Seminal Moments of Youth, Pizza Drama, and First Ride

In what must surely be a rite of Spring, we broke out our bikes and went for our first ride. The conditions were terrible, with plenty of mud and water, which meant the kids had an absolutely fabulous time. Something about kids and dirt, they just go together like peanut butter and jelly. Our driveway is a complete disaster, and every day they go out there and get knee deep in the stuff. Then, before mom gets home, I have to clean up not only the children, but the path of destruction they leave in our house. Oh well, such is the life of a parent. I'm not complaining, as long as they're safe and having fun, and mom doesn't get to see the wreckage the minute she arrives. Got to keep the peace.

We went for a nice ride, and I still think the town, and for that matter, the entire planet, should do more to encourage walking and bike riding. It's one thing to ride on dirt side roads, but once we get to the main road, the traffic is light but you become acutely aware of how fast people can drive. To their credit, they give us a wide berth, but it's disconcerting when all that traffic is whizzing by you and your kids. If it were just me, no problem. If they had a bike path, however, and one that was far off the road, then I'd be a happy camper.

Either way, we stopped by Cobb Hill and hung out, but there was nobody around, so we then jetted of for the rec center and played by the now defunct skating pond. The kids decided the thing to do was wade into it like it was a pond, and they got soaking wet. Rather than intervene and make a big stink, however, I warned them beforehand that there were consequences to being wet and riding a bike, not that they ever listen to the likes of me. And sure enough, N fell in while trying to mount his bike, which was too close to the drink. Soaking wet, uncomfortable and angry, he declared, "I want to go home." Of course, it was all my fault for even suggesting we go there. Just a quick note-I'm thinking he may need a bigger bike soon, because his little bike is too slow and he can't keep up with his sister. She takes off and is miles ahead of us, which makes me a little uncomfortable. If he could get just a little more speed going, life would be good. Not that it isn't, already.

We had a seminal moment in any kids life and watched Star Wars for the first time as a family. I can't believe that movie is thirty years old, but as we watched it, it just seemed to scream the 70's. The kids loved it, though we have to finish it tonight. We got a pizza and had ice cream and had family movie night, which is always a blast. We've found it helps to put the cats in the bedroom so they don't invade our picnic. The last time they were all over the place and I, in typical dad fashion, ended up knocking over everyone's drinks.

We picked up a pizza at our favorite place, Pizza Chef, and they gave us the wrong pizza. I should have checked it, but we go there all the time. When we got home, what was staring back at me was nothing even close to what I ordered. I knew it was for us because I always ask for it to be cut into 16 pieces, but boy were they off. It was, however, serendipitous, because everyone loved the pie, and we tried something new because we were forced to, and it worked out beautifully. Also, if I'd made a stink at the place, it would have taken more time to make another one, they would have felt bad, and we wouldn't have ventured into new territory, so it was a good thing.

Until the next time, thanks for reading, and thanks to Blazej Pieczynski for the pic.

Vegan Eating and the K&A Scale of Legitimacy

The vegan eating is going well thus far, and we've developed a new scale to determine our level of vegan diligence-the K&A scale, named after our good friends K&A, who are such hardcore vegetarians (no egg or dairy) that they make me feel ashamed whenever I even think of eating a hot dog. I don't know how they do it, but kudos to them for their level of dedication, they'll probably live to be 100.

Last night's dinner, on the K&A scale of legitimacy, with 10 being best, was about an 8, maybe a 7. We had falafels, stuffed squash, and spinach, and would probably have scored higher on the K&A scale if I hadn't put an egg in the falafel. I've just found that without it, the falafels just fall apart when fried. The squash is actually a modification of the Julia Child recipe for stuffed pumpkin. Since pumpkins are hard to come by, you can simply modify it to an acorn or buttercup squash. Great way to get your orange veggies, and the kids generally love it. Best of all, it's so easy.

Tonight we'll probably do Friday pizza night, which scores about a 6 on the K&A scale, or more like a 4 since we like pepperonis. And then there's the cheese, but as I've mentioned, we're not as worthy as our friends.

One final note-if we go skiing, we'll get home in the late afternoon, and then we'll have to scramble to make dinner. Also, pizza is something the kids love to have a hand in making, so it promises to be a time that is ripe for me to lose it at some point and get stressed, which also makes it a great opportunity to test my new anger management approach. Bring it on is what I say. Then again, I don't want to get too cocky. That's when I crash and burn.

Until the next time, thanks for reading.