it was just like....

Until three weeks ago it had been over a decade since I had ridden a bike.  I don't know why I let this happen, because I love riding a bike!  I'm so glad my daddio, baby sister and I are making weekly bike rides happen now.  Next up...getting Michael and Johnny out with us!  You know what a picture-taking freak I am, so of course I have pictures from our rides to share with you.  I love my Canon Elph!

It really was...just like riding a bike!  I was trying my best to get a picture of me and my Tessy here.

My Dad...a superstar biker

We ride around Lunken, and I love seeing the planes take off and land up close.

Tess is pretty much a superstar too. 

Tessy

Dad approaching the Ohio River (and the car...such a long ride!)

Pretty in Pink

a long walk in the COV

we took advantage of the gorgeous spring weather yesterday and went for a very long walk/bike ride/stroller ride all over covington.  we saw our church, the house that mama lived in until she was eight, ran into aunt rita & robin at the post office, picked up new books at the library, and visited a few of our favorite shops: stoney's gifts, all things princess & fairy and MK's totebags & monogramming.  on our way back to our car we had a little bike trouble...sam's chain popped off and i could not get it back on to save my life.  i had just given up when a kind gentleman crossed the street to lend a hand.  he got down on the ground and fixed it (it took him a few minutes as well, but he said he was determined because if he couldn't fix it then his friend would make fun of him).  i couldn't believe how nice this guy was to stop in the middle of his busy day (he was obviously on his way somewhere with his friend) to help a mama in need.  it was refreshing to come across such a sweet good samaratin.

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on the go

mother of god

i think the mosaic neighborhood signs in covington are fabulous

our old house

birds!

taking a ride in a stroller can be exhausting.

Coca Cola Lends a Hand in our Community

On Friday the boys and I were invited to a special event at the International Friendship Park in Cincinnati.  We were lucky enough to be on hand when Coca Cola presented Cincinnati Parks with a check for $10,000 to help build a new Bike & Mobility Center.  The Bike & Mobility Center will be located at a fabulous new park on the shores of the Ohio River, the Smale Riverfront Park.  Construction is underway on Smale Riverfront Park and it is set to open in Spring of 2012 and will link to the existing parks on the banks of the Ohio.  If you read Family Friendly Cincinnati, you know that I love to explore all of our area parks with my children.  I'm giddy about this new park, I can't wait to check it out next year with the munchkins!  And we can take a bike ride all along the Ohio River, stopping to play at the various parks. 

Friday's event was more than just a big check being handed over.  There were state & local dignitaries, spokespersons from Coca Cola and Cincinnati Parks, and even a professional BMX rider.  They all spoke of the importance of parks, the need for more people to get outside & live healthy lives, and the impact the park could have on our local economy if it brings more people downtown.  The speeches were heartfelt & everyone seems really excited about the new park & bike center.  After the speeches there was an bike ride through the park, which Sam loved (even though he trailed behind everyone else).  And Coca Cola bought bikes just for this event, and after the event they donated the bikes to our local Boys & Girls Club.  How cool is that?!  After the bike ride was my favorite part - free lunch, and Sam's favorite part - a BMX demonstration.

When we left he said he couldn't wait to get home and try some tricks on his bike.  I'm a little nervous about this.  Thanks to Coca Cola for helping our community!  And I'm so anxious to see this new park after being at this event.  If you are interested in helping other communities receive money from Coca Cola for their parks, I encourage you to go to LivePositively.com to help your favorite park win money for being "America's Favorite Park".  The city of Cincinnati has decided to help another community in desperate need of parks.  Cincy is encouraging folks to vote for Minot, North Dakota’s Oak Park. "Severe flooding in Minot devastated Minot’s beloved Oak Park this past June and the Cincinnati Park Board has emphasized what a significant impact the $100,000 grand prize would have for Oak Park and the residents of Minot.".  Our city was lucky enough to receive a grant, now we can help another city build their parks as well! 

our family's summer bucket list

It seems that summer bucket lists are quite popular this summer, so we've made one of our own.  I sat down with the kids and we created a long list of things we want to do this summer.  Some of the items on this list are things we already do on a regular basis, while others are new to us, or things we don't get to do very often.  I don't know that we will be able to have all of these adventures, but having this list will help us focus on what we want to do for fun.  It's pretty lengthy (remember I had three young ones helping me dream up this list) but we've already crossed a few things off in the first few weeks of summer break.  I can't wait to see what else we end up doing this summer!  Please feel free to leave comments below if you have ideas I should add to this list!

Our summer bucket list: (Updated 8/18/11)
We were lucky enough to do many things on our bucket list this summer!  We even added a few things:  Hike at Shawnee Lookout, A ride on the Anderson Ferry, A hike at Dinsmore Homestead, and two vacations!  We were very busy!  We'll have to add some of these activities on to next summer's bucket list!
~ Hike at Big Bone
~ Storytime
~ Highfield Discovery Garden
~ Visit Ault Park
~ Explore Fort Ancient
~ Newport Aquarium
~ Cincinnati Museum Center
~ Totter's Otterville
~ Grocery shop at Jungle Jim's
~ Spend a day at Eden Park, visit the Art Museum
~ Roller Skate
~ Swim at our swim club
~ Day trip to Louisville Zoo
~ Bike ride at the farm
~ Behringer Crawford Museum
~ Walk the Purple People Bridge
~ Ride bikes at Pioneer Park
~ Hike at Withrow Nature Preserve
~ Take a walk at Spring Grove Cemetery
~ Day trip to Lexington to visit friends
~ Cincinnati Zoo
~ Bike riding at the International Freedom Park
~ Play at Lunken Airport's Playfields
~ Explore Rowe Woods
~ Hike in the woods at Highland Cemetery

If you are looking for more fun ideas in the Greater Cincinnati area, check out Family Friendly Cincinnati's bucket list as well!  And don't forget to give me your ideas!

No Training Wheels!

This week Ella learned how to ride her bike without training wheels...just in time for summer!  Many thanks to my Daddio for helping her master this skill.  This little girl is tough, and she learned in just two short sessions.  My parents' house has the best driveway for bike riding: long, straight & flat.  We bought used bikes this summer to keep at their house because the kids LOVE to ride bikes and I was tired of lugging theirs back and forth.  So kudos to Ella!  I'm thinking Max won't be far behind her this summer. 
Check out this video of the little biker mama:

signs of spring

signs of spring: tuning up the bikes...digging in the dirt...walking home from the fish fry...riding bikes...daffodils blooming