Flat

I got a new bike. (have I mentioned that before?) And I love her! She's a beaut. And I rode her a grand total of 2 times before I got a flat tire. But oh those rides with my children were lovely! And then she sat on the back porch for about 1 week until the husband brought her inside to fix her.  And he found a thorn in her tire. And then she sat for about another week in the middle of the family room missing a tire, while the husband hunted for a new tube with a standard post on it. (Did you know they made different kinds?) She probably felt naked with only one tire on.

So toady we FINALLY went on another outing with the children. It was a lovely day here. And we were determined to enjoy it, the children and I. And so we set off on our jaunt. The girl on her purple Mongoose, and the boy on his Spiderman. Did you know both of my children can ride without training wheels? They can. Once the girl learned how (which only took a couple days worth of practice), the boy was determined to do it too (it took him slightly longer than a couple days). And we are so proud of our two big children that can be so free and independent. It's fun going for bike rides with them! Now if only the husband would get with the program and get a bike too. But he has no desire. I think we will continue to work on him ;) .

On with the story- So as we rode around the neighborhood today, the boy asked if we could ride to the park. Why not. So off we set. The girl was complaining of being tired, which is so unlike her. She is usually WAAAAY out in front and I have to tell her to stop and wait for the rest of us. About half way to the park, which is not very far from our house- less than half a mile in fact, I noticed that the girl's back tire was a little flat. So we went on to the park and the children rode around for about 5 minutes before they dropped their bikes and played on the playground for about 30 seconds. At which time 2 cars pulled up and out hopped a bunch of little kids. To which the boy promptly informs me that he is ready to go. The girl says that's fine with her too, and we get on our bikes to head back home. This is when I notice that the back tire on that darn Mongoose is COMPLETELY flat and the front tire is going flat too! NO WONDER SHE WAS SO TIRED! Poor girl was having to work twice as hard just to keep up with us!

The girl ended up walking her bike the whole way home, except for the brief episode where I tried pumping her while I held on to her bike and pulled it along too. I got about half way down our street like this, before I lost balance and we all fell. That was a great time, with the boy out in front, oblivious of the struggles going on behind him. And not caring much either, as he has just graduated to his bigger bike and was loving the ability to ride just as well as the rest of us.

ANYWAY- in spite of the DOUBLE flats, we had a lovely ride. And the husband has the situation under control. Hopefully the Mongoose will be back up and running soon so we can enjoy more of this beautiful weather before it disappears into the dreaded months of death. Then who would even consider going out!

But for now it's lovely.

And here is my cutie patootie bike- complete with bell. Alas she still needs a name. I'm thinking Daphne. I love her. But this is not her good side. She cuter from the other side. And she still needs a basket on front. This picture was taken the day she got her flat. And I'm pretty sure this location is where she picked up that nasty thorn.

A tale about.....Ash Wednesday

I am not Catholic, or Methodist, or Anglican, or any other religion that celebrates Ash Wednesday. I am, however, a Christian. Yet, I never knew what Ash Wednesday was......until today.

The girl announced to me yesterday that her calendar says that "tomorrow is Ash Wednesday." In my ignorance I asked her if she was on the correct  month. I assumed that it had something to do with Easter, so I decided that she has the wrong month since Easter is still too far away.

But this morning, she brings me her calendar and shows it to me. Sure enough- Ash Wednesday. I asked the husband, the fount of all wisdom at our house, what exactly it celebrated. The girl was all excited about a "holiday". I couldn't tell her what it was. The husband wasn't sure either.

So I looked it up....and understood every word. Told the husband, and made him "translate" it so the children could understand. (I'm not very good at simplifying explanations) The girl was a little less interested in the "holiday" then, and a little more interested in her video game. Funny.

But hey, we all learned something new at our house today.
And maybe I'll think of SOMETHING that I can give up for the next 40 days.....cause giving up food just isn't an option.

And also here is a little interesting tid bit of info:
In the Republic of Ireland, Ash Wednesday is National No Smoking Day. The date was chosen because quitting smoking ties in with giving up luxury for Lent. In the United Kingdom, No Smoking Day was held for the first time on Ash Wednesday 1984, but is now fixed as the second Wednesday in March.