2 Kids,2 Dogs,1200 Miles: 2 More Weeks in FL 2 - Finished with a Blast! P40

[Bethislucy]

Sounds like another great trip can't wait to hear all about it.

 

[budafam]

Love your reports! Maybe it's because we're both from Wisconsin... looking forward to reading about the trip down

 

[DEA]

Once more, into the breach...

I think I ripped that off from some English dude. Not nearly as good as the Illuminations intro.

 

[amyrella]

I'm here too! And I wouldn't be subscribed to multiple TR if I didn't want to hear redundancy! I need my Disney fix somehow!!

Plus I'd like to hear updates on how Bambi is feeling!

 

[IheartDDuck]

I'm in. I've lurked on your other reports and I'm glad there's one I can hop on board with!

 

[Dugette]

I'm here and excited to read about another FreezinRafiki adventure!

 

[Mrs. Gumdrop]

Whoo Hoo! I snuck in before you posted again. Count me in too!

 

[that's nice]

Hey there nemesis!

Glad you are still here with us and didn't fall off a cliff.

I am going to try and keep up with this one.....

Oh yea... hiya Bambi.

 

[FreezinRafiki]

Reporting for duty, sir.

Seriously, I'm thrilled for another Barry trip report.

I think proper Internet protocol demands that when you are the first to comment on a thread you are required to post "FIRST!"

Thank you for not doing that. Great to have you here, Kathy!

I'm in Can't wait to hear about this trip Btw I have followed along on you other TR's and enjoyed them I noticed that you live in southeastern wisconsin, I live in Northeastern Illinois and often go by racine on my way to milwaukee, door county and sometimes a day trip to cedarburg wisconsin. I almost went to school at carthage which is right by there.

Glad you're here! They say all roads lead to Rome, well, all roads lead past Racine. I go by the Carthage campus all the time. It looks really nice right there on the lake!

Joining in! Can't wait to hear more adventures from your crew. And as for "sparking" it up.....I'm not worried....if all else fails just throw some pictures of your kids up there doing what they do and it will sparkle!

Hi Tanya! Good point - maybe I won't do any words this time. (Hey, why do I hear applause?)

 

[FreezinRafiki]

I'm in!!! Hey, I'm okay with any ripped-off Illuminations references! (I was trying to awkwardly add in some reference to "We Go On" to that previous sentence, but it wasn't really working...oh well...)

Most of my references are awkward anyway. Feel free to join in!

Here! I will read after the kiddies are in bed.

Welcome!

Another FreezinRafiki trip report? Ok, I'm in. I must be a sucker for pun-ishment.

You know, I was thinking about not doing any puns this time....

...although I appear to have some sort of reputation.

 

[FreezinRafiki]

Signing up for another installment of the FreezinRafiki family!

Wonderful! We'll try not to disappoint.

Dude, how did I get this far down the list? I must be slipping in my old age.

Nah, you work for the DOT. Your used to taking forever to do basic tasks. (Welcome, anyway, though!)

I have some ideas but we know you won't listen. So in your punness at least don't forget the major details (or the minor ones).

I never forget things. As author, I utilize artistic liberty as to what facts are needed.

 

[FreezinRafiki]

Ok I'll try

Totally loving the Illunimations reference and that "we go on" your trip with you.


Glad to be here.

Perfect! Welcome to the party!

I'm in. It might give me the inspiration to finish my own trip report.



TL

Welcome! Maybe this will help:

TURKEY! DO YOUR TRIP REPORT! OR ELSE!

Ditto.

Welcome! (See above for inspiration. Substitue "katoot" for "Turkey")
But I need to do me a favor. Since you're a day ahead of us, don't post spoilers to my updates. Just sit quietly until the rest of us catch up. Thanks.

I'm in.....you had me at Disney

Well, I hate to break it to you, but there will be some non-Disney parts. Feel free to skip over those if you want.

 

[FreezinRafiki]

I'm in too

Welcome! Glad you made it!

I'm in too!!

