Reminder to parents: Don't underestimate children.

(Or yourself.)

Quick story time. 

I had last Monday off. Typically, on Mondays, in our household, I work while my wife — whose store closes on Mondays — takes a day to hang with the kids. She takes them to the library, the park, etc. etc. So when I had the day free, we asked ourselves about a hundred times what we wanted to do together. Family time. 

The only ideas I could conjure involved riding bikes. So we went on a ride. 

I strapped our bikes to the back of the van and threw the Burley into it. The thought was we’d pull the girls in the Burley from one town to another, a leisurely pedal on the paved bike path until we got to a little ice cream joint about six miles away. And then ride back to the van, properly spent with some good photos to look back on with a smile.

Our five-year-old caught wind of this plan and immediately pleaded to ride her bike, too. My wife and I looked at each other and started coming up with ways to dissuade her. 

“Well, it’s a bit of a long ride, Ruby. Why don’t you just ride in the bike bus?” (That’s the Burley’s nickname around here.) 

She wasn’t having it. 

So I packed her bike — and her sister’s balance bike, because, she too, needed to ride her bike — into the van. You pick your battles, right? I threw their bikes in the back of the van and hoped they’d ride around in the parking lot as I hooked everything up. Maybe they’d get their bike ride in and be ready for the bike bus. 

It worked for the little one. But Ruby was not getting off that bike. And so we pedaled. 

And pedaled. And pedaled. 

Six miles, an hour and a nap for the little one later, we made it. She had pedaled the entire way on her own and only complained once she was hungry. So she ate the cheese crackers she packed for herself and that was it.

At our destination, we got some ice cream and other fried fare. We started heading back thinking we’ll load Ruby’s bike in the back of the bike bus. She won’t want to pedal all the way back. There’s no way. 

Carr fam with the bike bus. Carr girls with their ice cream.

We offered. She did not accept. We shrugged and let her do it. She pedaled all the way back. Singing her own song the whole way.

Now, I know listening to proud parents can be annoying. This is not one of those posts. Well, maybe kinda sorta. Cuz, like, I am still inflated with beaming pride. I mean, she rode her non-training-wheels bike a whole 12 miles. She’s five.

But it’s more of a reminder, to me — and to all parents. Never underestimate your children. They are tougher than we give them credit. 

Also, don’t underestimate yourself. You can handle and tolerate more than you think. So go do that thing you’ve been wanting to do. 

Happy Sunday.