It's all fun and games until somebody loses a tooth!

Well it was bound to happen. Another one of those milestones comes along. In the last week or so we noticed Aran has been, for lack of a better description, fingering and tongue-ing his bottom teeth. All this attention (along with further inspection) lead to the discovery of a couple loose teeth.

He knows from preschool and from his cousins that this is a normal step in losing his "baby teeth". He is however pretty anxious about it. Will it hurt? Will it bleed? When will it happen?

After a lot of re-assurances and a few days, Sunday morning arrives and one of his teeth is barely hanging on. The family heads to the bathroom for further inspection. Mom is armed with her camera while Dad & Giana form a surgical unit at the bathroom sink.

As I investigate, I find myself in a bit of a dilemma. The tooth is probably 95% out but that last 5% seems attached pretty well. I'm worried that if we don't take it out, he might end up swallowing it while eating or drinking, etc. I'm pretty sure if I attempt to remove it, it could hurt and/or bleed. The only reason I'm able to inspect it so closely is because I promised Aran I wouldn't hurt him.

So I'm in a quandary over my concern for his safety (how bad could swallowing a tooth really be?) with my promise to him that I wouldn't hurt him. There is no way I can violate his trust or break the promise.

What to do...

Then it hits me...

His sister has been sitting on the bathroom counter right next to me watching my every move like a hawk. As we're BOTH staring into Aran's mouth I say to her: "Do you want to see if you can pull Aran's tooth out?"

You would've thought I just asked the Grasshopper to snatch the pebble from my hand...

With cat-like reflexes (and before her brother could process what I had just said to her,) she reached into his mouth and gave the tooth a good YANK!

Her precision and speed was WAY better than I could've ever attempted. But the tooth was still in his mouth. What she HAD done was get it to about 99% out...

...and here comes the blood....

Aran is in shock now. He lets out a little "ouch" that seems more like it's in disbelief than it is from pain.

Giana, while still staring into Aran's mouth, calmly states: "Boy, there's a lot of blood in there."

Aran turns white. I've seen this "look" on his Mom's face before...

Right before she faints...

I decide it's time to tell a little white lie (while dabbing his teeth with a paper towel.)

I say: "It's just bleeding a TINY little bit" in a VERY suggestive way as to try and let his sister know it's time to tone it down with the "blood talk"...(of course it is just a little bit of blood but it looks like a lot to his little sister's eyes)

Giana responds in a matter of fact tone with: "Well it sure is red in there."

I love that girl.

As I'm dabbing up the blood, I'm suddenly holding his tooth!

Out it came.



The color now returns to Aran's face and in an instant he's transformed into the proud owner of bartering material for the tooth fairy.



And his big smile returns...

...minus one tooth.



The neighboring tooth is already a wet noodle in his mouth.

He has made it abundantly clear however:

"Giana will NOT be pulling out this one!"

:)

Valentine's ski trip!

So we decided to celebrate Giana's 4th birthday by traveling up north to Flagstaff. The kids have been wanting to go "play in the snow" and we wanted to see if they might be big enough to try skiing this year. I made some calls to Arizona Snowbowl and enrolled them in Skiwee school (for ages 4-7). It was just slightly more for a full-day lesson versus a half-day so I signed them up for the full-day and hoped that Giana would do OK without her daily nap. The instructor on the phone was pretty firm about dropping the kids off quickly and NOT interfering with the lesson so it was shaping up like Amy & I would be able to ski ALONE also. I quickly decided to call this our Valentine's Ski Date and kill 2 birds with 1 trip to Snowbowl :)

It couldn't have been easier. We arrived and checked in, dropped the kids off, bought our lift tickets and just like that we were on the lift for our first run of the day... We couldn't believe how empty the mountain was on a Friday and it being a holiday weekend also. There was NO ONE on the mountain.

After about 6 or 7 runs, we stopped for lunch and thought we *might* get a glimpse of the kids from the deck of the lodge taking their lunch break but no such luck. We hoped they were doing well (and since neither of our cell phones had rung, we assumed all was well).

After lunch the lines got bigger as the afternoon half-day crowd started arriving. We still managed a dozen or so runs for the day and the slopes had hardly anyone on them.
As 3PM approached we decided to take Boo Boo Trail over towards Heart Prarie to meet up with the kids' class. As luck would have it, we skied up on Giana's class on their last run of the day. We couldn't believe how well these Skiwees were doing!
She was focused on her instructors and pretty proud of herself. We followed them back down to the lodge and Aran's class was already finished. We took them both back out for a couple runs with us and they did fabulously! Here are a few unedited videos of our runs with them.



Aran skiing on Heart Prarie and catching up to Giana and me.


