Morning

For as long as I can remember, I've been a morning person. It could be because my parents are morning people and therefore as a child I had no other option, but I really do just think it's how I'm wired. Sleeping in counts as 7:30 and if I'm still in bed at 8 I'm either sick or trying really hard to not feel I've completely wasted the morning.

For the last two Mondays, I've walked Aeryn to school. Normally she rides a bus that picks her up about 50 feet from our apartment door, but for the next couple weeks she's in a bike safety class at school. She leaves her bike there during the week and then we bring it home on Fridays so she's got it for the weekend. She rides, I walk, which means most of the journey looks something like this: (that is if I can see her at all as she rides quite far ahead of me)

She loves this. Eugene is the perfect place for a kid who likes to ride their bike. There are trails all around and the weather is pretty much amazing. 

Much to her dismay I don't let her undergo this trip alone, as I'm still a bit paranoid about one of the busy streets she has to cross. She isn't really concerned with staying where she can see me, but I can count on her to stop every time she comes to a fork in the road or street to cross, just to ask me for sure which way we're going. 

Have you seen these outdoor elliptical bikes? I'm pretty much in love. With the bike that is, not exactly the price tag. They seem to be surfacing everywhere we go now. This morning we passed 3 of them - and I struggled the entire time they were in view to not covet.

After getting Aeryn close enough to the school that she could continue on by herself, I headed home. The sunshine was bright and cheerful and there were countless birds gracing the morning with their song. I can't help but continue to be completely enamored with this place. It's like a part of me has always belonged here and just didn't know it. I sat under a tree and played my "with friends" games while the hurried cyclists, dog walkers, and other morning people passed on by.

It's so lovely.

Welcome, Monday. You've brought with you such a glorious morning.