It’s the beginning of a new era. My wife and I were discussing whether we should get Joshua…… a real bicycle. We want him to get out more, enjoy the fresh air, and work on his motor coordination. He’s a great kid, but he needs to get out there more. I’m making more time to take him outside for playtime. He shouldn’t be like me growing up when I was very young– spending all my time cooped up at home, watching television. I should have been playing sports and playing with other children. I didn’t do that until much later (ages 9 or 10 and later.)

On Saturday, we visited the Bicycle Rack, our local bicycle shop in the area. We briefly considered choosing a simple children’s bicycle from one of the major retailers (e.g. Target, Toys R’ Us), but I prefer the smaller shops. You get more personalized service, and it supports our local small business owners. We originally intended to do some price comparison shopping, but we found a nice 16″ Schwinn for a decent price. After a short test ride around the parking lot, we bought the bike and a helmet.

I was fairly excited, as I was about to introduce my son to my love of riding. For the sake of disclosure, he didn’t seem to be very enamored by the time we got home. Possibly, he wasn’t quite gripping the basics of pedaling and steering, so he was become frustrated. After we got home, he just wanted to watch tv, so I was a little upset. By Sunday, he was more excited, and getting a better handle on riding. I also did a lot of brainwashing about how fun it is, so I hope he believed me! In the evening, the girls next door were riding their own bicycles in the parking lot, so I raced Joshua outside so he could ride with them. I figure that the more he sees other children riding, he’ll feel more comfortable doing it.

Josh's first bicycle