Summer Vacation Week #4 was all about biking.
In my neck of the woods, I'm known as that lady who bikes to town with her kids. My bike trailer is so old that the original bright neon pink and green fabrics have faded to pitiful shades of pig pink and celery. Nevertheless, our crew is easily spotted with our fluorescent orange helmets and neon green (or is it yellow?) construction vests. I'm of an age now when I no longer care how ridiculous we look. Safety first, folks.
This was a big week for us. The 6-year old, who learned how to ride a bike last fall, made her first trek to town. Living about two miles south of our happy little village by the big lake, this is no small feat. Fortunately, she's oblivious to fashion, too, and had no problem donning an orange helmet. After accidentally pinching the sensitive flesh under her chin, we got the helmet sized just right. I put the baby (a toddler, really, but old names die hard) in the bike trailer and off we went.
Have you ever read The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement by Eli Goldratt? It imparts one very important lesson.
You can only goes as fast as your slowest person.
Lucie took the lead as we headed to town. Usually the wind blows us to town then bullies us on the way back home. On this day, however - and oddly every subsequent day we biked - the wind offered nothing but cool breezes both ways to complement the delicious summer heat and sunshine.
If I may be allowed a touch of mama pride, Lucie did such a great job. She led the way, following my instructions to stay between the white line delineating the road from the shoulder and the grass. After a few wobbles and some zig-zags, she centered herself in the zone and chatted all the way to town. When we approached Highway 11, she stopped when asked, looked both ways AND waited for my go-ahead to cross to the other side. Always bike with traffic, I reminded her.
She took to the sidewalk while I stayed on the road. Always stay to the right, I instructed.
First stop: Rainbow Park. The toddler (see how I made the switch there?) clambered out of the bike trailer and approached a young boy wearing a Spider-Man mask. Striking a super pose, he pointed his thumb to his chest and announced in a gravelly voice, "I'm Batman." The two went on to chase each other around the park, calling each other Spider-Man and Batman with the same seriousness as adults would in addressing each other as Mr. or Mrs. So-and-So. I was Wonder Woman.
After an hour and a few apple slices, we hopped back onto our bikes and hit the bike path. Snaking around what I call the lagoons next to the City Campground, Lucie marveled at the water. In doing so, she collided with the bike trailer several times. Another lesson: Always steer straight; especially when admiring the surrounding nature.
By the time swimming lessons ended at 6:30, our stomachs were growling. We hopped on our bikes to head home, me, dreaming of dinner. When Lucie suggested we go to the Dairy Queen, well, twist my arm. We altered our course and dined on a 6-piece chicken strip basket and a Jurassic Blizzard. Both kids emitted these food noises - groans and smacks of pleasure - which to the hungry ear sound divine. There wasn't a single leftover.
Fueled by this questionably nutritious, yet filling, food, our spirits lifted and rather than bike home, we made a stop at the grocery store. Dad was away on a business trip and the kids knew only too well what that meant. Golden Puffs and Cheetos went into the cart along with a loaf of french bread, a watermelon, two chunks of marble jack cheese and two gallons of milk. (Hey, Cheetos were on sale 3 for $7.00! I bought just one, so give me some credit. Okay, full disclosure: I bought a second bag Thursday evening. Dad enjoyed them.)
And finally, it was time to sojourn home. I was worried. Between already putting in a good 5 miles around town, playing at the Rainbow Park for an hour and swimming lessons, surely the 6-year old would be too pooped to pedal home.
She biked that last 3 miles like a pro.
On to our regularly scheduled program...
Kid-provided Kitchen Fun Facts (test at your own risk)
Lately, my oldest son has been watching YouTube videos about kitchen shortcuts. No, I don't know why. When I asked him why there were Tylenol dosing syringes drying in the dish strainer or an open container of water in the freezer, he said, "It's nothing."He's tried some of these short cuts, like shaking garlic around in a glass jar to remove the husk. (Doesn't work.) Or perforating a jar lid to grate carrots (Technically works, but leaves a huge mess of splattered carrot peelings.) Put a lime in the microwave for 15 seconds and you will get more juice out of it. (Works!)
Here are a few additional Kitchen Fun Facts.
- Why do onions make you cry? You see, there are these tiny fibers in onions that are like blood vessels in a person. When you cut the vein, blood shoots out. The onion itself does nothing. But if you cut it, the vapors shoot out like the blood from your veins.
- You know that sticker on a banana? Apparently food producers are moving away from the stickers, opting for lasered bar codes. Especially for potatoes and yams.
- You smell like what you eat. If you consume something salty, sweet or alcoholic, your sweat will smell correspondingly salty, sweet or like alcohol.
On This Day
Historic Highlights (credits)2016 - The UK votes to leave the European Union. Just over half of the electorate voted for “Brexit”, Britain's exit from the EU. The UK had been part of the union since 1973.
Along these lines, the previous week I saw a headline in the Wall Street Journal speculating on the return of French as the EU's lingua franca as UK exits stage right.
1992 - Yitzhak Rabin's Labor Party wins the election in Israel. Rabin became the country's fifth Prime Minister. For his engagement in a peaceful solution to the Middle East conflict, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1994 (together with Shimon Peres and Yasir Arafat). A year later, Rabin was assassinated by a Jewish extremist.
1961 - The Antarctic Treaty comes into force. The treaty was the first arms control agreement signed during the Cold War. It sets Antarctica aside as a scientific preserve and prohibits military activities on the continent.
1931 - Wiley Post and Harold Gatty start their record-breaking flight around the world. The American-Australian team was the first to circumnavigate the planet in a single-engine plane. After several stops, they returned to Roosevelt Field eight days later. They took nearly two weeks less than the previous record holder, the German airship Graf Zeppelin.
1894 - The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is founded. The IOC is responsible for organizing the Olympic Games and similar events. The committee was established at the initiative of French educator, Pierre de Coubertin.
The next Olympic games are scheduled to be in Tokyo, Japan in 2020.
Happy Birthday to You!🎶
1972 - Selma Blair, American actress1964 - Joss Whedon, American director, producer, screenwriter
1951 - Michèle Mouton, French Rally driver, the female to win a World Rally Championship event
1916 - Len Hutton, English cricketer
1912 - Alan Turing, English mathematician
May you and your family have some awesome biking adventures this Saturday. Let me know if you find some turtles!
Kim
So, what's your favorite Cheetos flavor?
ReplyDeleteYes, I know Eli G quite well. He was all the rage for a while when I was in my corporate days. Him and his "bottlenecks," and his story about x (forget his name), the chubby boy scout who held up the line of hiking boys.
ReplyDeleteYour vignette about the biking adventure has qualities of both family fun and the feel of Jack Kerouac. Great post!
I always enjoy reading your blogs. You seem so normal, when in reality you are WONDER WOMAN (as I have long expected).
ReplyDelete