The bike that I’ve been riding here at the beach is a sort of Wicked Witch of the West bike — big handlebars, big tires, cushy seat. Sure, it’s a little frumpy, as bikes go, but it’s pretty comfy and it’s easy to ride. I want to get one and put cute little saddlebags or panniers or something on it to carry groceries and other stuff in.

I think about how my life would be revolutionized if I had a bike. I could put a baby seat on it for Elanor, and we could get to and from places so much faster than walking, and with the ability to put my bike on the bus, I could dovetail biking with public transit and get around so much easier. Plus, I’d get lots of exercise. Maybe I’d even get some muscle tone for once!

I’m going to keep my eyes peeled for a cheap bike. Let me know if you see anything or if you know of any good places to find a bike!

I’m going to do NaBloPoMo.

I was asking myself today if it’s crazy to attempt it. It probably is. I barely have time for a shower (don’t ask how long I went this week without one), let alone to post every day. But I’m going to try. I did it last year, when I was working, very pregnant, sick, extremely busy, and even without Internet. So trying to do it is the least I can do, I guess.

I know some posts will simply be placeholder posts, a few lines of text or a photo, simply to fulfill the posting-every-day requirement. But that’s okay. Nobody minds picture posts, as long as they’re of Elanor, right? I do have some good ideas for longer posts, so I’m going to do my best to carve out the time to write them.

I’m excited by the challenge of NaBloPoMo, and I’m looking forward to trying to complete it.

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Check out my new post over at Seattle Mom Blogs, in which I discuss my ongoing stroller dilemma and what it’s like to ride local buses instead of express buses.

Well, here it is: I am the newest columnist for Seattle Mom Blogs! I’ll be writing a weekly column called Carless in Seattle, which will (obviously) be about our carless lifestyle, as well as our other efforts to live in an environmentally friendly way.

Here’s the link to my column: Carless in Seattle.

You’ll notice, too, both the Seattle Mom Blogs badge and the Carless in Seattle badge in the sidebar. Both of those should (if I can set them up right) link to the site and to my page.

So check it out! I know all of you moms can find something relevant on there, especially you Puget Sound ladies. There are lots of other columns about all things mom-related and Seattle-related. Poke around; I know you’ll enjoy it!

Here’s where I need your help: if you have questions about our carless lifestyle, feel free to ask them here by posting a comment. I’ll ask readers over there to post their questions, too, and I’ll answer them in various posts over there.

See you over at Seattle Mom Blogs!

Then we headed downtown to return the rental car, have a very fun lunch with Isabel, and then do one of my favorite things: hang out downtown and browse through the shops. The afternoon was capped off with a huge first, as the two of us rode the bus home.

A post about Elanor’s big weekend and about her first bus ride are forthcoming, hopefully tonight. (I’m working on uploading the pictures to Flickr now.) I’ve also got a post in the works about our decision to be carless with a baby. It’s taking longer than I wanted to write but I’ll work on it this week and get it posted soon.