A Very Good Birthday

I'm sure you could tell by my last post that Anna and I had a pretty amazing birthday. To top it off we received a wonderful gift from my mother-in-law and grandma-in-law. An item I've been wanting for a long time but deep down knew I'd never go out and buy for myself. I'd find every excuse to avoid buying it: it's too expensive, we could put the money toward something else, where will I store it? really, who needs one? So when Travis started talking about bikes a few weeks before our birthday I thought maybe he had something up his sleeve. I still didn't really believe I was actually going to get one but his intention was well received. Then, one hour before the party, while I'm scrambling to put up decorations and try to get myself ready, Travis' mom enters our living room with a bright and shiny yellow bike! She exclaimed, "I figured you could use a pick-me-up right now!" And she was right. It definitely lifted my spirits! On top of that Anna was given a little seat that could be hooked to the back of my bike so we could ride together. I could hardly wait to try it out!

A few days after our birthday we finally were able to really work on getting the seat connected. Travis and I had trouble doing it ourselves, and just before I was about to take it into a bike shop some of the boys in our neighborhood came over with all their tools and put it together in no time! I feel so blessed to live around some of the most generous and handy people! I mean, come on, take it to a bike shop and pay to have it fixed up or let kids who repair their bikes all the time work on it? Plus it was a great time for Travis and the guys to work on something together!

Once it was fixed we strapped Anna's helmet on and strapped her into her seat and off we went! It was a wonderful first ride. The kids around us were chasing us trying to catch up. I even had kids ask if they could get a ride or if they could ride my bike with Anna in it. I assured them Anna and I will be the only ones using our bike.

It's hard to tell since I can't see Anna but I'm pretty sure she enjoys our rides. I know I do and based on the sounds she makes and her playfully pulling at my shirt, I think she does too!