Last week, Drew participated in Lose The Training Wheels. LTTW is a national program that helps people with disabilities learn to ride a bicycle. Kevin and I had tried over the years to teach Drew to ride a bike but our attempts were met by a lot of fear and frustration. When I signed him up for the LTTW, I wasn't sure how successful it would be but figured it was worth a shot.
Every day last week, Drew, Ethan and I went to our local rec center (luckily, the only time LTTW is in Colorado this year it happens to be only 5 minutes from our house. Drew's classmates were from all over the state.) where Drew practiced riding for 75 minutes each day. There were only 8 kids in each session with 2 trainers and 3 volunteers per kid. The first few days they had Drew riding a bike with a roller thing in the place of the back tire. In the beginning, the roller is broad making it so the kids can't tip over. As the kids practice, the trainers swap out the roller for more and more tapered ones gradually giving them the feel of needing to balance.
By day 3, they had Drew riding a two-wheel bike with support from his volunteers but during that same day, he moved from that to this.....
And then to this.......
(While you are watching this, listen to the dad yelling instructions at his daughter. From day one of the program this guy was telling her constantly what she needed to do better or that "it doesn't count if you don't do it right" and in my video here you can hear her crying saying she is trying. By the 4th day of this, I told Kevin not to be surprised if I were arrested on Friday for trying to strap a muzzle on that guy. Just let the kid be successful for a minute for crying out loud!)He was so proud of himself and Kevin, me, and Ethan are all really proud too and excited to bike together as a family.
The last day, they had a BBQ where the kids were presented with trophies and they got to show off their new biking skills riding with our local motorcycle police. Drew loved the police officers and they were super friendly with him and even let him sit on a motorcycle. Drew also had to tell them that his "mom was caught by them" and Kevin was teasing me about whether I recognized any of them. Ha ha!
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In other exciting news, I am thrilled to announce the arrival of my newest niece!
Naomi April RehmertJune 26, 20116 lb. 13 oz.
In what is typical behavior for the Icelandic side of our family, she was impatient and arrived 2 weeks early. She was breech and unable to be flipped (family stubbornness showing already perhaps) and was delivered via c-section, a sight that my brother-in-law Nate never wants to see again. Mom, dad and baby are all doing well and I can't wait until we can meet her in August. Drew was very jealous that grandma got to hold her already and is dying to get his hands on her.
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