Remember at the end of last month when I snuck y’all a peek of a great big box that had been delivered to our driveway and asked for guesses about what might be inside?
Well, none of you guessed correctly (although I think probably a trampoline was the best guess, given the clues I gave) and I figure I’ve made you wait long enough.
But first, for old time’s sake, I’ll give you one last clue to guess what was inside:
Does that lovely orange “M” mean anything to anyone?
Y’all, Madsen Cycles offered us a lovely deal on one of their gorgeous baby blue cargo bikes and we are so excited and grateful! (And it came on a HUGE truck in an ENORMOUS box! Um, giant playhouse anyone?)
(the bike was parked when we took these photos of the kids
– helmets are always worn in action) :)
Have you ever seen one of these before? That big blue bucket on the back actually has great foot space and bench seats (with seat belts!) to seat four. (Man, I’ve been tempted to hop in for a ride! Maybe someday in the dark of night…)
My sister has been pining for one for years (really, since NieNie got hers) and with her now four children, the cargo bike was really an ideal fit for saving on gas, getting exercise, and getting around our little town in this lovely weather. The bike goes to her. She’s been saving, she’s been pining, and she’s definitely got the most kid cargo!
But for today, I get to ride around on it and take photos and share this lovely piece of machinery with y’all and pretend it’s mine. Mmmm… now I’m the one pining…
Happy Monday, friends!
Disclosure of Material Connection: We received the Madsen kg271 mentioned above at a discounted price in exchange for a mention of the product in my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I think are really great and believe my readers will also love.
>Love it! And you look AMAZING!
>None of the photos show you riding it with kids in tow. Is it too hard/heavy for you to do on your own? Just curious :)
>Jessica,
I know! We were riding right next to a playground and it was killing them! They left me for the swings while I rode around and ryan snapped the pics.
I'm not gonna lie, It's definitely not like riding on a bike all by yourself. But, as long as everyone keeps their hands and arms inside the bucket (not shifting weight all around), even a small person like me can handle it after a little practice.
I definitely had to get the hang of riding it without anyone in it first, then added kids slowly to be sure I was confident. The other day I rode with two 4-year-olds and two 2-year-olds in the bucket and we did well. (though I took extra-wide turns just in case!) :)
Does that help?
>I've never seen one of these! We live way too far from town to ever make use of one, but what a cool product!
Do you seriously always look SO cute?!
>Chelsa- yes, she always looks that cute. :)
Rae- are the kids loving it? We have some video of all of our kids taking a ride with Caleb. Its so cute. :)
>ha, i'm with the last 2 commenters: no one should be THAT cute… :)
and thanks for giving me bike envy.
>Very cool bike! Normally I don't comment but I've been reading your blog for at least a couple of years and wanted to let you know how much I enjoy it!
>Jess – yay! Thanks for stepping out and saying hello! I always love to hear from the people who read my blog! It makes it so much less of a one-sided conversation and more of a relationship/community!
I'm so glad you enjoy it!
>I love your shirt – it's super cute! Where's it from?
P.S. – I've also been reading your blog for about a year now. It's so much fun!
>jennie – thanks! I like it too! I picked it up at J.Crew a week or so ago. I couldn't find it on the website or I'd link it for you. It was on sale! :)
Also, thanks for being a reader! I'm glad you enjoy!
>That bike looks cool! It seems like it would be a lot of work to tow 4 kids back there! What a great workout for sure!
>Also – when y'all asked about how it is to ride with kids in the back I failed to mention that the bike has the ability to change gears and such (and also has the longest chain I've ever seen on a bike!).
It really was much easier to ride with kids in the back than I expected.
>Ok….can you share your secret to always looking so cute? I need to know.
the bike looks great!
>ahhhhh!!!!!
i knew exactly what it was when i saw that first pic!
so awesome!
i've been pining for one too since i saw nienie's!
what a fabulous bike.
i'm sure your sister and brother in law will love it!
how sweet are you?!?!
i would love to have a madsen however i just don't think i can do the price tag.
we do have a chariot bike trailer which works great but this looks so much more stylish.
ha!
and that's a great reason to buy it, right? ;)
no?
i'm thinking hubby is gonna give a big resounding N-O!
well i hope you all can get great use out of it and look so cute while doing it!! :)
>I've never seen anything like it, or heard of it, but I would have loved it when my kiddos were littler. My youngest is now 4 so almost big enough to keep up with the rest of us:)
>Raechel, You are a fabulous sister! How fun!
I echo the other comments: She is always that cute or cuter ;-)
>Where are those green shorts from? I love them, and the whole outfit too!
>Liesel – thanks! the shorts and top are both from J.Crew :)