stuff i think

Yesterday was a very, very, very good day. I'm learning more and more how much I miss my kids during the day. I'm at the office and 2 of the 3 are at school...then when we get home we're usually running ninety different directions. It was a great time for a long weekend.

The pinacle of the weekend was teaching Grayson, 6, how to ride a two-wheeler. (Here's Gray hot tubbing with his buddies in Gatlinburg) I have my own never-fail method of teaching kids to ride a bike. Granted, it's only been tested twice, but in both occassions I had the kid up and riding that day. Most people put the child on the bike, grab the back of the seat and one handlebar tightly and run along side. Junior falls for the illusion that he's got control, and when dad let's go, BAM! Right into the side of the neighbor's minivan.

My method involves a belt. No, not for what you'd think. I looped the belt under Gray's arms and supported him from the back. That way, he's in control but never hits the tarmac. He steered and pedaled, veering all over the road until the magic moment when the bike swerved and he corrected it on his own, and a grin spread from ear to ear. It was like a cosmic "Aha!"....and he was off and riding. Granted, he did a few endos (next lesson - STOPPING), but letting him feel the motion of the bike from the beginning gave him the confidence to ride on his own on our second or third trip down the street.

We celebrated later in the day with friends at Tucker's Whippy Dip, ice cream dive extraordinaire. This is the stuff great days are made of.