On Surviving Childhood

Weekend family activities, along with the beautiful weather, kept me from crafting this weekend -- much as I really wanted to go to a Sunday crop. But there's a long weekend coming up, and woot-woot! my boss just approved my taking next week off for a do-nothing, be-lazy staycation.

Meanwhile, I wanted to share a picture of Charlotte and her new ride:

This is the "tricycle" hubby John and I bought for our dear granddaughter Charlotte on Saturday. Talk about bells and whistles ... this one even comes with its own attached cell phone (battery-operated toy, of course) and a cup holder.

Check out the safety features: metal roll bar, three-point harness, padded seats, foot rest bars, sunshade, rear-locking brake, and a handle for Mom (Dad, or grandma) to push/steer and guide. 

There's a wagon bucket in the back to carry some toys, and on the removable steering handle, there's a safety pouch for Mom to carry necessities, like the car keys she's used to drive Charlotte and the trike to the park to ride.

\ Now compare that to my first tricycle. This one pictured at right is similar:

Easy tip, stander rail for my brother to ride on the back, hard metal seat, streamers, and wheelspokes to clip on baseball cards with wooden clothes pins (taken from the laundry line in the backyard). 

It was a little bit rusty from being caught out in the rain or left tipped at the curb overnight, unlocked and nobody stole it. I rode this in more than a few Memorial Day parades, with the trike wrapped up in crepe-paper streamers.  My trike had a bell on the right hand grip that I'd use to call out to my friends, no cell phone and certainly no "wireless connections". 

My, how did we EVER survive? 

DeFiaNtLy DiFfeReNt & CreAtiVeLy Yours,