Travels with Baby #4

Parents, if you haven't learned this one yet, keep it in mind at all times, especially when you travel:

Just about anything can be a toy. Use common sense, though. Sharp things are out. Poisonous stuff too. The size of the mess allowed is directly related to risk of mental breakdown to everyone involved.

Got a fussy baby while sitting at dinner? Give her some butter or jam packets to play with.

The little tyke having a full-out, breath-holding, foot-stomping tearfest two hours into waiting in a mile long line at the airline counter during a snowstorm way after bedtime and all you've got is the marinara soaked paper used to wrap your meatball sub? It's a toy. The few moments of quiet are well worth a bath and a new t-shirt.

When you travel, space is limited and you also don't want to be lugging around a heavy bag full of blocks. Just bring a couple favorite small toys and figure out the rest as you go.  

Daddy

Life has been pretty hectic lately, hence the complete lack of any blog posts. Things seem to come one right after the other and sometimes in twos or threes. Even when I do get some down time, I try my best to shut my brain down and melt as far as I can into the couch. The motivation to do anything is pretty much gone.

But I enjoy writing. I really want to try to get back into the swing of things and get those thoughts back out for ya'll to read about.

So here goes, today's bit of awe:

Referring to myself in the third person as "Daddy."

Whether I'm saying "Daddy loves you so much" or "Oh, man, Norah Grace. It's 2:30. Daddy needs some sleep," I love how it sounds. I am Norah's daddy and she's my little girl.

 

Monumental Views

I find it amazing that Amy and I (and now Norah Grace) have added these experiences to our life stories over the past few years.

It's true. The tower in Pisa is, in fact, leaning. October 2010.

Exploring Rome, eating lunch next to the Colosseum, October 2010.

 Paris on a rainy day, February 2011.

Experiencing Egypt, April 2011.

 The Parthenon on a sprint through Athens, November 2012, now starring miss Norah Grace.

We've seen so much, but there's so much left! 

...And We're Back!

As you can probably guess from the title, we've survived our cruise and are back in Leipzig. It was a good trip and we got to see some pretty amazing things, like:

the waterways of Venice,

Oia village in Santorini,

and the Parthenon in Athens.

Throughout the course of our trip, we thought up some really good tips for traveling with a baby. The number one thing we realized was this:

A cruise is a great way to travel with a baby.

Some reasons:

• We never had to go for a long train, car, or bus ride to get to our next destination. It was like going back to the hotel room after a day of touring, then waking up to something brand new. 
• There were plenty of places, like lounges during the day, where Norah Grace could explore. 
• Exploring the ports, for the most part, lined up pretty well with Norah's schedule.
• Someone else did the cooking and cleaning.
• The ship rocked Norah Grace to sleep.
• Having our accommodations so close made nap times a bit easier. 
• Knowing that it was okay to leave a meal if Norah was acting up; we weren't out any money and could head out to eat again later. 
• Norah Grace cruised for free (some cruise lines offer free cruises for kids)

There were some downsides, but I imagine that some of these were particular to our cruise line, region, and itinerary.

• The ports of call were far apart, so we never had more than five or so hours on shore, which is not a lot, especially for a city like Athens, before we had to head off to the next destination. 
• Dinner didn't start until about seven and  was not a quick affair (at the restaurant, not the buffet)--not a good combination for a nine month old baby. 
• Make sure you're prepared--there's no way to get more formula, diapers, or baby food on the ship (Some cruise lines do offer some of these, contact them first).
• The downside to the ship rocking Norah Grace to sleep: we were worried the whole time she would get seasick (it was pretty rough). 

Overall, I'd really recommend cruising as an option for traveling with a baby.  

Travels With Baby #3

So far, Norah Grace has gone on a driving tour of southern Ireland, spent weeks relaxing and visiting family in the US, walked around Trapani, Sicily, and backpacked her way from east Germany to the south, including a night in Austria. She's stayed in bed and breakfasts, hotels, motels, and tents. She's taken trains, planes, cars, buses, and one boat (a hydrofoil ferry--she loved how fast it went). She's a well traveled nine month old little girl. The easiest trip was Ireland, when she was just three months, because she had the opportunity to sleep in the car seat whenever she pleased.

