A Common Love

With Valentine’s Day around the corner (hi, tomorrow), I sat down with the kids to do 50 Valentines with them for their classes today. Jack simply signed his name, while Zoe made intricate puppies and kitties complete with paws and goggly eyes for all 22 children in her class. Beau, meanwhile, couldn’t be bothered to even take a second glance at his until I had sorted and sealed each one. Three very different little people that I am raising, and these times remind me of how very much I enjoy spending these chaos, glue and glitter filled moments with them. I love it.

Over the years and as my kids have gotten older, I’ve learned to rely on certain things that always seem to work. I’ve used the same baby bath products, the same types of pacifiers, the same sleep blankets & methods, strollers, and baby carriers. Despite how different each child is, I am more than happy when not only can I use one product for all three, but how on the very rare occasion three of them will enjoy the same thing at the same time. This is the case with our Micro Kickboard scooters.

Our move to Manhattan taught me a lot about myself, about people, and how I could be the most effective parent to young children in a very urban, populated and busy environment. When we were commuting to school on foot (as we did), they didn’t want to be in a stroller all the time and walking 16 blocks to preschool wasn’t happening on foot. I bought them Mini Micro Kickboard scooters and helmets and began to walk with them all around the city. This was the first time we really learned to push the limits of our comfort zones: I was terrified of having them riding around untethered and unconfined, but we began to build a crucial level of trust within eachother. I would allow them to ride to school as long as the listened to me and learned to obey traffic rules and street lights, and they in turn learned how to earn my trust and eventually more freedom.

Beau is really learning all of those things in a different environment, in a new pace. He rides his Mini Micro Kickboard scooter around our neighborhood, through the airports when we travel and on various different adventures and hikes with Theo. We go to the parks around the corner from our home, and we encourage them to ride to school on certain days too. These scooters are just the right size and offer a flexibility with their speed and soft wheels that I don’t worry that he’ll hurt himself from being off balance or going too fast. We’re building trust around this safety net that has been instilled within both of us, and it’s been a crucial foundation within our relationship. Not to mention, this is an activity that all three of them love to do together, and those times are very sacred to me.

I recommend the Kickboard scooters to everyone. They are a great and timeless gift, but they also create an activity that kids of all ages can do together while being physically active and engaged at the same time.

Parenting little ones means making the most of any and every situation. It means getting used to finding something that works, and then preparing yourself when it all changes the next instant. I didn’t know how I was going to get around New York City with two toddlers (at the time) who did not want to be in a stroller all day. I certainly didn’t know that allowing them the freedom to make their own decisions, even at 2 and 3 years old, was a lesson that would serve them well and build trust and confidence in both of us. We learned though, and that’s the beauty of raising little people.

We’re heading down to Los Angeles for the weekend to celebrate Justin’s birthday and Valentine’s Day, and will definitely bringing our Micro Kickboard scooters with us. With the various unknowns that travel entails, the kids are relieved to have something that is fun and familiar for all of them-and I’ll be happy knowing that they’re spending time together. A lovely Valentine’s Day indeed.