Yippie! Great to have you!
[Shameless Plug - if you're not reading baseballmickey's TR, do it. It's very well written]

I'm in....better late than never!

You're not late. I didn't post an actual update yet, so you're technically early.

Ok, I'm here. Let's get this party started!

The party will start soon...ish.

 

[middlepat]

The party may now begin, as I have made my fashionably late entrance.

 

[FreezinRafiki]

Late to the party, but along for the ride

Now… someone pass that tub of cheeseballs on over this way so I can get a big ol’ hand full.

Glad to have you here. Just wipe your hands on your pants before you type replies. You can't get that orange out of your keyboard.

Sounds like another great trip can't wait to hear all about it.

It was a great trip! Welcome to the story!

Love your reports! Maybe it's because we're both from Wisconsin... looking forward to reading about the trip down

Thanks for going in!
You've done the drive, so you know how fun it is, don't you?
If you don't mind me asking, what part of the state are you from?

Once more, into the breach...

I think I ripped that off from some English dude. Not nearly as good as the Illuminations intro.

Well, in intrest of full disclosure, I had to look up the exact text. It's not like I knew it off of the top of my head. OK, I knew most it. Welcome!

 

[FreezinRafiki]

I'm here too! And I wouldn't be subscribed to multiple TR if I didn't want to hear redundancy! I need my Disney fix somehow!!

Plus I'd like to hear updates on how Bambi is feeling!

Well, there will be plenty of Disney, I can promise that!
Bambi is doing OK - considering there is small human growing inside of her.

I'm in. I've lurked on your other reports and I'm glad there's one I can hop on board with!

Thanks for coming out of lurkdom and welcome to the report!

I'm here and excited to read about another FreezinRafiki adventure!

I'll try not to disappoint! Thanks for coming back for more.

 

[FreezinRafiki]

Whoo Hoo! I snuck in before you posted again. Count me in too!

Now you can tell everyone you know about how you were here from the very beginning! Welcome!

Hey there nemesis!

Glad you are still here with us and didn't fall off a cliff.

I am going to try and keep up with this one.....

Oh yea... hiya Bambi.

Hi Tim!

You're right, I didn't fall off a cliff. I ran off it.

Glad you made it. I'm sure you have so much free time now to devote to my TR.

 

[FreezinRafiki]

The party may now begin, as I have made my fashionably late entrance.

I'm sure you just tried to time it just so you got your own personal welcome. Well, it's not going to work.


Crud, yes it did. Welcome to story time!

 

[FreezinRafiki]

Well, while I prepare the first update to this TR, I thought I'd let everyone in about Tim's comment about "falling off a cliff". I posted this earlier in the DIS Dad's Club, but it's worth a copy/paste here as well. I apologize that it's long and not Disney related (well maybe a little bit - Madison has a Princess Bike Helmet)

I took it upon myself this summer to finally get the training wheels off of the kids bikes. My 4 year old son (Evan) took to it like a fish to water. I don't want to brag (Ok, maybe a little bit), but he has some pretty awesome natural athletic ability. His training wheels were off and it only took 3 or 4 trips down the block for him to mostly master the two wheeler.

My six year old daughter (Madison) needed more help. She's kind of one that if she can't do it perfectly the first time, she doesn't want to do it. It look a little more effort, but she eventually got decent at it.

So Sunday morning rolls around. While much of the east coast was dealing with Hurricane Irene, the weather in Wisconsin was absolutely beautiful - mid 70s and sunny. So we all decide to head down to Lake Michigan - which just under a mile from our house. DS, DW and DD all ride their bikes, but I decided to jog along with DD, as she still needed a little help once in a while.

We stopped at a park across the street from the lake and played for a little bit, but then decided to go down to the water to and dip our toes in. Now, in this particular area, between the beach and the road are 60'-70' bluffs. The city has done a very nice job putting in a biking/jogging/roller skating path along the lake. Right next to the park we were at it runs along the top of the bluff, then angles down to the beach.

