pride

so, little bee got her first 2 wheel bike. she is beyond thrilled by the arrival of this $10 gem found on craigslist. the little girl who owned it first is five and therefore too old for a little bike. and so after a little meeting in a parking lot,  it is ours.

i don't know if i can explain the level of excitement around here on saturday when we brought the bike home. she worked with D to get the bike fixed up (new tube, air in the tires, etc.) for a very long time, in 3 year old time. when trying out her new bike (in the garage, due to the foot of snow outside) she wouldn't allow anyone to help or even touch the bike. there was a lot of just pushing the bike around and less of actually riding it. but the pride, it was abundant. in fact, when we took a break from the bike, we had to park it at the top of the driveway so "everyone can see it when they drive by". 

the image that says it all and stands out in my mind is that of little bee staying in the garage alone a few extra minutes after everyone had headed in the house to just "fix up" the bike. she straightened the tassels and got in in the right position, while i watched from around the corner with amazement that this is my baby, hitting yet another childhood milestone, her first bike.