His First Two Wheeled Bike

Is it just me, or are kids not supposed to be excited about bicycles? I remember one Christmas my older brother and I got matching three speed bicycles. They were WAY too big for me. I mean sitting on the seat I couldn't even get my feet to touch the pedals, never mind put them flat on the ground the way they should fit. But as a kid, it was a new bike, and it was perfect. Dad offered to cut some wood blocks and tape them to the pedals to add an extra two inches. In today's world, that might even be illegal to ride like that, but to me, back then it was all I needed to reach the pedals and take off. It was December, in Wisconsin. Talk about bad conditions for getting a bicycle. That didn't stop us. We went outside and rode our new bikes on new fallen snow, on rural, never gonna see a snow plow roads near our house. I am sure I hit the road no fewer than four times that day sliding on patches of ice, but wearing a full snowmobile suit and winter mittens reduced the pain. It was the 1970's, don't for a minute think there was a helmet involved. People who rode bicycles didn't wear helmets back then. You just learned not to let your head bounce off the road when you fell. Now that I think about it, how am I still alive?
Fast forward to 2009:
For T's fourth birthday his grandma and grandpa bought him his first two wheeled bike. A green, orange and silver piece of machinery that would have made any kid wet themselves with excitement. It was hidden from view while he was opening his other presents, and I asked him to come into the other room to help me with something. To get to me he had to walk right past the bike. He turned the corner, saw the bike and said,"whose bike is this?" "It is for you!", we all shouted. "Oh, that's nice." he replied. While we were all excited about him getting his first two wheeled bike, four wheels if you count the training wheels, T on the other hand was much less enthusiastic.
A few days of bad weather came through where it wasn't possible to go outside and try the new bike, but even so, he never looked at the bike which was right there in the living room. He never asked about being able to ride it. It was as if he had received a chair for his birthday, but at least that he might have sat on. Finally the weather cleared up and we were able to go outside and try to get him on the bike. I talked up the bike and finally got him to feign interest in wanting to ride it. We got his helmet on and I put him on the bike. Granted, it was a little big for him, I think that's the way grandpa likes to buy bikes, but he could reach the pedals. I offered to push him around the driveway, hoping that just being on the bike and moving would in some way inspire him to want to push the pedals and take off on his own power. But, after one lap up and down our driveway he decided he wanted to go pick some of the flowers in the yard for his mommy. Nothing I could say after that would get him back onto the bike again. It is not as if he doesn't like to ride. He has a tricycle, and he cruises on that with no problem. He knows how to pedal that and can practically leave skid marks on the kitchen floor from taking off so fast. The brand new awesome two wheeler on the other hand, nothing, nada, zero interest.
Well, after trying to use all those expensive child psychology classes from college, I decided that the bike, being too tall made him feel insecure. The tricycle was low, and he could always put his feet down if he was worried. Following this theory, grandma and grandpa graciously came and took the big bike back and we exchanged it for a smaller bike. Not only that, I let him go to the store and sit on different bikes to decide which was the best one for him so it would be his decision. I don't know, call it kitchen sink psychology at this point. That helped a little, but still I couldn't get him to ride in the driveway more than five minutes. Out of frustration I put the bike in the house, and he has started riding it around in the kitchen. (It is very small, and he rides rather slowly, so it seems OK. Besides, it's a double-wide on a chicken farm, so, yes we are those kind of people right now who let their son ride his bike around in the house.) Finally, at bed time he wanted to drive his "motorcycle" across the kitchen to his bedroom. FINALLY! An unprompted, unforced ride on his bicycle. That's all this daddy wanted to see. Was that too much to ask? Just a little interest and enthusiasm about having your own bike. I know, I know. Patience...
Now, I can start looking forward to when he is a teenager and I buy him a piece of junk car for us to rebuild so he can have some pride in his first car, knowing that he had to build most of it himself and it probably took two years to get running perfectly. I am guessing that's not going to go over well.