Recently, we have started talking about DVDs, particularly as they relate to long trips in the car. I initially thought it would be a good idea to get a portable DVD player and bring some DVDs on this trip. But, after reading some comments from the online community, I realized that it’s probably not a great idea. Everyone said that their kids took a while to get used to watching TV and took time to build up the ability to sit still and stay focused for a period of time. We don’t have that time to train Gavin – and I’m not sure I’m ready to sit down Gavin at home to watch TV.

So, I continued reading online recommendations and came up with a list of activities for Gavin.

Paper and crayons – Tried and true; we know Gavin loves to color.

Post-It Notes – Toddlers love sticky things. Whenever Gavin gets his hands on the Post-Its sitting on my desk, he finds endless ways to amuse himself.

Change purse – I have one that looks like the photo below, but haven’t figured out a way to use it. I’m going to bring coins or Cheerios or something to put in the purse. Apparently, toddlers like taking things out and putting them back in. Go figure.

Latches board – I’ve known for a while that latches boards are great for developing fine motor skills. We’ll see if these latches are interesting or just frustrating for Gavin.

Magnetic Farm Board – A dumbed down version of the latches board, this board has magnetic farm animals behind each door. I’m quite certain Gavin will enjoy pulling out each animal and sticking them back in each door!

Sticker Book – I hear kids Gavin’s age love sticker books (see Post-Its above). Best thing about this book? The stickers are vinyl. Not only will they not permanently stick to wherever Gavin places them, but they should stick to the airport and airplane windows, further expanding their entertainment value!

Magna Doodle – Furthering Gavin’s love for coloring, I figured a Magna Doodle never gets old. We can’t run out of paper or break crayons. And since the pen is tethered down, we will actually have trouble losing the most important pieces (famous last words – watch me leave the whole thing at home)!

Books – We’re not buying any new books for this trip. But, Gavin has some favorites that we will bring. Comforts of home aren’t always such a bad thing.

Food and Beverage – Of course, we would be plain dumb to leave out food and beverage. When all else fails, push food into their mouths (and we wonder why our kids are fatter than ever)!?!

Pacifiers – Gavin still uses pacifiers for sleep, but we found success letting him use one during air travel. I think it has less to do with his ears popping and more to do with a self-soothing mechanism. Anything to keep this kid from crying, please!

Drugs – Because Gavin is getting in yet another molar. So, we will make sure to have the Tylenol and Hyland’s Teething Tablets cocktail on hand, which has worked well for us so far.

Blanket – Because if we forget it, Gavin will sleep (uncomfortably, of course) the entire trip.

That’s our bucket list for our trip. What has worked for air travel with your toddler?

The next day, we drove three hours to Maine, where some of my extended family lives. Most of our family stayed in a huge house, called the Alumni House (where alumni of a local camp often come to stay). It was built at the top of a big hill, with a huge grassy yard that led down to the water, a huge pond (which you can barely see through the trees).

I’d love to say our time there was peaceful and relaxing. While it was great to see my parents and brother … and it was great to have Sweets’ parents join us … and it was so much fun to catch up with family I don’t see very often … it was not relaxing.

Gavin is not yet at an age where I feel I can relax in such a big group. It is not relaxing when everyone is so excited to see your child, which means you sort of have to coordinate who is watching him and when … because there can be a room full of people, but if no one is watching the baby, trouble brews … so I feel compelled to supervise his play with others.

Additionally, it’s tough to get away and spend some quiet vacation moments with just my family. Everyone wants to hang with their child/grandchild/niece/pal/etc. … and, on such a short trip, I feel I’m being unfair if I cut off ties with everyone. So, I do the group thing … all.the.time … grin and bear it … even though I could use moments with my hubby and baby and no one else.

That said, it was worth it to spend time with everyone and for Gavin to continue to get to know my side of the family. The anchor of the weekend was a huge meal (rearranged American Thanksgiving that happened to fall on Canadian Thanksgiving) that we ate on tables arranged on the large lawn. And, although the visit was brief, we took a nice hike with gorgeous views.

