Kings of the Hill

Now, those few of you who actually follow our blog know we have been about a year behind in our updates and that we backdate everything. We couldn't resist posting these current videos.

Wilken got his bike in May for his 4th birthday. He has experimented without training wheels periodically since his 4th birthday up and down the street (in fact, 10 days after turning 4), but can now finally ride a 2-wheeler without any help stopping and starting. On 11/20/09, Ryan took the boys to Palm Desert to visit Grandma V and to give Elanor a 2-night break to catch up on some housework, computer work, and much needed sleep and relaxation.

Ryan took off Wilken's training wheels on a fantastic green belt with hilly sidewalks, perfect for bike/scooter riding. Wilken hasn't had his training wheels on since. He loves to tear down hills and can ride all the way to our lake up the street. He even goes down little dirt hills and can ride up some inclines without any help at all.

Jake got his new balance bike on his birthday in October. He had the balancing part of it down, one week into riding it. We continue to be amazed by his coordination on his bike, as he will nearly wipe out and recover after speeding down hills full speed. We're thinking this bike may eliminate the need for him to need training wheels before he learns to ride a 2-wheeler. He loves to follow Wilken everywhere he goes and loves dirt biking with his brother around our local lake.

This first video shows the boys' initial trip down the hill (Wilken on his training wheels & Jake on his balance bike). The video doesn't show the true size of the incline just FYI. Its bigger than it looks!

This second video (Ryan's a little out of breath from running around the greenbelt paths following them) shows Jake mastering the hill on his balance bike and Wilken's first trip down the hill without any training wheels. What an accomplishment for both boys; our two "Kings of the Hill"!