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The Mini Fashionista has a birthday coming up in just over a week. For her birthday we decided to get her a new bike. 

While she already has a bike that she got over two years ago for Christmas, it's too big and heavy for her. We've discovered in the past few months that it was going to be an uphill challenge to riding without training wheels on a big and cumbersome bike. 

So I did some research, and I found this article (and this one). When I read the quote below, I knew that our assessment of the current bike was spot on. 

"Weight can be a huge issue in terms of kids' bikes. Most adult ride bikes which are about 20% of their total weight, while kids bikes are usually around 50% of a child’s weight. Imagine learning to balance on a bike that weights half of your body weight! The heavy weights of pedal bikes are also known to delay a child’s ability to balance, especially when compared to a lightweight balance bike." 

We have witnessed this first hand in watching the Mini try to ride her current pedal bike. I have no doubt that she has the balance necessary to ride, as we have seen her scoot around on her balance bike. But, it was clear that she would not have the same balance and ability on the pedal bike. 

So after some initial interest in the Early Rider, we decided to go with Isla Bikes, a bike we could purchase here locally (saving lots of $$ on shipping). 

Isla Bikes are made of light-weight aluminum frames, easy-reach light action brakes, wide-ratio simple gearing and they pay meticulous attention to detail. Here is a photo of their entire line of bikes in the Portland showroom.

We decided on the CNOC 16" in pink, of course. 

While the bikes are expensive, I think it will hold its value in resale and will provide the Mini with a great "first pedal bike" experience.