Well, Grace and I both made it to “the cookie ride” this year. We had a great time. On the ride this year with us were Paul and Kenneth , two friends of mine from the burbs.
She was a little disappointed by the scarcity of cookies – for some reason I thought there were more cookie stops than just the two at the Museum of Science and Industry and up at Wilson Av. Usually Grace, like a lot of other four year olds, has trouble sitting still and focusing. However, when she gets on the tag-a-long, it seems like all her nervous energy goes into pedaling and she actually gets a more contemplative. She seemed to take in a lot of the scenery.
Going south to the Museum was a bit difficult at first. Grace is not a morning child, and she was crabby and a bit hungry to start out. We shared a Clif bar, and as we went along, she got more comfortable. People along the way remarked at how much she was pedaling. I honestly think it soaked up the energy – if she weren’t pedaling, she’d have been fidgeting somehow ;-)
The museum rest stop was moved behind the museum this year. The placement was horrible – everyone was crammed into a much smaller space than in years past. Grace got lots of cookies though, which is what the ride is all about for her. But on the turnaround from the museum, we lost Kenneth, and so the next thirty minutes of ride back to the loop was “Where’s Kenneth? I don’t see Kenneth. Did we leave Kenneth behind? Where’s Kenneth?” Paul, Grace and I had actually made a wrong turn and had to backtrack and by the time we got on to Lake Shore Drive, Kenneth had gotten far ahead of us. He stopped and we caught up to him around 22nd street.
Greg, Grace, Kenneth and Paul at Bike the Drive
Then Grace made it up about as far as Fullerton before she started having a minor meltdown. Poor planning on my part – I hadn’t packed any extra cookies she was hungry. Paul had some extra cookies though, and he shared them with us. She calmed down after getting some food. Kenneth went on ahead to complete the full course, but the rest of us turned around and headed back in. When we finished, she had completed about 23 miles.
Here we are:
Greg and Grace on Lake Shore Drive
The image was taken by Bright Room photography, and we’ve ordered the commemorative plaque. Congratulations Grace on your first BIG RIDE!
