See this face?
This is the face of pure, unfiltered JOY.
Because you see, this sweet girl has watched her big brother zoom around on his big boy bike.
And she sat and watched as we bought her “big” sister a pink and purple trike.
And she had none.
And it made her sad.
Because here’s the thing:
Jilly is physically delayed.
But not mentally.
Her little mind and heart think and act and want just like any 20 month old. {eek! how did that happen?!}
And we are just beginning to see some of the frustrations she is experiencing in *wanting* to do things that 20 month olds can do…
…things that her brother and sister are doing…
…but that she physically cannot do.
She gets mad. She whines. She’ll even cry sometimes.
And for the 5 seconds I set her in Lucy’s trike, she kicked her little legs furiously and giggled as if I were tickling her in her tickle-est spot.
Because she was just so excited to be in a bike.
And this mama almost died right there.
Feeling so guilty that we had taken her to the store with us to buy her sister a new bike…
…and none for her.
Go ahead and pull the knife out of my heart now. Please. Thanks.
You see, Jilly is the baby. Even if only by one minute.
She is teeny tiny. She can’t walk. She doesn’t talk. So we all tote her around like she’s an infant…
when the reality is that she’s really a toddler stuck in an infant’s body.
The other knife in my heart now. Yeah, go ahead. Take it out. Thanks.
Enter the Little Tikes 3 in 1 Trike
PERFECT for a sweet girl who wants to be big like her brother and sister, but needs a little help.
There’s a 5-point harness to keep her in the seat.
And an added bar to make double sure she doesn’t fall out.
(All of which can come off in stages and eventually be a regular tricycle).
And a bar for pushing her around…that steers the wheel so it’s easy to turn.
(I realize she needs a helmet. We are going to Target later today…breathe.)
So easy her twin sister tries to help. But that makes mama a stresscase, so we keep that to a minimum.
A place to rest tiny piggies.
And a basket. To carry important wares. Like plastic tools and such.
There was a time in my life when I would have seen a trike like this, with all it’s bells and whistles, and harnesses and gadgets and whatsits and thought:
“Neurotic parent much? Good grief. Let the kid get a bump or two.”
But for a mama of a special needs baby, it’s a GODSEND.
Because the first time we wheeled her around she screeched and squealed at the top of her little lungs.
You could hear her down the street.
Her little legs kicked furiously.
She bounced up and down.
I have rarely seen her so happy.
And this mama cried walking around the cul-de-sac.
Tears streaming from behind my sunglasses.
Out of happiness for her little girl who couldn’t be more excited about a simple little thing like “riding” a bike.
And a lot of guilt that I hadn’t thought of this earlier.
Boo.
A special thank you to my mother in law and father in law for graciously gifting this most lavender of trikes to little JillyBean.
Our family appreciates you.
{This is NOT a sponsored post. Although if anyone from Little Tikes wants to throw some money my way for the glowing review, email me and I’ll get you my address in a jiffy. The link to the trike is an affiliate link, so if you purchase through that link I make a commission. It’s all about FTC disclosures baby.}
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what a sweet story. :) i got so excited for jilly reading your description of her joy. :) what a treat it must have been for YOU as well to see her on the bike of her very own. :)
how amazing that they make toys with modifications like this these days so all little ones can experience bike riding! :) Hurray!
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such sweetness! congratulations to jilly. she’ll be zooming around in no time :)
OMGoodness – I think you may have just made my Addie’s Spring a little, well, Springier! I really had NO idea they made such a fun little bike….and to be honest I probably would have thought the same thing had I seen one before having a special little girl myself. Thank you SO much. SHE thanks you SO much….now if this snow would just melt!! :-)
Lindsay´s last blog post ..Accident- Ice- and Rashes- Oh My
yay! that makes me soooo happy! i’m so glad you know about this now! it really is awesome!
Ahhh! SO sweet!!! I truly understand! I am thrilled for her and you! What a fantastic start to the summer for Miss Jilly!!!
I just gotta say, I used to roll my eyes at a lot of stuff until I, too had a child with delays, and so many of those things I bought with joy and thanksgiving! Including a little trike just like that by Radio Flyer! When she outgrew it, it made my heart sad…but it did make me more aware! So I keep looking for the “silly” things that bring equality and joy! (And pay the exorbitant prices with a smile!!)
we had seen the radio flyer one, but we really needed to be able to strap her into the seat…she isn’t quite stable enough to sit in the seat without falling out during turns and stuff, so that big purple bar wrapping around her is super important.
