Trail ride around the river

We went on a bike ride on Saturday and had the best time. We parked in front of our cousins Jeff and Lisa's house so we were able to stop in for a quick hug and to meet their new adorable kitten. We hopped on our bikes and rode around the bike trail and then we veered off the path to get closer to the river and ride some hills. We came upon a good sized hill and Casey and Pedar flew down it. Erik hit the brakes. He was scared. I could relate. The hill felt to me like when I come upon a large hill when I am skiing. If I stop at the top to look down, it feels really scary. But if I don't stop and just start turning and moving, before I know it, I'm down it. So, I had Erik back up his bike so he couldn't see the hill. We talked about how to use his hand break and stand on his peddles, hold on and ride it down. Casey rode back up the hill to talk him through it and I think his pep talk really helped. Next thing we knew, Erik took off and down he went. His smile lit up his beautiful face. Casey was so proud of him and said, "You did awesome Erik!" Pedar and I were so happy for him. It was a beautiful moment. It is awesome to watch your kid overcome their fears.

We are so lucky to live close to the bike trail and the American River Parkway. Our bike ride wasn't planned. We just wanted to get out for a bit and enjoy the gorgeous day. The weather and sunset on Saturday was beautiful. We ran into our friend Guy who was out taking pictures of wildlife and he showed us gorgeous pictures of coyotes. He has photographed some amazing wildlife along the American River Parkway. We were lucky to run into him and hear about what he sees consistently when out taking pictures. We were only out riding for about two hours, but we returned feeling relaxed and happy. It was a great ending to the day.