Big Wheelin'

My husband and I grew up enjoying the neighborhood Big Wheel. The challenge was to zoom so fast you could skid it across the cement and leave black marks. Then you'd have a block challenge to see which kid could make the biggest skid.

So when our son turned two we decided that it was time for a Big Wheel bike for Christmas. A sign of how anxious we were to speed up life. With the seat pushed as far to the front as possible our son still came up short. Not to be outsmarted by this Big Wheel, my husband installed, with the help of duct tape, wooden blocks to the pedals so that it could be reached. After all the excitement and retrofitting, our son was not impressed.

But we have kept this Big Wheel for five years in hopes that the magic would be sparked. And it has come to pass. With the seat pushed back as far as possible, the knees almost knocking the handlebars, our son is a noisy racket on the side walk, adding his own color of pure joy.