Perserverance

A couple of months ago, we took the training wheels off the boys' bikes. For one thing, they finally lived somewhere where they had someplace to practice. They also wanted to ride up and down the rounded curb, which they couldn't really do safely with training wheels.

Paxton decided he needed to learn, and learn NOW. He started at the top of the driveway, and coasted down into the street again and again. He fell, he got up, he fell again. He practiced picking up speed until he was ready to start peddling. His face was red and his legs were scraped. He wobbled and shook and by the end of the day he had it: He was riding like he'd been doing it his whole life.

Spencer scooted with his feet that first day, and for a few days afterwards. Then he started coasting, for longer and longer periods of time. He didn't go too fast, and he didn't put his feet on the pedals. Every day his balance got better and better. We asked if he wanted help learning to pedal and his answer was always the same. "No thank you." A month went by and then two. Some days he got discouraged, but most of the time he was self-assured and confident. He knew he'd do it when he was ready. And he did. Yesterday he started pedaling, just a few rotations at first... then more and more. When the cute girl next door also came out on her bike, he was distracted just enough to forget that he was still learning. He pedaled around the street like a pro, and made a new friend in the process.

Different kids, same result: A feeling of pride and accomplishment in learning to do something they wanted to do... in their own time, in their own way. Last night we went to Cold Stone to celebrate both of them.