So sweet!
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I did not know things like this existed! How neat is that. I’m so excited for you and your sweet daughter.
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Loved your blog and hearing about Jilly’s excitement and so so sweet that Lucy and Henry want to push her. Love the bonds between siblings and for my kids they just seem to get better as they age!!
without a doubt, my favorite part of parenting has been watching the friendship between my kids. they fight too, but man…they LOVE each other too!
Love seeing Jilly so happy! That’s a neat bike for sure.
aw, look at her sweet smiley face! Love it! Yay for Jilly’s bike!!!!
So glad to see this!!! As a pediatric PT, I am always looking for ways a toddler or preschooler with disabilities can do the same things their siblings and peers do. Most of the adaptive bikes/trikes are outrageously expensive. Excellent post….
oh that makes me happy! i’m so glad you can use this post to help other mamas and daddys!
So sweet. Thank you so much for writing about this moment with your family and giving your readers a chance to see Jilly so excited about such a simple and everyday experience. Love this.
You made this momma cry too… I’m so happy she has a bike to ride now!
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Too cute! I love the pic of Henry pushing her and her blonde tresses blowing in the wind. She looks so excited to be so mobile.
Beautiful! Such sweet joy!
What is WRONG with me? I am totally choked up over this.
*sigh* your special girlie is beautiful – just radiant on her new big girl bike. How awesome that she can share in the fun with her siblings!
(I always loved that my mother included me on all musical things with my sister – even though I couldn’t hear. You are doing Jilly’s heart good!)
(I am currently wrestling with not knowing for FOUR YEARS that our son’s vision was severely compromised… so I know of those knives you speak of… *sigh* God is good)
oh. i am so sorry. it’s so hard to be a mom, isn’t it? but so so beautiful and perfect in all its imperfections too.
OMG! I started reading this post and thought…she needs the bike we have for Ben…and then I kept reading and figured out that you had gotten her one! It is the PERFECT trike for little one’s with delays. Absolutely perfect. Ben used his for 2 years…and now we’re sad that he’s too big for it. LOVE the photos and so glad you found this trike!!!
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This is definatitely a GREAT post! So happy for your Jilly :) And don’t be so hard on yourself – live and learn.
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This melts my heart! I adore your children (not stalkerish but blog reading mom to blog writing momish), they remind me so much of mine. I just love sweet, perfect how God made her, little Jill. What a blessed little girl to have such family love surrounding her. Squeezing one of me wee ones tight right now, filled with emotion. Keep on keeping on mama…you are Amazing:)
Yeah, Baby! Look at that happy girl! So sweet, Jeannett. So good. So precious.
We just bought this for our daughter’s first birthday! Can’t wait to see her go for a ride. I am so glad your little girl loved it and I think it’s the perfect solution!
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This is my second time to your website and I’m glad I ventured here today…With tears streaming down my face, I read your story and I could relate to your words….rejoiced with you as your daughter rejoiced in the simplicity of getting onto the bike. I’m getting one of those bikes for my daughter. Maybe you already answered it, but where did you get it?
Katie – we got the same ones for my kids 2 years ago. Toys R Us carries them and I’m sure many other places like Wal-mart and Target would too. It’s called a Smart Trike. It’s AWESOME!
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Ohmygoodness!! The first picture totally says it all. So amazing!
I love reading your blog!
Jilly’s sweet smile on her trike is precious!
Jenni Carlisle´s last blog post ..Im moving
I cried a little too. That’s just…awesome.
So, it’s another hectic Monday at Little Tikes – phones ringing off the hook – everyone needs something yesterday – I’m making to-do lists and cringing every time I see how many messages I need to respond to in E-mail.
And here is your precious girl on her bike and I cannot tell you how this post made my day. My job is mostly about buying nuts and bolts and resin and pigment – the basics – sometimes it’s so easy to get all caught up in spreadsheets and packing slips. It’s wonderful to see such a happy end result – and remind myself of why I work so hard.
Thank you and Hurray for Jilly –
Love your blog! This is my first time here and find it such in inspiration! I also have twin girls with an older boy. The pictures of Jilly on her bike are TOOO stinkin’ cute, and I love how Lucy tries to push!