First Bike Ride

Tonight, Collin rode his bike for the first time.  After I got home from work. Grandma H helped me load Collin and his bike into the car so we could go to the bike shop for Tom "The Bike Whisperer" to teach Collin how to ride his bike.  I told him on the way what we were doing and he said, "Let's do it another day.  I don't want to today."  I told him we were already loaded up and ready to go.  I was not turning back.  He was not happy about it but we kept driving.

When we got there, he clung to me when he saw Tom.  He told me that he did not want to ride his bike and get killed.  This came from a conversation he had with Daddy earlier in the week.  Daddy asked why he did not want to learn how to ride his bike.  Collin said that he was afraid of getting killed.  Daddy said that would not happen.  He might fall off his bike but he would not get killed.  He talked more and Daddy figured out that Collin WAS afraid of falling off his bike and getting hurt but that he associated hurt and killed.  Once he settled that, Collin was a little better.  You know that had to be a tough conversation discussing death.  Glad I was not there.

Tom had Timmy and Christina help teach Collin.  At first, they took the training wheels and pedals off the bike.  Collin pushed the bike around the shop to work on balancing.  Once he was really good at that, they went outside.  During this time, we could not watch so that Collin would not worry about us and focus on what Tom was saying.  Once Collin was comfortable, I could watch and then participate in helping him learn to ride.

Within 10 minutes, Collin was riding his bike.  Tom said that he as really good balance and control of the bike.  He was already jumping off the bike and standing up when he was ready to get off.  He even used his brakes appropriately....so all he really needed to learn was balance and have confidence that he could do it.  Once he could ride, Mimi and Daddy came out to watch him.  He did great!  We wanted to celebrate but he did not like all of the attention.  We did got to his favorite restaurant, Napoli's, so he could have pizza.  He tried hard to not fall asleep during dinner.  I am sure he was tired after all that work.  Great job Collin!

Timmy helping Collin learn to balance

Look at him go!

Riding to Christina

Me getting instructions of how to continue to practice with him when we get home

Timmy running after Collin

A little blurry, but this is me pushing him

This is a video of his first long ride.  Tom said the steering back and forth is very normal and will get better once Collin practices more.  By the end of the lesson, he was already better than when he first started.

Another Triathlete in the Family?

Sunday was a very active day for the family.  I rode with the tri club in the morning downtown for 22 exhausting miles.  Daddy, Collin and Burke showed up to walk Burke around the park before we went from the park to a coffee shop to meet up with other cyclists.  It was cold but we had a good time getting to know the other people there a little better.  From there, we went home.  Collin and Daddy threw the baseball a little in the front yard to practice before the tryouts in March.  Then, we all went inside to rest before Collin went to the junior tri club orientation.  We plan for him to be a regular attendee, maybe even race AND, more importantly, meet new friends.  If he decides he wants to not use his training wheels like all of the other kids.  That would be a bonus!

When we arrived, Collin clung to me instead of talking to any of the kids.  He stated that he was shy and did not want to talk to anyone.  Then, Finn, one of the boys he is familiar with but does not now as well, came up to him and started talking to him.  He said, "I know him" to me and smiled.  He talked a little to him and then started following me because I walked away.

The first thing the kids did as part of the orientation was to split off into groups of three based on the distance the kids planned to ride.  I choose the shortest one for Collin (2 miles) because I was not sure if he could make the next distance which was 6 miles.  The 2 mile route was a loop so we could go again if he was ready and had the energy.  Plus, I was planning to run next to him.  Not that 2 miles is long but I have not been running lately.  He saw that there were several kids close to his age in the group so he did not complain that he was not going with Finn who went with the 6 mile group.

