One family activity in which Ryan and I invest, both financially and time wise is biking together.  We've learned lately we will need to invest emotionally as well.  5/6ths of our family also value and enjoy family bike rides.  It just so happens that the 1/6th can make those bikes rides so terribly unpleasant.  

Ella was determined two years ago that she would wait to learn to ride a bike until she was 5, and then 6.  Last year, we decided it was time to spend a little time with her on it, even if she wasn't appreciative.  We worked with her on it, and she learned to ride without training wheels, though admittedly she was wobbly.  I convinced her to go on a bike ride one day last fall, she on her bike with no training wheels, the boys in a trailer behind me.  As she was turning her bike around a few blocks away, she skidded on some gravel, and had her first bike wreck.  Ella was distraught, and that attracted some unwanted attention.  A neighbor came down the hill on his gator and insisted on lifting Ella in with her skinned knee, Ella didn't want to go without me, and the boys wanted to stay with me, so he took all four of us home on the Gator, with Ella's bike in the back.  Another lady walking by insisted on walking my bike home with the empty trailer.  This was the last time Ella rode her bike.  After that she said she would learn to ride when we was 7 or 8.  So we let it sit for a year.

Two weeks ago, the weather was beautiful, around this time of year, when it hits sixty you go outside because it might be the last time it hits 60 forever, but surely for 6 months or so.  5/6ths of our family love to ride our bikes behind our house down to the river where there is a lovely old bridge that we all enjoy throwing rocks off. Ella agreed to go on the condition that she be able to ride the tagalong, which is a bike that attaches to my bike, but it won't fall over unless I fall over.  So Ryan took the boys in the bike trailer, Ella rode with me, and we had a lovely ride, and an enjoyable time, though the vehemence with which Ella insisted on not riding her bike was exacting.

Madeline and Ella run across the old bridge over the Zumbro river

This is my primary concern when we go to the river-top heavy, insatiably curious Sammy (watching where the rocks go)

Ella not riding a bike brings up a difference in parenting philosophy that Ryan and I have discussed several times.  One possible take is that Ella will learn to ride a bike when she is ready and that we should encourage and provide opportunities for her, but never force her.  The other side is that the longer Ella thinks that she "can't" ride a bike, the more it will be instilled in her mind.  By overcoming her fear and learning to ride, Ella will realize that even though it was hard and frightening, she can do anything she wants to do.  This would then justify us "strongly encouraging" Ella to practice riding her bike.  We were presented with this quandary much sooner than we expected.