Dallin Rides a 2 Wheeler!

s, it is true! Dallin can officially ride a 2 wheeler bicycle. He never ceases to amaze me. He will go from not being able to do something at all to doing it very well or even flawlessly in the blink of an eye. When he decides he's ready...that's that. I don't think I learned to ride a 2 wheeler until I was 7 or even 8 years old, but my 4 year old lil guy is riding up a storm "just like a big boy!"
He outgrew his first lil bike a while back and we had found this pink bike in the trash complete with training wheels in the next size....so we snatched it up. He doesn't seem to mind it and is happy to HAVE a bike. (Yes, there has been a teasing incident about it--and about the training wheels, but I nipped that one quick....hey, I'm a mama bear!) Anyways, the training wheels never tightened correctly and so they would wobble and sometimes one would flip up and he would be leaning and balancing on one. It really made it difficult for him and he would fall over a lot. I kept trying to convince him that it would be easier to just take the training wheels off, but he wasn't going to go for it. It was so bad recently that I would barely let him ride it. We were also worried he was going to learn to counterbalance the training wheels which would make the transition without them much more trying.
Then 3 days ago, he was goofing around with the bike in the driveway. and I noticed that the training wheels were flipped up and he was balancing and "riding" about on the driveway without noticing. So, I got really excited and told him he was riding his bike as a 2 wheeler like a big boy. He was like "huh?" I showed him that the wheels were up and asked him if he wanted to try riding down the sidewalk. He was all for it and away we went. The first day, I ran behind the bike holding the seat and letting go. Then he would pedal a little ways and tip over. The big problem was that he would stop pedaling or pedal too slow. I kept saying "if you pedal to slow, you tip over!" He never really wiped out though. (Seriously, I remember wiping out and quitting several times before I got it) I was very excited for him and offered to take the training wheels off. He was not ready for that yet and was emphatic that they stay even if he wasn't using them.
The second day, it was better and he was pedaling more without stopping. He was able to do some starts on his own but still needed a little push to get going every once in a while. The big problem the second day was that he wasn't paying attention and was counterbalancing a lot with his steering. He was totally off roading and all over the grass and everything else. A couple of times he lost control and ended up in the road (thank goodness we live in a cul-de-sac!) Again, he never really wiped out. One of the training wheels was really flipping around this day and kept messing with him so I convinced him to let me take it off!

Today, he is riding like a pro. I am amazed, excited, and frankly a little weepy as my little boy is checking off another milestone. He starts on his own, steers well, and keeps pedaling. Plus he is always asking me to go out and practice some more! That's my boy! I sure love him and I am very very proud of his accomplishment. Here is the video from today.

And for your viewing pleasure, a short clip of Kate as she has recently mastered her tricycle and pedals it everywhere. I think it helps that her legs are finally long enough to reach the pedals. It cracks me up watching her little legs work so fast and ride that little trike. She is pretty good at it, and I love that she will ring her little bell and lift her legs on the hills and yell "wheee!!!" She reminds me of Elmo riding his little trike on Sesame Street. What a cutie pie!