And Gavin was a trooper in the Ergo carrier, once we figured out how to get him high enough that he could see.

We even ended the trip with a campfire over at the camp. Complete with a teepee and almost full Harvest moon.

I wish the trip back to Chicago was as easy as the trip out east. Of course, it wasn’t. Everything was different. We drove home from Maine (3 hours) with a brief stopover at my parents’ house for a late lunch and to relax. Then, it was off to the airport, where we didn’t have the luxury of getting there hours early. Instead, our meal was rushed and Gavin had no time to play.

Gavin pooped just as we were supposed to board, so I had to change him in the waiting area, instead of running to a bathroom. He was fine on the ascent as we had prepared a bottle. But, he refused to nap, wanted to kick the seat in front of us, play with the laptop of the woman next to me, climb on our seats, get down to play and do pretty much everything he couldn’t. Did I mention he pooped again while we were taking off and due to an old man taking his time in the bathroom, we delayed changing him (until I couldn’t take it anymore)? Um, yeah.

The only highlight of the trip was when one of the flight attendants took a liking to Gavin. The flight attendant borrowed Gavin for a good 10-15 minutes, walking him up the aisle, introducing him to other passengers and letting him hang in the back with the crew. If anything, it gave us a much needed break. When he returned with Gavin, the flight attendant offered us some vodka … saying, if Gavin wouldn’t play with the airplane bottle, we should let him drink it. ha!

Yes, I complain about the return trip, because it was nothing like the initial trip out there. But, Gavin was still a trooper. His outbursts were short and he didn’t scream (for long periods of time). And with some bribing (multiple bottles and a gazillion puffs), he did seem to settle down for periods of time. With some smart thinking, we changed him into pajamas in the airport parking lot. Once in the car, Gavin babbled for a minute and then was out like a light. He barely stirred until the next morning when I had to wake him up for daycare.

Another notch in our belt with Gavin. Airplane rides. Lord, may our child never turn into a screamer and always have a contagious smile that lights up the faces of others.

I’m normally the girl who falls asleep the minute she sits in a plane seat. Is in deep slumbers for most of the flight. Sends Sweets into fits and giggles over my head-bobbing. Travel is generally easy for me. Except, this pregnancy? Eliminated any chance I’d sleep on the plane. I was uncomfortable and never really did find a good way to spend the 2-hour flight. I tossed and turned, only I was awake. I couldn’t even distract myself with Sudoku or a special magazine purchase for the flight. It was painful (though, not as painful as when the person in front of Sweets leaned her seat backed and nailed him in the knees – his “OW” scared her enough that she switched seats).

Everyone keeps telling me about how great it is to be pregnant. That people let you move to the front of the line, get seated first and actually give up their seats for you. I’ve got to be honest, I haven’t had the same experiences. Not that I’m looking for special treatment (I’ve felt fine and don’t feel like I need people to go out of their way for me). But, the reality is no one does. To the point that one woman jumped in front of me in line at the blood clinic last week, so she could get signed in before me. Yeah, classy.

So, it took traveling to New York, a place so many people think of as gruff and mean and edgy, to encounter my first experiences of the special treatment. Sunday morning, a young man dressed in his finest (likely on his way to church) offered me his seat on the subway. Later that day, another young man offered me his seat. And on our way home that evening, a young woman offered me her seat. All on the train. All by people I hadn’t really made eye contact with. All by strangers in that big bad city known as New York. I must say, if based on those interactions alone, New York is trumping Chicago in its niceness.

My feet and legs get tired more easily (hello, I’m carrying 20 pounds of additional weight I didn’t have before). When packing for our trip, I brought what I thought were good walking shoes. Only, the problem is, they’re not good for walking all day. And so, my feet began to hurt on Saturday and never really recuperated. It did, however, give me a chance to take breaks. Sit down. Enjoy moments. With Sweets and our friends. Instead of constantly pounding the pavement to get to the next sight.

