TLDR – Added a childs seat to the bike to make it a family car, took Khaleesi on a date bike ride
Buying a Seat
The kids keep getting invited to birthday parties in far off places difficult to get to with LUAS and feet and or anything less than an hour on a bus. I’ve been wanting to get a kid seat for the bike and finally came up with the excuse to push the want to buy. A birthday party for Khaleesi a bit past nutgrove was the push. It would be about 40-minute walk from the LUAS stop to the party or a 20-minute bike ride from the house.
Picked the seat up from Joe Daly cycle in Dundrum near the library on a library run with the kids. Mounting the seat was simple enough. Tighten four hex bolts and work out how it all fits over the back rack. After the seat was mounted all of the girls had to go for a test ride around the neighborhood. It was great; they laughed and screamed with joy the whole time they were in the bike seat. With the seat sitting on the bike rack hard mounted to the frame it supports all of the girls; Mila included. Now anywhere we are going the kids wants to ride the bike with dad. Unfortunately, when there is kid in the seat there is no room for cargo, so taking the kids to the shops is not a viable solution.
Dates and a ride
For Xmas the kids all gave me a drawing of date plan. Mila and I went out on our date a while ago. We’ve not found time to have dates with the other kids yet. Khaleesi has to be a birthday party in Nutgrove around 14:00 on a Saturday-Figured we might as well take her early and have a lunch date. The Friday morning before our date she tells me “ I just want to go to bed so it can be tomorrow then it’s time to go on our date” Saturday morning she was dressed and ready to go as soon as she woke up asking if it’s time to go every few minutes – She might be a bit excited; we left a few hours early due to her excitement.
Weather report called for 30-50 knots of wind gusts and rain. When we left the house it was sunny with normalish wind; bet they are wrong. With an ear to ear smile and a giggle, I loaded Khaleesi on the bike seat and we set off on our ride to Nutgrove. It’s all downhill from the house. We rode at about 40kph; only took us about 20 minutes to get there. Khaleesi was laughing the whole way. Our first stop is the Nutgrove shopping center and Flying tiger to shop for some random things.
Next, we rode every kids toy in the place and went shopping at Claire’s for random things you can buy at Claire’s. For lunch, we had some subway. Been since the states that we had subway, about three years. We split a spicy Italian sub and each had a cookie. While eating we chatted about school and Khaleesi’s friends. Being super excited to leave the house we left a few hours early and had loads of time to kill. We went to Mr. B’s and played some games and air hockey. we shopped at Tesco and went to Burger King for some ice cream – walking around holding hands chatting the whole time.
The birthday party was only about 1km from Nutgrove – it felt like 20 minutes on the bike. While we were at Burger king looking outside the wind picked up, the rain started to come up from the ground and the sky darkened with angry clouds; basically epic storm outside. It was a horrible ride. Rain blowing sideways into your face, puddles all over, wind trying to blow us sideways – cats and dogs living together. When we arrived it was not clear how to get into the building let alone which building we were going too. I had to walk the bike around the parking lot. Ridding too slow we kept blowing over sideways.
The party is at De La Salle sports complex on the Del La Salle college campus. Eventually, we found the door and a covered area to debike and lock up. We rushed inside and found the party. Party was grand – inflatable jump house in a gym, dance party in a classroom, tunnel race all-around an attic room, cake and chips watching a movie. Khaleesi had a great time. We had a few offers from people to take us home, but I was not about to leave the bike. We muscled through it, out the door into the insane rain and wind and rode to Emily and Ian’s house for a dinner party. – Rode as hard and fast as possible made it there in about 18 minutes; drenched and sweaty.
Khaleesi somehow managed to fall sleep on the ride? I felt her head hit my back and figured she was hiding from the wind and rain. Nope, she told after getting off the bike that she actually fell asleep back there. It’s true kids can sleep anywhere. Pizza and chats with friends then home and in bed by 2000.
