• Average School Bike Commute | A Simple Six – Parents and kids biking together.
• Sunday Parkways in Northeast Portland Draws Crowd of More Than 25,000 | Bicycle Transportation Alliance Oregon – We participated in this event.
• Brothers Accused Of Armed Robbery On Bikes · OPB News – Every news story headline I've seen about this focuses on the bikes. This disturbs me.
• Cargo Camping | TRANSPORT/LAND – Family Bike Camping! Do we dare try it?
• When bike trains collide, it’s heartwarming | Seattle Bike Blog – Bike trains are a new way for kids to get to school, and they're becoming more and more popular!
• Why You Should Be On A Cargo Bike – Preaching to the choir for me, but maybe this will inspire you!

I don’t really observe this day, since I bike to work almost every day. Also, I’ve been focusing on getting kids to walk and bike to schoo this month – I’m the walk and bike coordinator at my school.

Two of my co-workers bike to work fairly regularly, and I know of at least a couple who walk. I’ve wondered what we could do to encourage more adults to walk and bike. I know at least one issue is getting kids to and from school, child care, sports, etc., and that’s a hard one to overcome.

Did you observe Bike to Work Day this year? If not, what would motivate you do it, at least for that one day?

Meanwhile, in interesting loads for the Xtracycle, I biked a fully loaded crockpot to work for a potluck.

And on Friday I biked both of my younger girls to their school, where we had an early meeting with a teacher. I really wanted to get an action shot of our shadow, but I didn’t quite dare try.

Tomorrow, we’re going to give Sunday Parkways a whirl — this is an event in Portland where they close off a number of streets to auto traffic and let the rest of us play! That’s my Mother’s Day treat.

So OF COURSE it’s controversial. That’s why it’s on the cover.

I’m all for breastfeeding, even extended breastfeeding. But I still hate the cover.

First of all, the breastfeeding. That kid is three years old.I breastfed all three of my kids until they were over two years old. In much of the world outside of the United States, this is NORMAL. They probably just call it “feeding.” No extended business.

YOU have no business telling this woman (who is a real mother and not just a model) or anyone else that it is wrong to breastfeed her toddler. Or preschooler, or whatever. Yeah, I think it’s weird when I read about children who are 5-7 and still breastfeeding. But I’m not that mom. It’s not my place to tell her what to do.

I also don’t have a problem with breastfeeding in public. It’s a baby. Eating. It’s not about OMG, BOOBS! It’s nice to be as discreet as possible, but if you’ve ever tried breastfeeding, you probably know that babies are not always discreet. And they’re not good about waiting politely until you get home.

HOWEVER. This cover seems to be perpetuating the idea the breasts are only sexual objects. Even though she’s not a model, what we have here is a  skinny, blonde woman in a sexy pose. That is not helpful at all. I find it weird, actually. And not really representative of the attachment parenting movement.

I haven’t had a chance to read the article or articles on attachment parenting, because the articles are not available online unless you are a subscriber. Anyone want to chime in about those? I might pick up a copy if I get a chance.

That’s one of the reasons I continued gaining weight even though I was bike commuting every day.

I gave it up when I became determined to lose some weight. And then I joined Weight Watchers, and I really knew I couldn’t be doing that.

But recently, on a couple of occasions, I convinced myself again that I needed those burritos. And they were goooood. I know they’re junk. I know they’re nothing like a REAL burrito. But they’re SATISFYING junk.

Today they were calling to me again. I had a little trouble getting the kids up this morning, and didn’t have time to eat. And right up until that last corner where I’d have to turn to get to 7-11, I though I was probably going to go there.

Except, at the last minute, I didn’t. I said no. Because I haven’t been doing well with weight loss lately, and this wasn’t going to help me get back on track. I hated doing it, but I said NO to the breakfast burrito.

Instead, I ate the perfectly good food I had on hand at work: a fiber bar, an orange, and a cup of chai tea (I’d already grabbed a piece of string cheese at home to tide me over).

And yes, when I got to work and had to deal with…well, WORK stuff, I did feel resentful and deprived and wanted the comfort food. But I do know I made the right choice.

NOTE: This was yesterday. Today I was considerably more depressed and discouraged and I went and drank a couple of sodas. But I did still avoid the breakfast burritos.

Broccoli, cauliflower, green cabbage, Chinese cabbage, and
lettuce!

• Inspired to Ride by Her Son – Momentum Mag – Looks and sounds familiar!
• Occupy the Farm Activists Reclaim Prime Urban Agricultural Land in SF Bay Area | OccupyWallSt.org – Here's some positive action by an Occupy group!
• Children Love Riding Cargo Bikes | A Simple Six – Love these cargo bike pictures! Look at how much fun everyone is having.
• Strocel.com | Celebrating Earth Day with Kids – Earth Day is officially April 22 (that's a Sunday in 2012).
• BikePortland.org » Blog Archive » Guest Article: Bike boulevard bliss shattered and a call to action – A people-first manifesto!

So I make up for not being able to say that by reflecting that I am going to be so much better off than he is when gas hits $5.00 per gallon!

It’s a great place, with a terrific view, but I almost didn’t come. This is the annual staff retreat/reunion, and it’s VERY cheap because we all rent a big house together and share food. Really, it’s shockingly cheap.

But I still felt guilty and stressed about leaving for the weekend. Should I have even spent that little money? Don’t I have a hundred things to do at home? Doesn’t my family need me?

And I had a full schedule this week, with Girl Scouts and first aid training and a medical appointment as well as work, so I ended up feeling so stressed that I thought it might be less stressful to just stay home.

But, here I am. It’s beautiful, and the company is good, if a bit noisy (teachers gone wild!). I’m reminding myself to breathe. I haven’t entirely let go of the stress and guilt. I’m not sure I can. Sigh.

I pulled out my phone and checked the transit tracker to see when the next train was due. Nine minutes? That might or might not get me there in time, and the next train could very well be full, too.

I wasn’t certain I could do better by bike, but I decided to give it a try. I hopped back on the bike and swung into the bike lane.

26 blocks later, at the next station, I checked on the train again. It was still seven minutes behind me. I kept pedaling, and the street started sloping slightly downhill. I even passed a guy on a mountain bike, and I never pass anyone on the Xtracycle! The only problems I had were one four-block section (on E. Burnside from 181st to 185th) without a bike lane, and the left turn from Burnside onto Stark (which went fine once I got there; I was just nervous about it).

When I arrived at Kaiser Permanente Rockwood, which is right next to the Ruby Junction MAX station, I checked the expected arrival time of the MAX train. It was still five minutes behind me, and I still had a few minutes to check in for my appointment.

So yes, the train would have caught up with me eventually, but I did beat the wait time+travel time equation with my ride — about 3.7 miles in 20-ish minutes. And it was fun! I’d been tired and grumpy about having to go to this appointment (a freaking MAMMOGRAM; I’m not old enough for this!), but I definitely felt more energetic afterward.

I totally took the train back, though. I’m no saint. Plus my ticket was still good!