We left the park, intending to cross the street and take the path down to the beach. Madison took her new found proficiency on the bike for granted and took off a little bit too quick. I sprinted after her, yelling for her to hit the breaks. She panicked and froze up. All she could do was grip the handle bars and scream. As she crossed the path heading for the bluff I got within about a foot of grabbing her, but no closer. Her bike crossed the grass strip between the trail and the edge of the bluff and started accelerating.

Luckily, the bluff is not straight down, but it is as a very steep angle - probably 75°-80°. That spot is also thick with vegetation. A lot of light, leafy underbrush types of plants, but also a lot of plants that remind me of bamboo - 6 or so feet tall and about an inch in diameter. They were hollow inside, yet had thick walls. These were our saving grace - as you hit them, they slowed you down, but then broke so it wasn't like hitting an oak tree. (Which coincidentally was just down the path)

So, Madison is on her bike, heading down the cliff. I wasn't going to let her go alone, so kept on running after her. Well at that steep of an angle, you don't run for long. I went down fast and started hitting those plants, hearing Madison screaming the entire time. The foliage was so thick that you couldn't see more than a foot or two in any direction. Not that you could anyway, going that fast everything was just a blur.

I must have taken a slightly different path down the bluff, because I saw the glittery pink and purple streamers of Madison's bike as I slid by, just to her right. She has come to a stop in a thicket of plants. Being much heavier, I had more momentum to stop and ended up sliding past her by about 7 or 8 feet. I scrambled back up to her, trying to dig my running shoes into the dirt and using the stalks of the plants as braces and anchors.

I finally reached Madison, finding her on her back, one foot caught in the bike, another tangled up in the plants about 3 feet off the ground. I tried to find out what hurt the most and she said her belly (he has about an 8 inch scrape on it) and her foot. I don't have much (or really, any) medical training, but I took it as a good sign that her head, neck or back didn't hurt. I was able to lift her, untangle her from the bike and plants and start helping her up the hill.

By this time, several people that witnessed the events came running to help. One had started down the trail we had blazed through the brush. I was able to help push Madison up to his outstretched hand and he helped pull her up to a visibly shaken Bambi an Evan. (Bambi later told me that after she jumped off her bike at the top of the bluff, Evan had grabbed her and pulled her back, fearing that she was too close to the edge.)

With the help of the random stranger, I was able to pull Madison's bike up behind me while Bambi calmed Madison down to find out if anything else hurt. In the end, all we ended up with were scratches, bruises, and one heck of a scare.

We thanked everyone that stopped to help, then walked down the paved trail to the beach. After we got back on level ground, Bambi convinced Madison to get back on her bike and ride some more. She was a bit hesitant, but she got back on started riding.

We worked on braking during the ride home, but by the time we made it back she was riding like a natural.

We always make the kids wear helmets while riding their bikes (Bambi and I do it too, lest we be hypocrites.) The kids have often seen other children in the neighborhood riding sans helmet and asked if they could. We've always said it was for their own protection. Both kids now know exactly what we mean when we say to wear your helmet for your own good.

And yes, it was pretty hard to get out of bed this morning. Not only did I fall/slide down the bluff that morning, I went back again that afternoon and climbed down, looking for my glasses. I don't remember if I had them on while I was jogging, but I certainly haven't seen them since. I have an appointment this afternoon with the optometrist to a new pair. But that's a small price to pay compared to how bad the day could have turned out.​

 

[Poolrat]

And yes, it was pretty hard to get out of bed this morning. Not only did I fall/slide down the bluff that morning, I went back again that afternoon and climbed down, looking for my glasses. I don't remember if I had them on while I was jogging, but I certainly haven't seen them since. I have an appointment this afternoon with the optometrist to a new pair. But that's a small price to pay compared to how bad the day could have turned out.[/INDENT]

How scary!!!! Glad everyone is Ok - except for your glasses.

Some day this whole episode will be looked back on with a strange fond memory. You were Madison's hero that day and she was able to conquer the fear and lose the training wheels.

I look forward to seeing the new glasses. Yes it is a small price to pay.