Biker Auntie Catherine

My aunt Catherine is affectionately referred to as "Biker Grandma" by her grandchildren. She earned this title because of her passion for biking and her enthusiasm for sharing that passion. And she's not all talk. Her garage is filled with bikes of all different sizes and colors, and she is always up for taking a bike trip of any kind. That means whether we're looking to ride to a park with little ones in the bike carrier, go on a trail ride with a bigger little one on the bike chaser, attempt learning to ride without training wheels, or simply run around with little ones tooling around a parking lot on tiny bikes, she's up for it. And she'll provide the gear, bikes and helmets, to boot. We've had the privilege to do all those activities with Biker Auntie Catherine while we've been here.

On this particular day, we went bike riding at Jager's house (Jager is my cousin's child; he's almost five and a great friend for Joshy). Jager lives next to a church, so we utilized their parking lot for practice.

Joshy's bike of choice is pretty special to me. It's my first bike! It belonged to my brother and was passed down to me. Since then, it's been passed down to nearly every child in my family. And it still "runs" wonderfully.
Auntie Catherine has a girly bike that is perfect for Lella. She picked up the art of pedaling in no time. Plus Biker Auntie Catherine had a pretty pink pony helmet for her!
After a few races around the parking lot, we headed across the field back to Jager's to attempt two-wheel riding. Of course, the children, especially Mariella, were not content to get off the bikes and push them across the grass.
Joshy and Jager were none too eager to try the tippy two-wheeler. However, Lella happily jumped at the chance to try to real big girl bike. Biker Auntie Catherine dutifully helped her along, even though Lella could barely even reach the pedals.
Joshy and Jager both did get their turns in. They didn't want to be shown up by a spicy two year old girl. Joshy's getting close to being able to ride on his own. We'll have to get out and practice a few more times before heading home to hilly Ohio.

Thanks for the good times, Biker Auntie Catherine!