He did great on the ride.  The route had several inclines so I was interested to see what he would do.  When we came to the first one, he wanted off his bike.  I made him stay on and talked him through how to peddle up the hill.  At the next incline, he started to get off but I talked him through peddling really fast to get him up the hill.  I pushed on his back a little and he told me he did not need the help (making progress already).  After about a mile, he said he wanted to go around again.  I told him we might depending on how he felt after we finished the two miles.  Throughout the ride, he was close to the front.  There was one time that the leader had to go back and help someone in the back.  I wanted to keep going but Collin did not want to lead.  This probably goes back to him being shy and not wanting people to look at him.  I kept running and he did start to follow me....and we kept going until we finished the 2 miles.  He did want to stop so I could massage his legs because "they are tired!"  He then got back on his bike to go around again.  I could see that the kids were lining up to start working on drills.  Not Collin's favorite so I prepared for him to not want to do it.

Collin is in the front in green and I am running on the right in a red shirt

Instead of doing the drills, Collin wanted to rest.  I knew he was not tired because he just finished asking me to go around the loop again.  I finally got him up to stand in line and do at least one of the drills which involved him getting in plank position walking his hands down a row of open plastic circles.  Then he got up to run in the circles alternating feet.  With the next set of circles, he got into the plank position again.  At the end, he got up to run for 1/3 mile to the end, turn around and then sprint back.  He loved the running part and actually got back in line to do it again.

The last drills was sprints.  The group split into two groups and raced each other down the field and back.  The parents were included which Collin liked except that I was on the other team to even it out.  I had fun because my competitive side shown when I had to run against an 8 - 10 year old.  We finished at the same time....at least he did not beat me!

Lined up ready for a race.   Collin is on the left in the green shirt.

Look at that boy run

Ready for the hand off

After the plank-walking drills

Attendees of the first orientation.  Maybe there is a new friend in there waiting for Collin to get to know him or her better.

After the sprints (twice), the kids got to have a snack and then go.  Collin was eating his chips and asked Daddy if he could have his training wheels off.  Both of us looked at each other and smiled.  I hope Collin will be riding without training wheels really soon.  I would love to ride side-by-side with him regularly. 

Wiggling Teeth

Collin learned from his dentist appointment, that he had to wiggle his two bottom lower teeth twice a day.  This is because his permanent teeth are ready to come in but his baby teeth are not ready to come out.

He has been really good about wiggling his teeth or letter us wiggle his them.  When we help him, he holds his head so that only his teeth are moving and we can focus on wiggling just his teeth.  Not sure where he got this from, but it's really funny when he does it.

Dentist Visit

Daddy took Collin to his dental appointment this week.  I should have known it would not be a normal appointment.  After Collin brushed his teeth for the hygienist, she needed to take some X rays of his teeth.  She put the protective lead apron on him, he asked what it was for.  Daddy said that the X ray was going to cut his head off and the apron protected the rest of his body from the X ray.  Collin wondered how he would see and how his head would be put back on.  Daddy had answers for all of those questions. Poor kid is now scarred, I am sure.  It will come out at some point.

The dentist saw Collin and said:

• His teeth look good
• His 6 year molars are all in.  That's probably why his teeth have been sore and hurt too much for me to help him floss the back teeth
• He needs to floss his teeth more in the back or he will have cavities soon.  He said that Collin's teeth are really tight in the back so it's really easy for food to get caught in his teeth.  This is not new from his last appointment. 
• Since he has not lost any teeth yet, he has to start wiggling is bottom two front teeth twice a day because his bottom permanent teeth are ready to come in.  Since Collin's teeth have strong roots, they have not come out on their own yet.  If the wiggling does not help the teeth fall out, then we will have to have them pulled in May.
• His front permanent teeth seem to be coming in croocked.  Start saving for braces!

"Who is Barton King?"

Last night as I struggled to put Collin to bed (his usual stall tactics plus he was really tired from the day), I read three books to him. As I have done in the last few months, I stop at words and have him help me read them. This is not the smartest thing to do because I am asking a tired and cranky kid to read which is not his favorite thing to do. I had no idea how bad last night was going to be.

