
During the past weeks, her training wheels finally broke on one side. It forced Emma to really learn to balance or to just give up and stick with her scooter. She is stubborn and did it and did it well. She fell many times, but always had the determination to get back on. Woo hoo!
She's looking forward to picking out a bike lock and a bike bell when we're in California. I figured it was a safe bet to make her wait until then....otherwise, she'd be wanting to ride her bike to school. I'm finally getting used to her riding her scooter to school, but none of us are ready for the bike! Not only do drivers have the right of way (can you even believe that????), but Emma does not have street sense yet. I barely do! Everything is backwards.....ok, maybe not backwards, but it's all on the left. All of it is opposite for me. And the roundabouts! Geez! These people have got to give me a break! Oh and zebra humps (I think that's what they're called). These are crossings for pedestrians and "bumps" for cars. Needless to say, the poor kid will have to wait until her "street challenged" mom works up the confidence first.
We tried going to the Port Meadow yesterday for a bike ride (it would've been a bit more entertaining than going round and round and round our circle/oval neighborhood). Emma made it up to the top of the bridge, but was very hesitant to go down the hill. Even knowing that she could see Sheila (one of the horses she's named and adopted). So, we turned around and went back, up and down, round and round our neighborhood. Maybe next time!
I'll keep you posted on the bike riding adventures as I'm sure there will be many!
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