Giana just liked to point her skis downhill! Next time we'll work on turns! :)


Aran skiing on Bambi and going through some trees.

As you can see, it was really busy on the bunny hill too - NOT!

It was an awesome day on the mountain and Amy & I agreed that we will be doing this again for sure. (And now Aran says he doesn't want to cross-country ski anymore - D'oh!)

We're not sure when our next opportunity will be....but we are ready!!!



It was a great way to kickoff Giana's birthday weekend! The rest of the weekend was memorable as well - and now our baby is 4! Where does the time go...

The day the wheels came off!

Continued from "Giving Thanks": This is the story of the 2nd incredible ride that will stick with me for a LONG time.

The day after the FOTP ride the family decided that we would walk to the bagel shop for breakfast - which we like to do occasionally on a weekend morning. On the way home we saw our neighbors outside and their 5-year old daughter Cati was riding her bike - without training wheels! She's been doing it for a while now but this time we got to witness it up close and personal. Aran & Cati are pretty competitive with each other and I could see the wheels turning....

He hadn't "tried" to ride w/o training wheels since the one failed attempt months ago. Since then he's been strictly riding the trail-a-bike. As a matter of fact I had pirated one of his bike's pedals to put on the trail-a-bike. I knew that over the course of the last few months he had "improved" immensely in terms of leaning and balance as a result of riding the trail-a-bike. I had a sneaky suspicion that he "might" be ready...at least to give it another try. AND Cati provided the inspiration.

I asked if he wanted to give it a try and he said YES!

He "helped" me remove the pedal from the trail-a-bike and install it on his bike. We re-inflated his 12-inch wheels, gave the bike the once over and off to the park we headed...

As we walked I gave him a few pointers and encouragement. Amy was supposed to head out for her 9-mile run but she delayed leaving so the whole family could witness the Wright Brother's Flyer lifting off! (hopefully)

We started on a small slope and I did the typical "holding the seat and running alongside" move that dads have perfected over the years...and then I let go...

He slowly coasted down the hill and as he came to a stop he put his foot down like he'd been doing it all his life. A few more similar attempts with some pedaling later and I asked if he would like to try the "BIG" hill and he said YES!

So over to the big hill we go. Amy nervously motioned to me that this was a BIG step up (and I wasn't sure what would happen or how much speed his now pedaling legs would give him) but the grass is soft, right? How bad could it hurt??

My better judgment convinced me to take him part of the way down the slope "just in case".

And then the moment every father anticipates from the moment he buys his child a bike happened...

Down the hill he went pedaling like a clown in the circus AND UPRIGHT! And then the momentum the hill provided ceased but he was still pedaling...and pedaling...and pedaling...

Across the soccer field he went! Wow.

Wow.

At that moment I wondered which was a more joyous moment: finishing a 70-mile ride the day before or THIS.

It wasn't even close...

Wow.

He spent an hour on Saturday riding - and watching his simultaneous joy and amazement with himself was priceless.

I was reminded of when I learned to ride a bike - at 5 also...and how the days between then and now have gone by SO fast. I was struck with a feeling of witnessing a milestone - like his 1st day of school or graduation or marriage...

Or the day he teaches his kid to ride....

I hope he remembers this day then.

Wow. What a ride!


The lightbulb went on:

On Sunday he rode his bike up and down the driveway, street, curb, speed humps....like he'd been doing it all his life. He added a few new skills to his repertoire and he smiled...

And so did his dad...

Wow.

Here's a sample:

Happy Halloween!

We had a great pumpkin carving night on Wednesday. The kids really got into it. We let them draw faces with markers and then Amy & I helped them cut them out (and fixed them up a little bit). They really did well though.


Amy carved the middle pumpkin and the kids carved the ones next to them (with a little help)....

They were excited to go trick-or-treating tonight! Giana decided she wanted to be a princess...and a lovely princess she was...



Aran was his favorite Superhero - Spiderman!



Halloween was a big success! (Now, how to hide the candy??? - no better place than in my belly!)

Tour de Tempe 2008

It's that time of year again! Aran & Giana were excited to ride and gave each other a big hug before the start. Aran would be riding in his 4th Tour de Tempe but it would be his first time actually pedaling. It sure was nice having him contribute to our movement.


Amy got to tow Giana in the trailer this year. Giana was pretty happy to have the trailer all to herself. We left our trailer at the cabin in Flagstaff and haven't had an opportunity to retrieve it so we borrowed one from a friend. Thanks Art!


Aran really liked the 2 bridge crossings - on College Avenue & Country Club Way.


It was a perfect day for a ride. The Tour was just a little over 10 miles. Giana says she wants to ride her bike next year!