I was reading the book That's not my Dad which is about a little polar bear trying to find his daddy. The animals point him in different directions along the way to help him find his dad. At the very end, he does find his daddy and says "That's my Dad." Collin does know all of these words in this sentence. So when I asked him to read the entire sentence, you would have thought I asked him to pull his pants down in front of everyone in school. He freaked out and started to cry really hard. I wanted to read the sentence to him and stop him crying but I knew that he would use crying again if he did not want to do something....and win. He really would not win in the end because he would not be learning. So....I thought I would try to calm him down first by talking about his day. He told me about playing with Saige and Linden and then asked "Who is Barton King?" I asked if this was someone in school or someone else he might have met today. He said, "No, the guy they are talking about, Barton King??" I then thought he must be asking about Martin Luther King, Jr. It was MLK Day and school was closed which is why he hung out with Saige and Linden before Mimi picked him up to watch him. I explained that Martin Luther King was a popular guy that many people really liked. "Was he president?", Collin asked. I said he was not but there are lots of people that would have wanted him to be president. He wanted to know why he was not president and I explained that it was a long time ago and now he is dead (not wanting to explain when and how he died). Collin seemed satisfied with that response and moved to his next question. I answered that one and then asked him about the sentence.

The crying began again. I stopped asking, laid the book near him and then walked out stating I would be back when he settled down.  After 10 minutes, I walked back in.  He had the lights on and was looking at his book.  He then looked at me and said, “It says “That is my dad”.  I told him that was correct.  He said he knew that he knew the words and that he loved me.  I gave him a big hug and told him that I loved him too.  I could have gone on about parents are here to teach their kids and not be just fun people….but I knew this tired little boy was too tired to hear that.

Good Times this Weekend as a Family

We did a lot this weekend and had a great time as a family.  Saturday, Daddy did not have to work as much as he has been the last few Saturdays.  He did have to work in the afternoon for about an hour at the shop closer in town.  However, before then, he was free to spend time with us.  He had a great idea for the three of us to visit the Natural Science Museum for a few hours before we went to the marathon Expo, lunch and then the bike shop. 

Collin and I or other family members have been to the museum but Daddy has not been with us so he was looking forward to it.  When we arrived, Collin said he wanted to show us where his favorite things were in the museum.  He was referring to the times he and I have been there before plus the time he spent at camp there last year.  He REALLY wanted to see the white goat was (it's part of the local animal section).  It's not alive but is on display in the "habitat" where it lives.  We wanted to start at the new dinosaur section.  Collin was not excited because he wanted to seen animals and not bones so he tried to hurry through this section.  We slowed him down as much as possible.

Daddy is explaining the Megladon and answering Collin's questions

Collin and I in front of "the teeth!"

Collin was proud of himself for taking this picture

We moved from exhibit to exhibit answering his questions.  He was fascinated with the mummies and wondered why they were dead.  Then, we went to find the white goat he wanted us to see but we could not find it anywhere.  Daddy even asked one of the museum personnel and they did not know what animal Collin was talking about.

After spending two hours at the museum, we headed to the marathon expo.  We tried to explain what the expo was but he just did not understand.  "Will some of my friends be there?"  Nope, it's not like that.  When we got there, he was happy to see that there was a game he could play.  Then, there was a net where he could try to kick the soccer ball in one of the large holes.  I did it first and did OK....for a girl.  He was next, kicked it hard but did miss the holes.  Daddy was last and he did great...he did kick it in a hole but it did not fall through.  Collin went to check it out the next to understand why the ball did not fall in the hole and could not figure it out.  We continued to walk around and look at the exhibits.  All Collin was interested in was were the next game was.  I thought for sure there would be one more but there was not one.  I bought some discounted running shoes and vitamins.  Daddy knew several bike shop people there.  "Daddy knows a lot of people where ever we go".  Yes, he sure does.

Awww....giving the lizard a hug

After getting lunch, we went to the bike shop for Daddy to talk about the junior tri club the bike shop is starting. Collin will be joining this club and participate this year.  He does need to learn to ride his bike without training wheels.  Daddy thinks that Collin will want to learn how once he sees other kids his age doing so.  While waiting for the meeting to start, Collin took my phone and took some pictures.  Besides the lady sitting next to us, he took pictures of our shoes.  He does like to take pictures of shoes for some reason.

Collin's new shoes that he is proud of...really likes the bright colors.

Both of our shoes. 

