Great Night

Last night was an extravaganza of great community.
First we went to the kids' school for a garden party and hootenanny.
Yep, a hootenanny! There were lots of kids performing some great solos and ensembles, and though the sing-along that I was expecting never quite happened it was still super fun.
The Younger got up and played Old MacDonald on the keys and at the end he asked if I would help him lead a dancing song called The Bubble Dance where the kids act like bubbles, dragons, horses, bunnies, the possibilities are endless.He was fearless in front of a great big group of people, I was (and am) so proud of him.
(So bummed out that I didn't think to bring the camera...)
After we got home I trotted down the alley and borrowed a bike rack from our great neighbors and drove across town to Mr. Michael Recycles Bicycles.
Mr. Michael is an amazing man who takes in donated bicycles, refurbishes them and gives them away to whoever asks for one.(You'll read in that link above that Mr. Michael has been a catalyst for multiple people finding work and homes due to having reliable transportation. What a guy!)
He just wants some basic info, boy or girl, your height, what kind of biking you like to do, and then you wait your turn and get a free bike!
Our bikes were stolen at the beginning of the summer, and that sucked, I won't lie, but we got on Mr. Michael's waiting list and Tuesday our name came up.

Since we've been dealing with some pretty big medical bills around here we didn't even think about replacing the bikes. It was such a stroke of luck that I heard about Mr. Michael and now we'll get a nice Fall-worth of riding in before the snows fly.

As a super-bonus he had a matched pair of bikes for us! 

So I present the Beautiful Bronze Bandelin Bicycles.

I can't get enough of the fact that, despite occasional crappy circumstances, wonderful people are everywhere and the world can be filled with joy.