A rare photo of Miss Katie smiling.  It's not that she doesn't smile, it's that she has a very expressive face, that changes from second to second, and she hates looking at a camera.  Yesterday morning we were at the dog park and she loved it.

I kept Jack home this morning from daycare because his aunt and mom were picking him up at noon to spend some time with him.  He watched some TV and then mooched around the house.  He organized the Lego in his room and cleaned the toilet for me.  Then he coloured a couple of pictures.  We had to make a run to Wal-mart to pick up a couple of things and he wanted to go for a bike ride when we got home, so we did.

How To Ride A Bike With A Five Year Old

Get the bikes out of the garage and close the garage door.

Start to ride down the street until child says to stop, I need my socks

Return to house, open garage and wait while child gets socks on.

Close garage door and set off down the road.

Stop at the end of the road, get off bike and wait while child catches up.

Wait while child starts riding again.

Let child decide direction of bide ride.

Get off bike to cross road.

Get back on bike to ride.

Wait while child gets back on his bike.

Start to ride, approximately ten seconds, and then stop when child says, Nana stop.

Wait for child to start riding again.

Start riding again, approximately ten seconds, tell child to stay on the ride side of the path.

Tell child again to stay on the right side of the path.

Tell child that if he doesn't stay on the right side of the path, we'll go home.

Thank the older gentleman with the cane for moving off the path while we rode by, although Nana believes it was self preservation and not consideration which caused the man to move out of the way.

Wait while child decides when we can go again.

Start to ride, approximately four seconds, until child says, Stop Nana.

Nana tries to remain calm with limited success.

This continues on until we get to the park that the child wanted to visit.

While at the park, child covers himself with sand and Nana knocks into something, making her glasses crooked.

On the way home, child no longer wants to ride, lets push our bikes home.

That lasts for approximately three seconds, then child tells Nana to stop again, and then continue riding.

Child stops and gets off bike, complaining his legs are sore, he doesn't feel good, and he might have diarrhea.

Child then touches dried dog shit on bicycle tire (which he drove into last time we went to this park).

Child starts sniffing his fingers and crying because his fingers smell like poop.

Child is told to stop sniffing his fingers.

Start to ride again, child wants to be in front now. 

Wait for child to go ahead.

Child wants to know why I'm not riding and Nana explains because, he's in the way.

Child then decides he wants to ride behind me and tries to ram Nana with his bike.

Nana rides faster and child becomes upset because Nana is going to fast.

Instruct child to stop trying to ram Nana's bike.

Instruct child, again, to stay on right side of the path.

Child wants to know why.

Explain to child because that's the rule.

Start to ride for approximately twenty seconds (longest time of cycling) when child again says, Stop Nana.

Nana bites her tongue while she stops again, for the one hundreth time, and attempts to remain calm.

Start to ride again, only to be stopped again, walk bikes again, and then get back on bikes to ride for approximately ten seconds before stopping again.

Finally, home is within sight. 

Child stops and demands Nana stop as well.

Nana does not look back to child, afraid of what her face will look like.

Child starts to ride again and then falls off sidewalk.

Nana continues to ride for five more seconds and makes it home.

Child's auntie and mother are waiting in car for him.

Child starts to leave until Nana reminds him of dogshit on fingers.

Child runs into the house to wash hands.

Child leaves with auntie and mother for a visit.

Nana goes into house and calms her shattered nerves:)