Stop and Smell the Roses Bike Tour

Even though it's winter throughout the rest of the country, Southern California is still beautiful. One of the things that both Alli and Theresa will remind us to do while we're on either walks or bike rides, is to stop and smell the roses. Yes, we know it's more of a general reminder to slow down and appreciate the little things around you, but roses smell fantastic, so we're going to dedicate a bike ride just to go see them!

This is a picture from an earlier bike ride, but it does show the lengths we will go to to smell the roses. 

It's warm and sunny today, perfect for a bike ride through our neighborhoods. Just like when we were looking at Christmas lights, being on bikes will help us move a little quicker and cover more ground than just walking. And it's much easier than going around by car!

Alli was looking forward to this and dressed in her spring dress with a flower, just for this occasion. 

Before the ride we came up with different categories that we'd be looking for today. All categories are fairly subjective, but there was still consensus. 

Both Theresa and Alli thought this one had the best smell. 

We limited ourselves to sidewalks and driveways in our search. No walking into people's yards. 

A contender for the tiniest rose. 

Not everything was easily accessible to little rose smellers. A boost is needed.

We kept an eye out for roses of different colors. In general, the colored ones had a stronger smell than the white ones. 

My winner for the prettiest rose today.

The bees are out enjoying the flowers today too. Alli stuck her nose into one flower and quickly pulled back when she discovered it was already occupied. 

A very bright red rose. 

Both Ian and I voted this one as the best smelling rose of the day. Theresa and Alli voted it second place, saying it smelled more like the classic rose you'd get from the store than the one they liked better. 

A very pink rose. 

Alli just loves pink flowers. I love the little involuntary actions she does, like holding her hands together and giving a little squeal. Or smelling a rose and then skipping back to her bike. 

Another categories was "Most Popular with Bees". This yard with its flowers lining the fence was the winner. 

Bees were all over them. They're having a field day today. 

As we were riding by, Alli saw these yellow roses all the way by this house's front door. We just had to stop because we haven't seen too many yellow roses today. 

Beautiful. And it's a good reminder, to slow down, enjoy the little things, and take the time to smell the roses.