Cara's Big Adventure

Staying home with Jordyn this year has been everything I wanted it to be. I get a much needed break from the grind of teaching (grading papers, school politics, lesson plans, etc...), Jordyn gets individual attention from me, I get to do what I want - when I want to do it... It's been fabulous and I wouldn't trade it for anything. However, it has also meant a HUGE decrease in our monthly earnings. There's enough for our needs but not a whole lot for any extra wants right now.

Cara has long past grown out of her first bike. She's been trying to ride the bicycle I had as a teenager but it's still too tall for her. She'd get up on the seat and wobble around the street for a few seconds and then crash to the ground. To her credit, she'd get up and try again and again scratches and all.

The school Cara goes to, Amos Elementary, has a pilot program called Fit Future run by the YMCA and the United Way. The kids are learning dances in PE, going on field trips, and getting nutritional education in the hopes of warding off childhood obesity. The other day she came home and asked if we could eat "more of a rainbow" of foods. Nice. Fit Future teamed up with American Airlines and the Odyssey Teams to donate 90 brand new 2008 Diamondback bicycles, helmets and locks to deserving Amos students and you see the results in the above photo!

Yesterday she went on the field trip to the Dallas Hyatt-Regency hotel (right next to Reunion Arena, the big golf ball-looking tower) where a group of 5 workers assembled her bike in front of her. They called her their 'customer' and asked Cara tons of questions about herself. She said every time she talked they would all stop, put their hands on their knees and lean in real close to hear every word she said. I think she felt like a superstar! The picture was taken by one of the nice people who helped put Cara's bicycle together.

My daughter finished her homework in lightning speed last night and rode her bike til dusk. She was up at 6:45 this morning and ready for school by 7:15 so she could ride her new bike before leaving the house. School starts at 8:20... "I think I'll do this again tomorrow, Mom." What a blessing in her life this is. Thank you Fit Future, American Airlines, Odyssey Teams & Amos Elementary School.