And speaking of walking, when you’re walking all over a big city, you’re supposed to be hydrating. Only, when you’re not sure where you’ll find the next available restroom and you’re in a zone where  you need them more often, you wind up limiting your intake a bit. And that just backfires, because then you become a bit dehydrated and cranky and not feeling so good. And well, let’s just say, I  should’ve been drinking more water while I was out and about. But, I didn’t. And so, I tried to make up for it when I’d get back to my brother’s by drinking lots of water at night. And that means I got up more than usual at night in order to relieve myself.

But, other than some of those minor inconveniences? Travel was actually really easy. And I laughed when people bumped my belly as they passed by (because, there really wasn’t any place for me to put my belly – no more sucking in!). And it was great to use my pregnancy as a checkpoint for eating and drinking (liquids) and sitting down for a few moments. And, well, travel? It really wasn’t so bad. And I’d do it again, if given the chance.

By the way, I had a doctor’s appointment this week. I’m up +20 pounds during this pregnancy.  And I’m measuring at 31 weeks (which is just about right on track). The bad news is I was accosted by the nurse who demanded to know what I ate for lunch, because I had more glucose present in my urine sample (again!). After informing her of my cereal + milk breakfast, cottage cheese + banana snack and soup + pretzels lunch, she left our exam room with not a leg to stand on (beeyotch!). And when the doctor came in, I found out I passed my second 3-hour glucose test with flying colors (again!). After talking to this doctor (I’m now rotating through all the doctors in the practice), it sounds like I have a rare situation where I process glucose just fine, but it still shows up in my urine. And the only thing they plan to do differently going forward is to order another ultrasound at 34 or 35 weeks where they will check in on the size of the baby (to make sure it’s not too large) and monitor its activity for 20-30 minutes to ensure things are going smoothly.

I’m about to reach the 31 week mark of my pregnancy. I’m still feeling good. I’ve been told more than once I’m having a boy. But, I still have no idea what I’m carrying. I do know, this pregnancy has been mostly easy. And for that, I’m grateful. Here’s a photo of me at 30 weeks as we’re getting ready to pound the paved streets of New York…

]]> http://somispeaks.com/2010/10/21/travel/feed/ 23 http://somispeaks.com/2010/10/20/apple-3/ http://somispeaks.com/2010/10/20/apple-3/#comments Wed, 20 Oct 2010 09:00:10 +0000 SoMi's Nilsa http://somispeaks.com/?p=4070 So, finally, I have a moment or two to talk about our anniversary celebration. Actually, it was more than an anniversary celebration, as we spent a long weekend in New York visiting with friends and family as well as celebrating every step of the way.

Let’s first start with my mantra throughout this pregnancy. So many people (many of whom are parents themselves) have advised me to get as much sleep as possible now, because I won’t get it any time soon once the baby arrives. And while that makes some sense to me, there’s another side to me that’s sort of overruled that get-sleep side. And that? Is the side that says, go out and do stuff, because you don’t know how parenthood will change your ability to go out and do stuff. And so, that’s kind of what Sweets and I have done. This trip to New York was no different.

We arrived late on Friday night and didn’t get enough sleep. But, we had no choice on Saturday other than to go go go.  We were out the door at 10am  and didn’t get back until the wee hours of the morning. Where did we start? We left Brooklyn by train and headed to the Manhattan neighborhood of Chelsea … Cookshop, to be specific. A great brunch spot that focuses on organic foods (and offers some tempting gamy meats for their dinner meals, which we missed).

But, we didn’t go for the food. We went for the company. More specifically, 3 people I went to camp with as a teenager and haven’t seen since. That’s right, it’s been 21 years since I last saw this group. They found me on Facebook and this reunion has been in the works for months. There were four of us who camped together and two spouses (including Sweets). There were piles of photos and plenty of stories. It was a blast walking down memory lane.

