Kickin it "old school"

That is what my kids said to me last week.

Does that mean I am old?

It probably does but what they were reallllllly referring to is me riding a bike.

I remember my very first bike was lime green with a white flowered banana seat. My Dad bought it for me when I was in kindergarten. This was the bike I learned to ride with out training wheels.  My second bike was powder blue cruiser style bike with hand brakes and a white seat. The one I put the most miles on was a teal blue 10-speed with black cushiony handle bars. I loved that bike...the color, the style and more importantly it was a 10-speed. That was all the rage back in the mid 80's.

I told them all about how much I loved to ride my bike when I was a kid. Me and Jenn would ride all over town.  We rode to the pool, to the park, to the movies, to K-Mart....literally everywhere. We would leave early in the AM and not be heard from until lunch, and then not again until dinner. I loved riding really fast and feeling the wind in my hair, and the sweet smell of summer. Those were the days when you could let your kids run the streets and not really worry too much.

Are you still with me? I promise I have a point to all of this.

So as I was going down memory lane I realized something.

I needed a bike.

I needed one badly.

It is no secret that I am not in shape. I have been trying to come up with some sort of exercises that I could do that wouldn't have me wanting to poke my eyes out with a stick at the very thought of doing it.

Tom suggested running. He loves to run. He runs 2.5 miles SEVERAL times a week.
Me...not so much. I have too many parts that shift during that process if you know what I mean.

Walking...kinda boring and it is so s l o w.

So my idea to get a bike came about.

Like I mentioned before I loved riding as a kid so why not do what you love right?

Here is where I put my theory to test.

I bought a bike.

YES I BOUGHT A BIKE!

My Mom thought I was nuts, because according to her there wasn't a seat comfortable for her butt and what in the world did I find so great about riding a bike?

Tom didn't think I was serious.

The kids thought it was funny because seriously I haven't been on a bike in ohhhhh 20 years.

I was determined.

I went shopping and I bought a bike.

You know what they say about riding a bike right?
You never forget.

Well they are right, it was like I have been riding for the past 20 years.

Well except for the fact my ass hurts, and my thighs are burning from lack of use, and my lungs are burning....it is great! I am SURE all of that will go away the more I ride!

When I brought it home and set off on my first ride Kasey yelled out to me "Look at you Mom, you are kickin' it old school"

The bike riding bug has come to our house and the kids love to go one rides with me.

Not to be outdone by his out of shape wife left behind, Tom bought a bike as well.

We have found a great way to spend time together, get off the couch and get excercise.

Here is to kickin' it old school!

Comments

[jenn]

and you've inspired me to buy one as well!! as soon as i cam move again after this c-section :) we covered so much land as teens - well, till we were teens with cars! then we able to branch out some! lol! thanks for being an inspiration to me! love ya!

[Annette J]

i think the Dales and the Jaderholms (throw in a handful of Kims, too) should go on a bike trail sometime soon! Although I was surprised/ shocked when I came home and found that Paul had bought me a bike, it has turned out to be a very nice thing. Go, you!!

[whit]

I love the new bike that I got just a couple of years ago. It really is a nice thing to do as a family. We would love to hit the trails with our buddies! MK is a BIT slow on her pink and purple tricycle, however! My first bike was yellow and light green with a white banana seat with flowers. When that seat was worn out I got a bright blue sparkly one. Yeah baby!!

[AJ]

How fun would it be to jump on our bikes and take pictures of each other that look like {ae}?!?