The light is coming on....

After getting his feet wet in his first game, Aran is starting to "get it" and started going after the ball this week. He tracked the ball well with his eyes and played a bit more aggressively.


The boy wasn't afraid to mix it up with the older (& bigger) kids either.



He's almost ready to take on his little sister - Giana :)

And so it begins...

Our little boy is now officially on a team. Aran went to his first soccer practice today. It was supposed to be last week but he was sick. No more mountain bike rides for Mom & Dad on saturdays. They are now Soccer Saturdays!


The whole family went to practice. They started by doing some stretching. Giana wasn't about to let Aran have all the fun so she joined in too. Then they chased Coach Ryan around the field dribbling their ball...


Then it was time to try and score a goal on the assistant coaches...


After all that work it was time to get their uniforms! Aran got his favorite number - 1 - just like Thomas!!! He even got his name on his jersey too.


Now that is one happy boy!


His first game is this saturday. I'm looking forward to watching the little huddle of humanity going up and down the field...as the Blue Lightning strike fear into other Tempe Youth Sports teams!

Sedona camping trip

With a week before Aran started soccer we decided this was our last chance to get out of town for a while. Our local RideAZ mountain biking group had a camping trip planned to Sedona, AZ and we decided to go. We've been to Sedona many times but had never actually camped there. The Chavez Crossing Campground is right in the heart of Red Rock Country and easy riding distance to the trail system. We set up camp and Aran was ready to go for a ride! I hooked up the Trail-a-bike and we were off. The campground is right by Oak Creek and the road out is a steady climb. Aran wasn't much help pedaling up, but he sure kicked it in on the ride down! The boy likes to go fast.... I know he's out of focus in this picture but the look on his face says it all...



The kids had a blast camping and hanging out with their friend Robin - even if it was a bit cold.



Amy & I enjoyed a great group ride on Saturday too.



We rode the usual loop (about 20 miles) that included Submarine Rock!


The kids were having a great time and didn't want to leave but we had to pack up early Sunday morning so that I could get back and go watch my Dallas Cowboys get beat by the Arizona Cardinals in person! We should've stayed in Sedona....

Trail-a-bike meet trail!

Aran was excited to take his new ride out on the dirt. We decided to take a family spin in the woods behind the cabin. Aran & I made the maiden voyage and Amy pulled Giana in the bike trailer. We headed out not knowing what to expect. We packed a lunch "just in case". Well we managed to ride a good 6+miles and had a great time.

We did stop for lunch. Aran enjoyed his plain cheese sandwich...

...and Giana loved her PB&J...

Giana decided pants were not necessary in her trailer.

Maybe next time we'll ride down this hill...


Maybe...

Aran's 4th Birthday!

Aran turned 4 on 08-31-08. I was lucky enough to score a slightly used Adams Trail-a-bike on Craig's List for his birthday. I was hoping he would a) be big enough to ride it and b) like it. We were having a big birthday party for him in the afternoon but I thought it would be a good idea to give him this present early so that he wouldn't have to try it out in front of everybody - just in case it didn't go well...

Well, it was a big hit with the boy.......and his dad too!

He can barely reach the pedals with the seat all the way down and I still need to adjust the handlebars a bit for him but it was a smashing success for a "first ride". This says it all...

He had a great day. He enjoyed his swim birthday party and is still trying to play with everything he received. Amy & I were pleased that we just pulled the whole thing off and are ready for some rest. It all just seemed like a big whirlwind. Amy knocked herself out on his birthday cake. Aran is all about Spiderman right now.

The things you do for your kids... It's all worth it to get smiles like these.

Walking the loop!

We spent the weekend in Flagstaff and as usual, we headed out to "walk the loop" behind the cabin. It's about 2 miles of interconnected trails. As we headed out Amy & I joked about how long it would be before Giana & Aran ran out of gas and asked to be carried home. They took off running, laughing and each yelling: "You'll never catch me!"

It was a perfect day. The temps in the low 70s and partly cloudy. The kids were really enjoying themselves. They were even cooperating with us re: picture taking.

We were not in any hurry. We investigated every flower and rock and tree. We stopped as always at the "see-saw" tree and practiced balancing it.

Before we knew it, we were back at the cabin. BOTH kids walked the entire loop for the first time ever. Sweet!

First Time on Dirt!

Since I am unable to ride MY bike, Aran took the opportunity to talk us into taking HIS bike with us up to Flagstaff! We thought he'd enjoy riding around the paved cul-de-sac at the cabin but weren't sure if he'd actually venture out into the DIRT. We were in for a surprise! BTW - he's 3 years old.

Aran's first ride on dirt - on the trails behind the cabin in Flagstaff!