//www.youtube.com/get_playerWhen ruby turned 2 we bought her a balance bike as a gift. The idea behind a balance bike being that it is harder to learn how to balance on a bicycle than it is to learn how to pedal. So balance bikes have no pedals – you just Fred flinstone it until you get some speed and then you glide.
For a year, ruby resisted getting on this bike. Wouldn't go near it. Didn't want to hear about it. Wasn't even worth suggesting it to her as an option. The one day in late September she just kind of found it on her own and started calling it her walking bike and it went pretty much everywhere I would let her take it. At first it was slow going. But like most things kids discover for themselves, it quickly became a genuine source of interest and challenge and ruby, almost sensing that a few degrees of freedom were up for grabs, decided that the walking bike was going to be her new thing. And at age three she took to it like a duck to water. I suspect that she also likes the element of risk involved.
Anyway – about ten days ago, before the weather turned, we were going about our usual end of day play on the school climber when I noticed that ruby was missing. Turns out she had discovered a gentle hill in the playground and, with no coaching or encouragement from me whatsoever, she had figured out how to turn this hill into a fun little ride. She must have done this little route 20 times that day. Probably more. And while I had my reservations when I first noticed what she was doing, I quickly came to my senses, realized that she had her helmet on and that she was going to be completely tired out from all the exercise and that bed time would be a snap. I wonder if I can get her some snow tires???
3 Ginger Snaps 