2018: Recap of a “Peak Year”

I have a theory that every few years you have what I call a “peak year”. Most recently I would say that 2013 was a peak year for us in which we crossed Central America on our bikes and then started our lives back in Vancouver. Next up, 2015 was definitely one with Neil being born, the start of Kids on Wheels, moving into the co-op and then our three month cycling trip in South Korea and Japan with baby Neil.

Most recently I realized that 2018 is getting up there among the “peak years”. Although we didn’t do any “big trips” this year, the shorter ones we did were definitely significant, Kids on Wheels took off in ways I couldn’t have imagined, Neil is growing and thriving, and we love our daily life in Vancouver almost as much as we love our travels. But to top it all, this year also brought the birth of our second son Kai, something we were hoping for, for a while. So, what have we been up to this past year? Here is a recap of some of the highlights…

Winter – Snow, Sun & Rain – Vancouver and Hawaii
After a rough patch at the end of 2017 we started 2018 in freezing Vernon on the right foot (but most importantly on two feet as Neil was just recovering from a toddler fracture at that time). We had a season pass to both the downhill and cross country areas at Cypress and we spent a good amount of January on the slopes or at the cross country ski area. Despite the fact that Neil broke his leg skiing he had no problem getting back at it. He really improved, started to link turns and was always happy for another day in the snow.

In February we took off for three and a half weeks to cycle around Maui, Hawaii. We had no idea how this trip would go as we had heard mixed reviews about cycling in Maui (actually it sounded like not many people have done it, especially with a three year old). This trip is up there, or maybe THE most incredible trip we’ve ever done. We like to use the cliche that “Maui took our breath away” but it was literally true. With constant climbs we got magnificent views at every corner.

We did a mix of wild camping with more organized campgrounds. We swam in the ocean almost every day, saw whales, turtles, and picked and drank many coconuts. Neil turned three with a private family celebration – basically we blew up a few balloons and he was over the moon and still talks about it as one of the highlights from Hawaii. The weather varied from beautiful and sunny to rainy and windy, but never too cold or too hot. The whole trip felt like an adventure and when we finished the tour I felt like we accomplished a journey and came out on the other side stronger and happier. 

We finished our trip in the somewhat touristy beach town of Kihei and we stayed with a wonderful Warmshowers host for four days. This allowed us to relax before going back to Vancouver and we enjoyed some snorkeling and swimming. It’s also where we found out I was pregnant. The news was taken with caution because we had had some false starts. But unlike the last time which didn’t work out well, this time I was more optimistic. Everywhere around Kihei there were signs with the word “Kai” on them (meaning sea or ocean in Hawaiian), and I decided that if it was all going to work out and it would be a boy, we would name him Kai.

Spring – More skiing but mostly Biking – Around Vancouver and Chicago
Before the ski season was officially over we made a long weekend trip to Big White, just like last year. Big White is probably our favourite ski resort, it’s just too bad it’s so far away. After we said goodbye to our skis for now we started devoting more time to biking (of course). Just after we got back from Hawaii we gave Neil his birthday present that we had hidden in our storage for a while – a pedal bike! It took him a whole five minutes to get the hang of it and just like that all of the sudden he was riding a pedal bike! It was amazing to see how confident he was and how well he controlled his balance. Riding his balance bike since he was 15 months old definitely made a difference.

Since Neil was now biking by himself we took a few weekend trips – one was to Victoria where Neil biked 23 km in two days and to Gabriola Island. In mid May we took off for Chicago for two weeks. Gili’s aunt was getting married and with a month’s notice most of Gili’s family showed up in Chicago to attend the wedding. It was a rare opportunity for ALL of the grandchildren (and one great grandchild) to be together with the grandparents.

After the wedding and family time we took off on an 11 day bike tour around Lake Michigan. It was the first long trip that Neil was biking part of the way by himself and it worked really well. It also helped that the route was really flat and we made many (many!) stops at beaches and playgrounds. While the views weren’t as dramatic as in Hawaii it was still such a great trip, getting to know the Midwest of the US outside of the urban metropolitan of Chicago, staying with very friendly Warmshowers hosts, and camping the rest of the time.

Summer – Kids on Wheels, San Francisco, Beach Time and Weekend Getaways
Kids on Wheels is a product of love, hard work and a leap of faith. A few years back I came up with the idea that by inspiring the youngest members of our society to bike more we will all benefit. I created this program to introduce preschoolers to balance bikes through riding and other activities. We started with delivering the program in daycares, but every year another layer was added. We now also set up “Kids on Wheels Zones” at mass events in Vancouver, and this summer we also started offering balance bike summer camps at community centres.

