THIS is why we live in Arizona

Could today have been any better?  It started out with making pancakes for the kids and Evie's friend Charlotte who had slept over.  Throwing the windows open to let in the gorgeous weather.  A couple cups of coffee and the Sunday paper while starting some laundry.  Then the kids, who have begun to be very diligent in their training for Pat's Run, talked me into going to the track.  (Okay, this was not my favorite part of the day.  Is there ANYTHING worse than running around a track??  At least around a neighborhood the scenery changes.  Is it still considered parent/child bonding if I was silently cursing them for talking me out of a neighborhood run???)

Came back to find Evie riding her bike without training wheels!  Surprised the heck out of me.  She was not even a strong bike rider with the training wheels.  She would still sometimes kinda freak going around our corner which also has a curb cut so the bike tilts a bit.  But her friends are riding without training wheels, so she asked Dennis to take them off. 

He says he took them off, talked to her about leaning side to side for balance, and ran holding the bike for about 5 feet, then she rode down the road on her own with him just running next to her.  She couldn't steer, and forgot how to use her brakes and instead just put her feet on the ground, but still, the other two never rode the length of the street on their first try! 

The funniest part though, was she was determined to get it down.  She would scare herself, put the bike in the garage, do something else, then ask one of us to run next to her, and try some more.  Eventually she asked us to NOT run next to her, and would go 3 feet, put her feet down, go 3 feet, put her feet down, go 12 feet, put her feet down, then 30 feet.  She did that all afternoon. 

The afternoon for the rest of us involved throwing the football, (Tyler tells me my spiral is getting better.  I'm not sure Dennis agrees...)  gardening, watching the kids ride their bikes and scooters, playing soccer in the street, and ended with a beer with good friends. Did I mention the weather was around 80 and perfect today?  Love Arizona, love our family, love our friends, love our life!