Trapani was tough. We thought just bringing the wrap was the way to go. It would be easier than the stroller, we thought. She'll just sleep in it while we carry her, we mused. We can stick to our normal ways of traveling and she'll go along with us, we assumed. Learning experience.

The long weekend backpacking in Salzburg, Austria and Bavaria, Germany had its ups and downs. Overall, I enjoyed it, but have you ever tried sleeping in a tent with a seven month old that likes to roll around all night and wake up from time to time to hang out for a bit? It does not lend to a long, restful sleep. A big downside of camping with a baby: limited options of retreat. There's no quiet hotel room for baby to nap in.

Our next attempt: a cruise. Tomorrow we head off to Venice to cruise down our way down to Greece and Montenegro. This seems to be a good idea, in theory, at least. We get to see the sights, have multiple eating options, and retreat to the stateroom is always possible. Plus, tag team parenting. One parent can hang out with her in the room and the other can head off to read or eat or see what this "happy hour" thing is that people are always going on about. We're hoping for a playroom to give our little girl a place to burn some energy off in. If not, she can always army crawl her way down some cruise ship hallways. We'll see if this works. I'll let you know how it goes.

Travels with baby tip number three:

Pack for convenience. Amy had the idea to pack up Norah Grace's clothes in freezer bags, each labeled by which day they are to be worn (with a backup clothes bag, of course). This saves time while traveling and gives you a convenient place to bag up dirty clothes.

Living

"Doesn't everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?"
-Mary Oliver

(White Mountains, New Hampshire)

Travels with Baby Tip #2

The world is huge and full of amazing places you want to visit during your life. Each one of these places is made up of sights and sounds that draw you in and entice you to fill your camera's memory card to the brim There's so much to see! You just want to spend the day go go going (which we talked about...slow down, people) and seeing everything, but there's a catch.

The boss (a.k.a. the wonderful little baby).

Don't rely on your baby to want to do everything you do. Her interests, attention span, tolerance of crowds and loud noises, the length she can go without a sleepy-eyed breakdown--these are just a few of the ways you and your baby differ (probably). So, prioritize and compromise.

Baby's fresh off a nap, new diaper and a bottle. You've got an old city center and a museum to see before baby starts to fuss for another round of r & r, maybe about three hours. What do you do? My advice: when baby is at his or her best, that's when you can generally get away with the most. Give them a book or a quiet toy and hit up the museum. Besides, when they're wide awake, they can much better appreciate all the colorful paintings and old-as-the-hills-statues. When baby's getting towards the just-give-me-my-bottle-and-let-me-sleep time block, it's usually a good idea to be somewhere where retreat is an easier option. Walking around a city center you can just head back to the room, even if you need to take a tram or taxi (or just walk a bit) to get there. From a museum you need to navigate a maze, walking past all those things you didn't get to see on your own time, while your baby is the only one screaming throughout the building. Which sounds more enjoyable?

(Cliffs of Moher, Ireland)

That was the prioritize bit. The second part of this advice is compromise. If you know you're risking a tantrum, do you really need to take the boat ride or is the view of the cliffs from the top beautiful enough to satisfy your taste of awe? You'll need to think of your baby's needs and personality and find something that works for you both. Compromise. And you know what, in a few years your little one may love playing pirate on a sightseeing ferry. You can come back.

If you just won't feel happy about your trip unless you take the ferry, climb the tower or go in the pyramid or whatever, then ask your partner to hold onto the baby for a while and meet up with you later. You can always return the favor. (This is assuming there's more than just you and the baby traveling. If it's just the two of you, give the baby carrier a try. Not only could you see what you want to see, you'll get a workout while you're at it. Just don't rely on baby sleeping in the carrier. We made that mistake. And don't forget, if you're on a small boat, retreat is not an option.)

However.

One thing to remember with all this advice I give is that these aren't laws and differ by age and baby. Norah Grace was just three months old when we went to Ireland and we did go on the ferry ride. She slept in the baby wrap beneath my jacket to protect her from the cold wind. We actually found this age the easiest to travel with because she would sleep in the wrap.