Exercycle

After Logan went to school, Cole and I broke away for some man time and to give Tara a break. Being my sports minded child, we stopped at Play-It-Again Sports to check out the sports equipment and play around a bit. We tried on the (baseball) catchers gear, imagine me in leg guards, chest protector and mask walking around the store. We pumped some iron on the weight benches and perused the skateboards. 

What really fascinated Cole were the exercise bikes and walkers. We have never had these around the house, so it was a new and wonderful plaything. He wanted to try it out, but they were all so high his legs would not reach if he sat on the seat. Finally, he figured out he could stand up and pedal and as his confidence built, the faster he went and the bigger his smile got.

Cue the Chariots of Fire sound track. If you looked closely at the twinkle in his eye, you could see his dreams flashing before his eyes. Pedaling hard, he was moving up through the pack. He was passing competitors like they were standing still. Pulling away, nothing but open road to the finish line of the tour de France...

His legs slipped off the pedals, his sensitive areas smashing into the unforgiving steel bar. To add insult to injury, the pedals, still spinning pounded his posterior like a paddle wheel. The smile faded, first into a shocked wide eyed stare, that was quickly overcome as the tears began to roll.

A hug, a few comforting words and a cup of hot chocolate at The Muse Coffee Shop and life was well again. I have been there. Everything can be running smooth sailing, when our feet slip off the pedals, we crash, we fall behind, the economy collapses, we lose our job, unexpected pregnancy, we screw up...in all of that, we can still sit down for a cup of hot chocolate, with a Father who loves us.