After lunch, one of my camp pals and her husband joined Sweets and I as we continued to walk around. We’ve heard of (thanks to Sex and the City) and been to Magnolia Bakery for their famous cupcakes. And to be honest? I wasn’t impressed. On one of our last trips to New York, we waited in line for almost an hour, were escorted into a bakery the size of my closet (which isn’t walk-in, by the way) and were supposed to be wowed by these cupcakes that were so dry, they fell apart. Totally not cool. So, when one of my camp friends told us that Billy’s Bakery trumps Magnolia, we had to check it out. Though equally small, the cupcakes were way better. The butter cream frosting was to die for and the cake itself was pretty darn good, too.

After a couple hours of exploring the city with my camp pals, we parted ways, so Sweets and I could meet up with another childhood friend of mine. This friend’s family used to live on the same street as my family’s in St. Louis. Both families moved to Boston the same year. And that means my family was able to continue our Christmas Day dinner with them when we all landed on the East Coast. To this day, 30 years later, my parents still join her family for Christmas dinner. We met my friend and her husband, walked the High Line and then found a cafe and enjoyed tea, coffee and a couple hours of catching up. Dare I mention the onesie we saw in a window that our friends bought for us? It says, “I Only Cry When Ugly People Hold Me.” Hilarious, but, errr, who is gonna want to hold a child wearing that?! =)

Even though I don’t see these friends -the camp friends and childhood friends- all that often, sometimes history trumps quantity. It seemed like I fell easily in with these friends. It was equally as easy for Sweets to feel a part of the group. And it didn’t matter that I hadn’t seen or been in touch with some of them for 20 years. It didn’t matter that I rarely get to see the other. It was really, really cool.

After departing from these friends, Sweets and I made our way to my brother’s theater, where we met up with one of Sweets’ childhood friends and her husband. Did I mention these friends live in Chicago? And just so happen to have planned a trip to New York the same weekend as we did? Oh, and did I mention we sort of stole the anniversary of these friends and got married on the same day as they did … five years later? So, we all wind up in New York celebrating our anniversaries and decided to meet up for a show (any New Yorkers out there should most definitely check out The Pitman Painters – it was a funny and introspective look at art!). After the show, my brother gave all of us a backstage tour, allowing us to meet the cast and see the underbelly of the theater (Sweets and I have done this before, but it was special to let our friends in on it, too). And we followed up the show with an 11pm seating at the Glass House Tavern for a scrumptious, late dinner.

Our night ended with a very tired Nilsa and Sweets, who collapsed into bed and didn’t remember falling asleep. Unfortunately, we couldn’t sleep in as much as we wanted on Sunday morning, because we had a train to catch. So, we took two different subway trains to Grand Central Station to catch a commuter train out to the New York suburbs, where we spent a few hours with a very dear college friend of mine. We got to meet her son, see their new house and their new suburb. I only see this friend when we travel to New York, but she’s one of those special people who meant a lot to me during college and is someone I still hold close to my heart all these years later.

Sunday evening, we headed back to my brother’s apartment and spent the evening with him and his boyfriend. Ordered in Thai. Watched Modern Family. And just chilled. That night? We all crashed hard. Monday morning? We all slept in. It was glorious. We headed to a local Prospect Heights (Brooklyn) eatery, Cheryl’s, for some soul food for brunch. And then we walked over to Park Slope (Brooklyn) to pick up some local grinds at Gorilla Coffee. That afternoon? We headed back to my brother’s place and we all vegged. Watched Project Runway. Ate popcorn. Chatted about life plans. And just enjoyed the downtime with each other.

Monday night, Sweets and I celebrated our anniversary together. By flying back to Chicago. And honestly? It was perfect. We reflected on our weekend and how crazy it was at times, but how special it was and how much fun we had and how we wouldn’t trade one moment of our long weekend away.

Have you ever been to New York? If so, what’s your most memorable moment there? If not, would you like to visit? And if so, what is the one thing you really want to do once you get there?

