Ridin' Solo

Back a year or two ago when we lived at our former house, we decided it was time for Connor to learn how to ride his bike without training wheels. Jeff convinced Connor to give it a try and took off the training wheels for a practice session. At the time, Connor's bike was a little big for him so he had a tough time getting the hang of balancing on the bike. I took a few videos of him doing a great job (which I can't seem to find now) and then we decided to try again another time.

That was about 1-2 years ago!!

So now that we're settling into our new neighborhood in Katy, we've been noticing more and more elementary kids riding their bikes to school and to play. Jeff and I have tried for months to convince Connor to get out his bike and give it another shot, but he kept refusing. He wouldn't say why he was unwilling to try it, but I'm sure he was feeling nervous and scared about it.

Last month, I finally decided I was going to have to force the issue. As we walked to school one morning in early October, I told Connor, "OK, buddy. We're going to have to learn to ride your bike now. It's going to happen this month. October. You pick the date, but it has to be this month." He wasn't happy about it, but he begrudgingly agreed and finally picked October 30th. I put it on my calendar: Oct. 30: Connor learns to ride his bike! A bit optimistic, but it needed to happen.

Fast forward throughout the month, Connor would surprise me by bringing up the big event. He would ask, "Mom, you know what's happening next week?"

"Of course! It's Halloween."

"No," he would reply, "the other thing."

I chuckled at his apprehension and also his apparent willingness to go along with my pick-a-date plan. We had this same conversation exchange several times before the BIG DAY arrived.

Of course, on October 30, wouldn't you know the state of Texas was experiencing the Great Rain of 2013. Storms and record rain all across the area, making for terrible bike-riding weather. Just our luck! But we persevered. After school that day, we caught a break between rainstorms and headed out on Connor's bike.

I was under no illusions that Connor would learn to ride his bike in a single afternoon. But we tried for about 30 minutes in light rain, me holding the bike and helping him balance while he zig-zagged up and down the sidewalk. I was exhausted and feeling a little frustrated, but he had a great attitude and was trying hard. Finally, I told Connor we'd take a break and let Dad help him later. After dinner, Jeff and Connor set out again. After a few minutes, they moved to the street so that Connor wouldn't keep overcorrecting to avoid the grass on the edges of the sidewalk. Soon after, I looked up, and what did I see? Connor riding his bike--without help--towards me down the street! I was so surprised and excited!!

When Connor pulled up beside me, I was squealing with excitement. "Connor! You did it!! So awesome!" and of course he had a huge smile as well. I praised how great he had done, and he said something about doing math in his head.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Dad told me to clear my head and focus," he responded, "so I just kept thinking: what is 2+2, 2+2, 2+2,...". I laughed SO hard. That kid!!

From that point on, Connor kept his chin down and eyes forward with a determined look on his face, all while ridin' solo down the street. Jeff and I were so proud of him and so excited that he had finally conquered the bike.

Jeff helps Connor keep his balance on the bike.

Looks like he's almost getting it!

Woohoo! Success!!

The next day, the sunshine was finally back and right after school Connor was back on the bike. He was still trying to figure out the best way to get started, but once he was rolling he didn't look back.

Love those smiles from his newfound freedom!

And not to be left out, Kaitlynn has been enjoying her time on her bike as well. It still has training wheels, but she can go quite fast. I have a feeling we'll be spending a lot of time on bikes from now on!

Bike ride, anyone?!