After the tri orientation, we went home and spent some time outside because it was a gorgeous day.  That night, we had dinner at the Food Truck place because 1) it was so nice out and 2) we wanted to bring Burke.  Daddy had eaten there before.  I was shocked at how good the food was.  I had a black bean spicy burger...which I ended up just eating the patty.  Collin devoured the two sliders and some of the fries.  Burke enjoyed being outside with us.  I am sure we will eat here again soon...but with friends next time that already had plans when we called them to join us.

Sunday, we spent most of the day cheering the marathon runners at mile 20.  Collin was happy we brought Burke so he could play with him until some other boys showed up.  He did play with them a little while and then played games on Daddy's phone.  He helped cheer a little bit but was not interested because I was not running.

Being silly....but this turned out to be a great picture of both of us smiling and having a good time together

Cheering the runners. 

After eating at a place where we could eat outside because of Burke, we all took a nap when we got home...including Burke.  Busy but VERY enjoyable weekend.

I am Mom Now

At dinner tonight, Collin was telling me about his day.  He then stopped mid-sentence to tell me that I am Mom now and not Mommy. "'Mommy' is for babies. Big kids say 'Mom'".  I asked him who told him that and he said that he hear the neighbor kid telling his friend that he does not say "Mommy" anymore. I immediately think "No!!!, I am not ready to be just Mom".  Then, he continues to talk about his day and what he did with his friends.

Later, hr called out "Mommy!!!!" and I smiled because I was still Mommy to him.

"Mommy, Where Are You Going?"

This has been a busy week at work with everyone finally back from the holidays.  Plus, I have had to write two articles and give a presentation.  So, I have been leaving 30 minutes earlier in the morning to get started before everyone shows up to the office. 

This morning as I was walking out the door, I hear "Mommy!!!".  I could not see Collin because it was still dark outside and I did not turn any lights on before I left.  I was at the front door about to close it on my way out.  Coming from the hall, I could see Collin running out and rubbing his eyes.

Collin:  "Where are you going?"

Mommy:  "Work"

Collin:  "Why?"  OK, I can tell that I am not going to get out of this quickly...but I was not in a rush to spend these extra few minutes with my favorite little man.

Mommy:  "I need to work today"

Collin:  "What will you be doing there?"

Mommy:  How do I explain tax returns and clients at 6:30am?  "I will be looking at papers, calling people on the phone and attending meetings."  There, he should be bored by now.

Collin:  "Will some people call you?"

Mommy:  "They probably will and I will talk to there for a little while"

Collin:  "OK, let me kiss you goodbye"......and those were some of the sweetest kisses that I would have missed out on if I had rushed out and tried to squash his questions.

I will probably have a smile on my face today whenever I am talking to people on the phone and doing what I described I would be doing today.

Walking the Dog

Collin and I have been walking the dog every day this week after I have gotten home from work.  He likes to hold the leash while I carry the poop bags and treats.  As we start off down the street, he usually asks if we can walk to one of his friend's houses.  I do explain that we can walk by the house but we will not stop to play because it is dinner-time.  Yesterday, we did not make it the requested friend's house, Davis, because Collin was tired and wanted to head home.  By this time, he was also tired of holding the leash so he wanted me to hold it, along with the two filled poop bags, iPhone, and keys.

Today, instead of heading into the neighborhood, we walked the other way and went to the bird sanctuary.  Burke's nose was going crazy with all of the new smells.  Collin wanted to see the cages near the pond we saw last time which was several months ago.  The cages were empty and he wanted to know where the animal was.  I just guessed and told him in the log cabin near the cages.  Later, a lady that works for the Audubon Society opened the log cabin so that Collin could see the animals caged inside which included snakes, spiders, lizards and other animals.  He knew these were in the cabin from the last time he was in there.  He had lots of questions for her and she was so sweet to answer all of them.  She had to close up and then we left to head home.

Good quality time with The Boy and the dog.

"When is the Tooth Fairy Coming?"

No, Collin did not lose a tooth yet. He does not even have any loose teeth. He has been talking about loose teeth and that some of his are loose including a few of the back ones....not knowing that the back ones will be there awhile.  I thought he might be asking because several of his friends have lost teeth and were probably taking about it at school.