During the winter I was approached by Shaw regarding a potential sponsorship of Kids on Wheels. It took a while for all the pieces to fall into place, but during Main Street Car Free Day in June the fundraising event happened. During the summer I was very busy with running the program, every week in a different location from the west side and all the way to East Van in daycares, community centres and events. It was hard work, but very rewarding nonetheless.

We also spent just over a week in the Bay Area, mostly in Berkeley. My mom had a conference there and she invited us to join her once the conference was over. I booked a cute Airbnb and we explored the area mostly by car (!) something that we are not so used to doing. It was lots of fun, the weather was great and Neil finally got to see the Golden Gate Bridge, although he wasn’t as impressed as I thought he would be. Berkeley turned out to be a cute university town with great food and even greater playgrounds. 

After returning from SF we spent almost every weekend doing some sort of a trip – Neil did his first self propelled multi-day hiking trip around Mt. Baker. We did two “Slow Food” rides in different areas. We spent more weekends doing stuff with other adventurous families like a camping trip to New Castle Island, a hiking trip to Brew Lake and cycling around Pemberton. It’s great to have friends with similar interests and kids at similar ages, especially now that the kids are starting to entertain each other.

Many afternoons and the weekends when we were in town were spent on the beach. With Neil now biking by himself we could all bike easily to and from the beach. Our last getaway was to Savary Island and the Sunshine Coast at the beginning of September. With most kids going back to school we had the island mostly to ourselves and it was a chance to relax and rest after the busy summer and our last trip as a family of three. We didn’t know back then that the end of the pregnancy would be a bit stressful, as up until 35 weeks everything was going smoothly.

Fall (and a bit of Winter) – Rain, Sun and the arrival of Baby Kai
After a very busy summer we didn’t mind a few rainy weekends in September especially since we needed to get a few things done before the arrival of the new baby. It was also a great opportunity to go to the local farmer’s market that is only five minutes from our place and brings a variety of local fruit and food.

Earlier in the pregnancy I decided I’d keep riding my bike until either the weather would be too miserable to ride, I’d stop feeling comfortable on the bike or there would be a doctor’s advice against it. None of those things happened and a rainy September brought along a beautiful sunny October and I was still comfortable on the bike so I continued riding until four days before Kai was born.

While most of the pregnancy was pretty uneventful, the end was quite stressful. An ultrasound at 35 weeks showed that the baby was breech and later on was transverse (lying sideways). After trying various methods to flip him we came to realize that a natural birth was probably not going to happen, and we headed towards a planned C-section. It was a bit strange arriving to the hospital with no contractions at all and we were both a bit stressed. On the positive side it gave us the ability to plan who would be with Neil during the birth (thanks Mari and Adriana!).

Once the baby was out all of our worries were gone. He turned out to be the sweetest, cutest and most adorable baby we could ever have asked for. There were no after-birth complications for neither him nor myself so we were back home after two days. While the recovery was painful I also felt it was pretty quick, and between taking care of a newborn and trying to be available for Neil as much as possible I had no time to think about the surgery anyway.

We had a tough few weeks, especially with Neil getting used to the new situation and tantrums on his part became a daily affair (something that had rarely happened in the past). Gili was also back at work after two weeks and was working extra hard, often staying up till 2am (most times with Kai sleeping on him in a wrap), trying to finish all the work he needed to, before his long parental leave. Luckily we had visits from both Gili’s mom and my mom which really helped, especially with Neil.

Then I decided to take a quick last minute trip to NY over Christmas to visit my dad and family there. While not seeing much of NY (it’s OK, I’ve been there many times before) it was a great opportunity for me to rest and relax. The flights with the baby went really well and I was happy I made the trip.

Back home Gili and Neil had lots of fun with different activities such as skiing, swimming, climbing, biking and a first sleepover at our place. It was great for everyone and things have been much calmer since I got back. Now that Gili is officially on parental leave we can all enjoy this time together a bit more.

On New Year’s Eve a friend organized a bonfire on the beach and in total there were ten kids around. It was such an awesome way to end this incredible year. On a dry (!) clear night, outside in nature by the ocean but overlooking our beautiful city. We got home at around 10pm with two exhausted kids (Neil rode there and back of course) so I took the opportunity and went to sleep as well and this is how I greeted 2019. Hopefully it means I’ll get more sleep in 2019…? Who knows.