Category Archives: kids

Tree Hauling, Year Nine!

Posted on December 16, 2015 by Anne & Tim | 2 comments

You might be (editor: probably are) bored of tree-hauling posts by now, but I’m not. And since this is our NINTH-annual-Christmas-tree-by-bike post, and I already have kids in middle and high-schools, you’ll have to suffer through another sentimental one. The kids are growing up so fast <sniff> and our time with them is almost done. They’re already talking about their future holiday traditions, the ones they’ll start when they have their own (more stylish than our) homes and families. But for now, they’re still stuck with what passes for tradition around here.

Little boy in 2008; Much bigger boy in 2015

See that cute, little, three-year-old, riding on the back of Tim’s Xtracycle Mad-Max style? He’s now twelve! And almost taller than me! AND this year, he hauled the tree home on my Xtracycle! (I hope my overuse of exclamation points has properly conveyed my enthusiastic mirth.)

Continue reading →

2 Comments

Posted in alternative transportation, Bicycle Christmas, BIG Loads, bikes, extravehicular activities, family cycling, kids, xtracycle

Tagged 2015, carfreedays, christmas, Christmas Tree, Christmas Tree by bike, holiday tree, Holiday Tree Haulin, Year 9

Teen Bike Rejection Syndrome

Posted on January 14, 2015 by Anne | 21 comments

Let me start by admitting two things:

Of the many parenting issues I’ll likely face in my lifetime, this one is minor
This issue definitely falls into the ‘first-world-problem’ category

Even though this issue seems trivial in the grand scheme of parenting woes, it’s one that Tim and I have been pondering, discussing, obsessing over and pondering some more: What does a ‘bike family’ do when their teen rejects her bike?

Continue reading →

21 Comments

Posted in alternative transportation, bigger than here, bikes, Everyday Biking, family cycling, kids, Parenting, transitions

Tagged "bike parenting", everyday biking, Family Cycling, parenting, teen bike hate, teens

Get Kids to Talk: The Modern Equivalent of Trapping Them in the Car

Posted on March 15, 2013 by Anne | Leave a comment

Parenting fact: one-on-one time with kids is where all of the good dialogue happens.

When I was in high school, my dad was well aware of this fact. I think that’s why he’d bribe me with rides to school in his 1978 Cadillac DeVille (or “the boat” as we called it in the family). Even today I can still hear the “thunk” of the automatic door locks engaging as dad backed this giant, baby-blue, swank sedan out of the driveway.

That “thunk” nearly always triggered teenage-cheek-flush and upper-lip-sweat as I realized I was trapped in the car with dad. On the surface it was a luxury ride, but in reality I was merely being held for uninterrupted questioning.

My 15-year-old brain swirled with thoughts of outsmarting him:

“Crap, it’s just dad and me, no one else to distract him or run interference, he can talk about anything he wants. I can’t escape, I have to answer his questions. Maybe if I just look out the window and feign boredom, he won’t try to talk to me.”

But my sweaty, flushed flight response of my lizard brain knew better.

He always asked questions. So many questions. And I eventually had to answer. Continue reading →

Navigating the Maze of Kid Activities (on bikes)

Posted on March 1, 2013 by Anne | 8 comments

Have you listened to the latest NPR health story? In Many Families Exercise Is By Appointment only? The story highlights two very different approaches to kids and activities and how their parents ensure they get exercise. Some families choose organized sports, driving kids to various practices and games. Some choose walking and biking and playing outside.

Which is better? To schedule or not to schedule? And if you schedule, how do you transport kids to all of their various activities? By car? Or by bike?

I sometimes take this issue up a notch and start to worry about over-scheduled kids. What about them? Do they really enjoy having that much going on? Don’t they just want to hang out at home on occasion?

If you were blissfully unaware of this problem, don’t fret, you can find books and articles on the subject. You too can read about how to avoid over-scheduling your kids. Then you can sit down and watch a documentary and learn about the perils you will certainly face if you don’t get this problem resolved now. After you have yourself in a tizzy about your kids future, you can go back to news and articles regarding childhood obesity. The grim stats will certainly depress you: 18 percent of kids are obese in the United States. “Childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and tripled in adolescents in the past 30 years”

Feeling crazy, confused and on-edge yet? I know I am.

