The times that I close may laptop or the laundry room door almost always result in something I would have kept putting off until the requests faded to nothing. A couple of weeks ago Sean decided to take us all on a bike ride. Originally it was going to be a quick loop around the neighborhood, but he suggested the bike trail. It was, as I am sure some people reading this are already surmising, an ordeal.

Flat tires.

Missing bike helmets.

Modest interest.

Broken water bottle holders.

Somehow we made it. Briar stayed home and I borrowed her bike. Avery and Finley were tired about 1 mile into a 7 mile ride. Scattered leaves and pine needles made for a treacherous course, and yet, we kept going. We decided that rather than doing a round trip with all of us, after a quick lunch, Sean would ride back while Ave, Finley and I stayed at the beach.

This is where the magic happened. Sean happily pedaled off, providing a solution that made everyone happy. Avery and Finley played along the water’s edge until the inevitable happened—they got a glimmer in their eyes and approached me.

“No, absolutely not. You cannot swim,” I said as they moved toward me.

“But mom….”

“Listen, I don’t know how long Dad will take, you can’t risk getting sick before the show, and I have no towels.”

They tilted their heads, “We’ll air dry.”

I was a goner. The truth was I wanted to swim too. It’s just who we are.

“Ok, fine. You can go in as deep as your underwear, but no more. Ok?”