Grammy was able to make a last minute run to see the kids before we all disappear south of the border—where bandidos lurk behind every boulder. The kids were ecstatic. There is always quite a build up before her visits. “How many more days ’til Grammy gets here? Show me with your fingers.”
We count it down for a few days and then on arrival day we usually wake them up with, “Do you know what today is?”
And even in their foggy morning stupor they know. “Grammy’s coming today!”
Breakfast at Perry’s followed by a stroll around Old Town.
A few weeks ago Lowe essentially took over Ouest’s bike. In what seemed like an instant he outgrew his green bike and was more than happy to inherit the pink one. When Ouest overheard Ali and I talking about getting her a pedal bike it was all over. Ten times a day for the next two weeks we heard, “Do you think I can get a pedal bike?”
We looked online and around town a bit but couldn’t find anything we liked enough to drag around with us for years. Then we turned the corner to my mom’s condo, and there on the sidewalk outside of a surf shop sat this little beauty. The price was obscene, but it had been sitting outside long enough to gather some rust on the handlebars, enabling us to bargain our way down to reasonable.
We got some tools out, made a couple of adjustments, yanked the training wheels off, and walked around the corner. This was to be Ouest’s first attempt at riding a pedal bike, after nearly three years of ripping around on a balance bike. Well, it was almost too easy. I gave her a little push and she rode away from me. First try. Her first ride then commenced along Mission Beach.
Now we just have to decide if we leave Lowe alone on his push bike or not. He hasn’t asked for a pedal bike yet, but we’ve no doubt he could handle it. Honestly, the thing I’m going to miss most about the push bikes is how easy they are to store in the bus.
26 Comments on “First Ride – Mission Beach”
Sweet. In the best, truest sense. I love following your travels. Beautiful photos. Lovely people. Via con Dios as you travel.
Thanks, Sherry.
Hi Pat just wondering why Ouest is wearing a hi viz? Hope you of all people have not sold out to the health and safety Mindbenders.
Funny! I had to look back through the pictures just to find what the heck a hi viz was. That’s actually just one of her dress up clothes. She wears it and pretends she is a policewoman directing traffic. She holds one hand out and waves people along with the other. At the airport we realized that there were workers everywhere wearing the same thing and some of them were waving to her and giving her thumbs up which of course had her smiling ear to ear.
Thanks for responding Pat and I’m so relieved by your reply. In the uk probably as in the US health and safety is killing our kids Freedom to play. This summer I watched a group of kids from my boat, they were playing on the beach, about 40 of them in their cozzies, BUT they they had Hi Viz coats on as well, it was a very surreal sight one I have never before seen at the beach. I admire the way you allow your kids to play freely and learn from their own actions wether it hurts or not.
Nice bike. Our folding bikes came with fold-up pedals. I’d imagine they could be purchased separately. They help a lot when hinging the bikes side-by-side on our bike rack. Our handlebars have a quick-release lever so they can be loosened and turned so they’re parallel with the frame as well. But, since the balance bikes also had handlebars, that may not be an issue, storage-wise.
We are currently in southern AZ, just sort of hovering around waiting until mid-to-late December to enter Mexico (so our 180-day visas run out a close to summer as possible). We’ll be on the mainland this year so maybe we’ll see you if you ferry across from Baja.
Whoops! I mant that we’re waiting until mid-to-late NOVEMBER to enter Mexico.
Cool. Looking forward to meeting up again.
One of our favorite kid books: Sally Jean the Bicycle Queen. Ouest definitely needs to check it out if you get to a library anytime soon. Author is Cari Best (and she has many excellent children’s books). She looks great! Lowe can’t be far behind….
Woo hoo, Grammy is there!
Didn’t get to finish my post. This Grammy will be in the exact same place in a week, right above Mission Bay in Bay Park celebrating our grandsons first birthday. Will y’all still be there? Would love to meet up with you since we’ve been reading, and enjoying, your blog since the catamaran days. Have fun with Grammy.
That Grammy is #1 !!!!
oh man, you guys make me wish we could bring the bikes again this year (- we can’t; it’s just TOO MUCH SHIT), but it makes me wish… I was reading the previous comments – the Yoders are a family? Do you guys ever do something like, have a family gathering? It would be every kind of awesome to get together with other families traveling in Mexico. We’re leaving in two days!
Meriah,
Yes,the Yoders are a family albeit w/o little kids anymore. It’s just me (Steve) and my wife (Lulu). Our kids are grown and busy raising our grandkids. We met Pat and Ali back when they were working on their second boat (the Spindrift) in the Sacramento Rive Delta area. We were in the process of sailing our boat to Mexico at the time. Although we’ve made feeble attempts to get together a couple times since, it seems our paths usually cross a few weeks apart. Not likely to change. They go their way and we go ours. We did get to meet up again in Portland when Pat organized a meet-n-greet this past summer. Not many families with young kids traveling in MX but there are some and Pat and Ali have managed to get together with some of them.
Have a greta trip and maybe our paths will cross. We’re kind of hovering in southern AZ right now, putting off our entry into MX a little so that our 180 day visas will expire when it’s beginning to get warm enough in the States to come back.
Maybe my most favorite Ouest photos ever, as I am an avid cyclist and just bought an awesome cruiser bike here in Mexico, where we’re hanging for the winter! Love love love that she wanted a bike so badly. And it’s pink! Just way too cute. Thank you for buying it for her — a love of bicycling starts early — sure did with me and my first “pedal bike” (that’s all they had back in my childhood), a blue Schwinn. I’ve never forgotten it.
We dig those balance bikes, we just picked up one for our 1 year old daughter (might be a little too early for her, but we can’t wait). They seem to make the transition to a pedal bike seamless. Nice work on the pink beach cruiser too!
MagnaTiles!
They quickly became the favorite every day toy.
She looks so grown up in the close up on her bike. Wow! Before you know it she’ll have a boyfriend!
No, she said she wasn’t going to. And also that she would live with me forever. Thank you very much. 🙂
LOL… I remember saying that too when I was her age!
If you decide to head east on I-8, just past the 2nd Street exit in El Cajon there is a twin to your bus in a lot on the north side of the freeway. I appears to be sitting and rotting away. A source for parts?
Way to go, Ouest! And, Mission Beach is my happy place….12 inches of snow here in the East Metro today, so your post was definitely much needed!! Enjoy the sun and warmth!
Your kids look so carefree on their bikes, probably because they ride without helmets.
Had any problems from the nanny states with their compulsory helmet laws?
A few State Park Rangers have stopped us from riding, but that’s about it.
It won’t be years. Ergonomically, she is already too big for that one.
Just sayin’