Eva Keneva!

I stole the "Eva Keneva" quote from my friend Becky last week.  She quoted it after seeing Eva riding a bike down her street.  So, last week while we were at Becky's house, I took Ivy to their backyard with a small bike, no training wheels.  She felt safe because she could put her feet down quickly if she thought she was going to fall.  No problems!  She took off immediately and rode around the yard all week long.  She was quite scared.  I could tell by the look on her face.  So, while she was practicing, I went inside the house.  The next thing I knew, Ivy had given Eva a push on another small bike, and off she went.  So, both my older girls are now officially "bike riders".

I was concerned that once we were home, Ivy would not want to ride her bike anymore.  I was correct.  We have hilly property and a hilly driveway.  Not dangerously hilly (except one side), but more gently sloped.  Plus, Ivy's bike is a bit taller than the one she learned on.  Although she can touch the ground with her toes while on the bike, she is a bit unsteady.  So, once home, Mike took the training wheels off both girls' bikes.  Eva took off, fast as lightening, thus "Eva Keneva".  She appears to be fearless, and crashed onto the grass only once.  Ivy....well, just as I predicted, was very cautious.  She has trouble going fast enough to ride it because she doesn't want to go too fast.  She spends more time "stopping her bike" than "riding her bike".

Notice the intense look on her face?  The fear of falling and getting hurt is such a part of her daily life.  I know with time that fear will subside, but it hurts watching her be this way.  She actually jumped right off her bike yesterday, instead of putting on the breaks, because she thought she was going to crash. 

Eva is loving this new-found freedom.  She zips and zooms all around the driveway, which is pretty long and circular.  It has been fun watching both girls learn this skill, which epitomizes childhood.  I loved my first bike, a yellow Huffy.  What more could a girl want?

I am trying to teach "drive on the right side always!" to the girls.  It even applies to walking on sidewalks and in grocery stores.  This is a hard one to learn.  All 3 of them want to take up the whole sidewalk or aisle.