What’s a parent to do? To schedule or not? To relax or worry? Continue reading →

8 Comments

Posted in bigger than here, bikes, kids, neighborhoods

Tagged activities, exercise, family, kids, schedule, sports

Streets are for People! Kids at Play in the UK

Posted on February 25, 2013 by Anne | 8 comments

I love this video from Playing Out! (Thanks to Sarah Goodyear for sharing it along with her insightful post). Continue reading →

8 Comments

Posted in bikes, extravehicular activities, Human Powered Politics, In other Cities, kids, neighborhoods

Tagged kids, play, Playing Out, street, UK

Is “Liking” Riding & Walking Good Enough?

Posted on February 8, 2013 by Anne & Tim | 4 comments

This week everyone is talking about the Danish study linking walking and biking to school with better concentration. Kids + walking/biking + education = hot topic, right?

The story has legs and is making the rounds on Twitter, Facebook, blogs, and news outlets. Everywhere we click (at least in our admittedly bike- & walk-centric world), we see a link to the study.

You’ve seen it, haven’t you?

Like many of you, we get excited about these articles and want to pass the on to our network of friends.

Click! Like! Share! +1!

The resulting flurry of retweets and likes is a good thing, isn’t it? “Hey look here’s a great story. Let’s share it with our friends!” We click and make a difference. And then …. nothing.

For all their worth so many of these stories fade quickly, replaced with the next alt-transpo buzz (like … “e-bikes are coming and they are going to change everything!”). Continue reading →

4 Comments

Posted in bikes, Human Powered Politics, kids, neighborhoods, School

Tagged advocacy, bike advocacy, bike-to-school, bikes, kids, motivation, parents, School, social media, walk

Lies we Tell our Children (or how to get kids to go bike touring)

Posted on January 25, 2013 by Anne | 16 comments

When Tim and I recount family bike adventures to friends and strangers, a typical response is, “What do the kids think”? “Do they like bike touring?”

If we were being completely honest, we’d reply, “of course not”. You’ll soon ascertain that we have a slight problem with stretching the truth.

We get kids on board and excited about these trips by over-emphasizing the potential highlights and skipping the parts we know the kids won’t like.

And sometimes we tell all out lies. Continue reading →

16 Comments

Posted in bike touring, bikes, family cycling, kids, Pacific Coast Bike Tour

Tagged bike touring, family, family bike touring, Family Cycling, lies, Pacific Coast tour, plans

Check out Davey’s Blog

Posted on June 6, 2012 by Anne | 3 comments

One of our favorite bikers in Seattle has become a family biker and he now has a new blog. And I must say, he’s on fire. Davey is single-handedly putting us old and lazy bloggers to shame. I love his writing and his playful humor, be sure to start at the beginning.

We always enjoy running into Davey on the road. He takes the time to stop, say hello, chat for a bit and share funny stories. I leave these impromptu meet-ups with a smile on my face and just a little more hope for humanity. Davey is good people. Continue reading →

3 Comments

Posted in bigger than here, bikes, family cycling, kids, seattle

Tagged bikes, blog, Davey Oil, Family Cycling, xtracycle

Xtracycle Reader (the video)

Posted on May 22, 2012 by Anne | 5 comments

By now you know that the Car Free Days family isn’t always prompt about posting to our blog. We have the very best intentions to keep it from getting old and moldy, but often life gets in the way and we push those blog updates aside.

We’ve officially taken procrastination to new heights. I’m more than a little bit ashamed to admit that this video edit is almost 4-years in the making: we’ve been saving this un-edited footage since August 2008. I started to edit it a few times but I just never got around to finishing it (kinda like Tim’s plan to finish his kid bike series). Continue reading →

5 Comments

Posted in bikes, extravehicular activities, family cycling, kids, longbikes, xtracycle

Tagged 2008, bikes, kids, reading, seattle, summer, xtracycle

Motivating the Stoker

Posted on May 7, 2012 by Anne | 6 comments

We’ve been busy this spring getting ready for our Pacific Coast bike tour in July (even though we’d love to do the whole thing, we only have time for Seattle to SFO). We’re buying light weight camping gear, planning our route, getting the bikes set up and doing lots of tandem riding on the weekends. The whole family goes for at least one long ride every week – usually between 20 and 35 miles. We’ll slowly build up to 50 miles by the time we’re ready to roll out-of-town in July. Continue reading →