Warm Mother's Day

CJ dressed up for the special occasion.

She and Daddy took me out to brunch.  

Our first choice had a line 4 people wide and a block long so we headed to another location.

After a bit of a wait and some yummy food and pastries, we went home to grab the bikes.

We joined the crowds for a Sunday Parkways ride.

We waited in a much too long line for a much too short visit in a much too warm inflatable.

CJ still enjoyed it.

CJ was starting to melt and Daddy had a plane to catch so we headed home fairly quickly.

After CJW cooled down, she walked to the store with Mama and found a new place to practice her gymnastics.

Bohemian Bike Rack

CJ found this bike rack in an area of San Diego that some describe as "Bohemian". We had a good dinner there. It felt like we could have been back in Portland...

California Wandering

We usually stick close to Grandma and Grandpa's house once we get to California, but today we did a little wandering. Mama found a yummy cafe via the internet and after we ate, we took Little B for a short walk in the area.

CJ enjoyed looking for a shell on this beach that was covered with them. She found one with a hole in it that resembled a heart.

We saw some California grapes:

An interesting bike (it was pulling a cart that didn't make it into the picture):

And ended the walk at another park. Yeah, the sun was finally coming out!

The Crazy Bike

Tonight CJ rode this bike into the air at Chuck E Cheese. We were there for a birthday party. She had fun, as usual.

Saturday Bike Ride

This morning we rode our bikes to the Used Gear Sale at REI. We all found some goodies to buy. Afterwards we took CJ out to enjoy the sun at Jamison Fountain (via the ice cream store across the street - notice the chocolate on her lip).

Here's CJ modeling her new find - this super cute flower helmet. Perfect timing as we'd just noticed a crack in her old one.

Observant Girl

Much of Mama's short run with CJ on bike is along Bike Boulevards. On one of them we noticed that someone had a little fun with the paint.

We saw Batman:

Smiley Faces:

And even a bunny alien:

3.63 Miles

Mama was wondering how to exercise with CJ home for summer break. And since we no longer have the stroller she used to sit in while Mama ran (not that she'd fit in it), we decided to try something new. CJ agreed to bike along while Mama ran. So we chose a shorter run in the neighborhood without any big hills. And CJ did wonderful. She completed the whole run without any complaining. 3.63 miles! CJ is becoming quite the little bike rider.

Sunday Parkways

We finally made it to Sunday Parkways!

This picture of CJ in front of Mt. Hood didn't come out as well as I had hoped.

She loves collecting free loot. Fudgsicles, bracelets, stickers, sweat bands...oh, my.

And a special air-brushed sparkly tattoo of a rose from the Blazer stand:

Showing off some hula hoop skills - even using two at the same time:

Stopping to cool off and refuel:

We really only made it around one of the two loops, but had a blast nevertheless.

We'll have to try this again sometime.

Silly Saturday

We stuck close to home most of the day, but got out late for a ride on our bikes. We ended up grabbing a slice of pizza and hitting the park before we headed home. CJ was in a silly mood, sliding and swinging with her bear, trying to not let Mama get a good shot of them.

A Dry Saturday

Although not terribly sunny, it was dry today so after CJ's 9 am t-ball game, we hopped on our bikes and had brunch at the bakery. On our way home, we stopped at the park to play. CJ found this sweater at a rummage sale last weekend and I think she's in love with it. It is pretty cute.

Parade Time

Daddy and CJ got their bikes out today for a wet ride down to the St. Paddy's day parade. Like last year, CJ came home with a loot pile full of candy. She didn't even mind getting wet to get it.

Purple!

CJ claims to have switched her favorite color from pink to purple. And now she is officially on her purple bike, as we passed the little red one on to a neighbor. She's moving up!

Sunday, Errand Day

Since Daddy was busy with tasks around the house and yard today, Mama and CJ headed out for a few errands. CJ rode her bike to the local farmers market, where they had a booth set up for kids to do a craft to create their own lunch boxes out of a cardboard box and a quinoa salad snack. They also had a scavenger hunt where we asked the farmers questions, completed a form and won a free popsicle! Yum. We were able to find some yummy strawberries and raspberries and picked up some beets, corn and broccoli for the week.

On the way back home, we picked up our books on hold at the library and then made a quick trip to the market for a few other items. When we got back into the neighborhood, we stopped at a lemonade stand to quench our thirst. We also lucked out and got the last of the 50 state quarters that we needed for our collection, plus a Guam one as a bonus.

Bridge Pedal (and Sweet Feast)

We had a really nice morning riding over 5 bridges with no cars. CJ rode her tag-a-long, which worked out really well as the hills might have been too big of a challenge for her little 12-inch bike. We've never seen so many tag-a-longs in one place before. This year it seemed like they spaced out the crowds better than when we had done it 3 years ago (CJ was in a trailer back then). There were some clouds in the sky, but we stayed dry and enjoyed the views, lots of sweet treats and music during and after the ride. We even heard CJ's favorite Soul Sister song from a parked car as we rode up to the Fremont bridge for a special treat.

Mosier

Family friendly, fun, flat, easy. Those were the words Mama saw when she read about the bike ride from Hood River to Mosier. So, why not take our little one who has been riding her bike solo for a whole ten days now...

The views were good and the pavement was nice and flat, but that didn't mean the ride was without hills. CJ did a great job, but some of the climbs were a bit much for her so Daddy assisted with a little push.

The end of the trail had us on a road to reach the town, where Mama and CJ enjoyed a coffee (for some reason they had a guitar on display at the cafe) and an ice cream, while Daddy rode back on the trail to get the car.

Number Fourteen

One of CJ's favorite things to do is to make cards. She even staples together her own envelopes. Here's today's Happy Anniversary card for Mom and Dad. It came complete with a beaded "Mom" and a beaded "Dad" necklace. After dinner we biked as a family over to the finest gelateria in Portland. (That's their claim and based upon location we agree, but there are certainly a few others we enjoy as well.)

Little Miss Independent

CJ was so excited about her new biking skills that she wanted to attempt the 15-20 block ride to swim lessons solo. We got home from the movie in time, so it was a go. She did great. Mama walked (and jogged) alongside her on the way there and Daddy rode back with us after class. Boy what a difference a few days makes.

She's a Pro

Putting It All Together

Yesterday we practiced bike riding and CJ was really getting the stopping and riding without training wheels. Tonight on the dog walk she "put it all together" (her quote) and figured out how to get starting. She did great. We just need to figure out how to get her interested in upgrading to riding the purple bike without training wheels and she'll really be fast!

Getting There

It's been a while since CJ practiced bike riding, but she took her little bike on the dog walk tonite and is doing great at riding a block or so at a time without training wheels. She needs some help on starting and stopping and Daddy has been staying close, but it seems like she will be there soon if the weather cooperates and gives us some more practice time.