No more training wheels

I don't know what it is about fall and teaching our kids to ride their bike without training wheels, but that is when we have taught all three of our boys!

Sunday evening as I was sitting in the garage waiting for Jared to get supper done on the grill I asked Braylon if he wanted to take his training wheels off of his bike. He answered rather quickly.... NO! I said, "ok, but your brothers could do it when they were 4." That changed his mind really fast. He decided that he would let us take those wheels off.

So since supper was almost ready I told him we would do it after supper and I headed in to finish up the stuff in the house. I couldn't figure out why it was taking them all so long to come in to eat. Then it hit me, they are probably out there teaching him how to ride without those training wheels. So this is the conversation I had with myself as I went to check....

"They better not be"
"You know they are"
"They wouldn't do that, they knew you wanted to see it"
"They are men, they don't think like that"
"Keep your cool...."
"Man, I just wanna scream"
"It's just a bike ride"
"No it's not!!!! It's his FIRST bike ride without training wheels"

Open the door.......

"Seriously, are you guys teaching him to ride his bike without training wheels?" All eyes turned to me!

Braylon looking so proud looked right at me and said, "Look Mommy, I can do it!!"

How could I get mad? He was so proud, but.....

I wanted to cry.... 1) because they did it without me getting to see my baby ride without training wheels for his very first time, 2) because where did my little boy go? he has grown up so fast and 3)this was the last one of my kids that I would get to watch ride their bike for their very first time without training wheels and my family didn't have the courtesy to wait till after supper or to at least come in and tell me to come watch!

So I took pictures, I cheered him on and felt my heart break in a million pieces all at once!

It was getting rather dark, I was upset, and I still don't know how to run my new camera so please disregard the blurry, not so good pictures of Braylon's First Night (not time) riding his bike without training wheels.

There he goes

Boots and all!! Can you see that big ole grin on his face?

He thought crashing was the best thing ever and hit this tree several times, on purpose!

Oh Braylon, where did my baby go? It seems just like yesterday we were finding out that we were going to have baby #3 and here you are 4 years later, riding your bike without training wheels. I am so happy to see you grow up and to see you conquer new and fun things, but I am also so very sad.

Love ya little man!