A Bike ride with Ama

Oh how I wish I could view the world through my children’s’ eyes more often!! Ama conquered ‘no training’ wheels last summer thanks to my brother’s great (and patient) teachings. Since Ama is my little cautious one, her bike riding progress was definitely at a snail’s pace. But once she turned that corner of feeling comfortable getting on/off her bike and starting/stopping her bike on her own, it’s been hard to get her off of her bike! And of course, as with most children, she wanted desperately to ride her bike out of the neighborhood to an actual destination. The protective mom in me initially said no. But her adorable, adventurous spirit and unwavering persistence finally got me to ‘notice’ that we do have sidewalks from our neighborhood to the stores nearby. So with Merek and Dad following in the golf cart as protectors, we set off to hit the sidewalks and break free of the neighborhood!

What’s beautiful about a child, is that she was noticing everything the world had to offer. Amongst the many “Thanks mom!”  comments and “This is the BEST DAY EVER!” There were comments about the flowers, butterflies, our gorgeous sky, and just the feeling of the air when you’re out on the open road.  😉 Everything just seemed better.  I sat back and admired her innocence, joy, and appreciation. 

Once we had traveled to the end of the sidewalks that outline our neighborhood, Ama and I realized that we were very parched! So Dad handed over his wallet, he and Merek bid is farewell as they turned into our neighborhood, and Ama and I continued down the sidewalk to the store for a Gatorade! (And a little piece of candy). 

Gatorade never tasted so good!

We chose to ride the streets through our neighborhood on the way back. Ama was in heaven as she said hello to EVERY neighbor that she could get her voice to. “Hello! Hi! Good Morning!” Whether a neighbor was in their front yard, backyard, in their garage, getting in/out of their car....they received a very cheerful hello from my new independent bike rider! And our neighbors were lovely! Returning her “hellos”, or commenting “cute bike!” as Ama beamed with delight! Then there was the moment when she successfully raised one hand off her handlebars to wave to a slowly passing car! She didn’t comment on it, but I saw her smile and pride overwhelm her whole body, as did mine! What a ride!