Tonight, he wanted to read a book I got him last year in preparation of the big event....losing his first tooth. The book is called You Think it's Easy Being The Tooth Fairy?  The first time we read it, he had so many questions about the tooth fairy, why would he loose teeth and when. Since then, he has been checking his teeth out.  That was about a year ago. Still no lost teeth.

Tonight, we had picked books out to read.  After reading the first book, he switched out the next one for the tooth fairy book. It has been at least several weeks since I read it to him.  This time, he was upset he had not lost a tooth and asked, ""When is the Tooth Fairy Coming?"   I told him he needed to loose a tooth first. I asked him why he wanted her to come thinking that he was interested in the money. He said, "I want to see what she looks like.  Will I roll over on her because she is so small?  Will I be able to see her?"  I told him he would not see her because she is so quiet when she is there getting teeth. He seemed OK with this explanation. 

Until the next time week talk about the Tooth Fairy. 

Mid-Year Kindergarten Report

Collin came home with his report card today.  We have been working hard on his sight words and reading so I was interested to see how he did on his sight word test.  He got a 20 out of 30.  However, when I showed him the words that he missed, he got them all right except three.  He was having trouble with purple, black and she.  When I told him what the report said, he was not happy.  He said, "I know those words!  I don't know why she said I didn't"  I explained that maybe he was tired when she was testing him or a little distracted. It was OK, because I knew that he knew those words. 

I then read the note the teacher wrote to him so he could hear her overall assessment:

Happy 2014!!! May this new year bring your family health, happiness, and many blessings.

Collin is such a great, little guy.  I enjoy him so much.  He is having a great year.  I am proud of him.  Collin's reading is coming along, nicely.  Please continue tto read with Collin at home, too.  This will help build his confidence.

When I read that she was proud of him, he really liked that. 

On the rest of the report, he was developing as expected in most areas.  The other areas such as Fine Motor Skills and some Social Development, he scored Advanced Development in the following detailed areas:

• Uses pencil with control
• Correctly writes name
• Uses scissors correctly
• Follows directions - ummm....not at home
• Cleans up after work/play
• Follows rules
• Cares for materials
• Math concepts - patterns - he does love patterns

As far as understanding and recognizing the Alphabet, he did great in all areas.  He does still have trouble recognizing the lower case "q" and what the following letters sound like: E, G and Y.  Overall, he had a really good report showing he was making progress in school.

Back at School

It's been busy the last week with the family getting used to going back to school and work.  I thought for sure Collin would have a report sent home from the teacher that he fell asleep in class because he has been staying up late (closer to 11pm) and sleeping in (past 8am) since he has been on Christmas break.  I did push him to get to bed earlier the few days before school but only made a little progress with that.  However, going back to school helped him fall right back into his school schedule.  That kid sure does have some energy.

He did well his first week back.  I did expect at least one report of him acting up because he was bouncing off the walls with energy.  That report came Thursday when the teacher wrote "not being kind today".  He did not know what she meant by that and I just remembered that I forgot to follow up with her to ask her more about it.  Oh well....he did get a sticker today.

Going to and coming home from school was a mix of walking and riding the bus.  He especially likes it when Burke walks to school with him.  Today, Daddy said that Collin was really focused on when or if Burke had pooped yet.  He kept saying, "Nope, he has not pooped yet".  When they arrived at school, Collin even told a classmate that Burke had not pooped.  I am sure she was really excited about that.

I worked from home today so I met Collin and his friends for lunch.  He was sitting by the "usual suspects": Ford, Davis, Jake, Gio and Trace.  Boy, they were hyper!  Jake kept asking me if Collin was crazy and if he got it from me. I asked if Collin was always wound up like he was currently acting and they said "yes, he is always funny".  Yep, still the class clown!  Then, Jake burped and I never had control of the conversation again.  Collin followed with burping several times in a row.  Ford and Trace laughed and Davis gave Collin a hard slap on the back.  Boys and their fascination with burping and poop.  Things will never change.