If you’ll recall, we went camping in Door County last year for Labor Day and again this past June. If you can’t tell, we kind of like that part of Wisconsin and that state park, in particular. The only downside to the previous campsites we used was they were really close to their neighbors. You could see other people’s tents, hear other people’s conversations and watch kids bike up and down the road. This time, we decided to aim for a more remote campsite. One that was also along the water.

You can probably guess that these campsites are high in demand. So, last year, 11 months to the day before our intended arrival to Door County this year, I went online to make our reservation (you can only make reservations 11 months in advance). Somehow, I nailed it and landed possibly one of the best campsites in the park. Check out our view from our fire pit:

Yes, that’s right, we had a view of the water. Not only that, our campsite was one of maybe 10 on our access road, which meant limited car traffic AND our particular site had a short drive up to the site, which meant our site was invisible from the road. It was the largest site I’ve seen there … room for the two trucks, different space for the camper and tent, and even different spaces for the picnic table, fire pit and beach (though the beach was public, we only saw a handful of people all weekend). Needless to say, we did a lot of this:

Sweets and I might have ventured into town one day in search of some additional food bits and camping gear we forgot to bring. Oh, and I might have stumbled on a pair of these:

They’re shoes, but look like gloves for your feet. Vibrams have been out for years. Proponents claim the shoes stimulate muscles in your feet and lower legs and have benefits for your entire body. I wore them for a couple days this weekend and kind of loved them. Not sure you’ll catch me running a half marathon in them (though, some people do), but a long walk or working in the garden or even pacing the halls during labor? You bettcha!

But, other than that one trip out, we really didn’t venture out all that much. We’d eat breakfast in town. And then head back to the campsite for reading by the water, kayaking, long walks and lots of eating and chatting with our friends (lots of baby talk as our friends are due with their first two days before we are!). The weather was outstanding (outside of big time storms our last night there). And it was the exact removal from the grid we were looking for. Two funny stories from our trip:

Funny Story #1: Sweets and I were eating breakfast when a local sitting at the table next to us began chatting with us. When he learned we’re from Chicago, he said, Ahhh, FIBs, eh? (Those from Wisconsin and Michigan like to call people from Illinois, in particular from Chicago, FIBs, which stands for Fucking Illinois Bastards). Sweets and I laughed (cuz, the guy was really nice and asking in jest) and then he asked, Or are you FIBTABs? When we looked at him quizzically, he responded, FIBs Towing A Boat. hahaha. Never heard that one before, though I guess we’d be FIBTACs … FIBs Towing A Camper. =)

Funny Story #2: Sweets and one of our friends (a guy) were chatting with another couple walking by them at our outlet to the beach. The couple said this is their first time camping since having a baby. Our (guy) friend said, We’re due in December. Note, neither I nor our other friend (girl) were there, so it was just Sweets and our guy friend. This couple must have thought “we” referred to the two guys. Without missing a beat, the couple asked if they found out the sex. Sweets responded, No, that wasn’t my decision to make, giving no additional hints as to the true couples. As they said their good-byes and the couple walked away, our friend looked at Sweets and whispered, I think they think we’re gay. Did this story seem funny to you? When the guys retold their experience, we all broke out into laughter … it was one of those hysterical moments that carried with us the rest of the weekend … but, maybe you had to be there to find it as funny as we did.

And that’s it. One last item of interest, a belly shot. As you can see, my belly keeps growing. And no, there is no head to the shot. You see those wrinkles on my arm? Yeah, I’d just awoken from a nap and my face was puffy, swollen and wrinkled, too. So, all you get is the belly. =)

We left the weekend with our friends saying to us, “Same place, next year?” Pretty much guaranteed I’ll be back on the website trying to make reservations for next year. Two couples with 9 month olds? It’ll be a blast! Given, I’m getting a late start to an already short week, I know I’m way behind on blog reading. Tell me the most exciting thing that happened to you over your weekend!