Is this baby FAA approved?

We leave for Florida in just over two days now, so I've started reading up on airline travel with an infant. I don't think it will be too bad, as long as the following things happen:

• I remember to take all of the liquids/gels/creams out of Squiggles' diaper bag and put them in a 1qt zip top bag. Unless they are over 3oz, then they have to go in his checked bag. Oh, and I have to remember to put my little necessities (hand lotion, lip gloss) in there, too.


• I resist the very real urge to over pack. Since we didn't purchase a separate ticket for Squiggles, we are limited to two carry-on bags and 4 checked pieces of luggage. Shouldn't be too hard since Mom & Dad have a washer and dryer at the house (won't have to pack every onesie we own), but I think I brought way more than that on our last weekend trip.


• We're praying that: a) the flight isn't full, and b) that no one decides to take the middle seat in the three-seat row. Again, since I'm cheap and didn't spring for an infant ticket, Chef and I will reserve the window and aisle seats for ourselves; hopefully that will make the other passengers look elsewhere for seats. Unless, like I mentioned, the flight is full.


• The airline lets us gate-check Squiggles' car seat and stroller travel system. Bonus points if the aforementioned middle seat is available and we can actually strap him into the car seat (note to self: must check and see if car seat is rated for air travel).

Of course, I'm leaving off the really obvious things, like praying that our flight isn't delayed - especially on the runway! - and that Squiggles' takes to flying like he's done it a thousand times before. Actually, now that I've actually written down this list, I'm getting a little intimidated. And I didn't even get started on what it might be like to change a diaper at 30,000 feet!

Happy Camper

Ha-ha! Squiggles got a 2 hour nap in this morning, and guess what? He was happy the rest of the day, even with a shorter 1 hour nap in the afternoon! I am convinced that that first nap is crucial for him - if he gets a long morning nap, he's a happy camper; if not, well, we're in for a bumpy evening.

He has been wanting to go to bed earlier, though, but I think it's just part of the new schedule. Since he wakes up from his afternoon nap between 4 and 5pm, staying awake until 8pm is probably about all I can ask for right now.

The oatmeal feedings are still going well. He just about scarfs down 2tbsp, so tomorrow I think I'll make 3tbsp and see how much more he'll eat. I'm also starting to plan for his introduction to fruits and vegetables. I borrowed a couple of baby cookbooks (not how to cook a baby, but how to cook for one) and I'm learning all about purees and such. Loads of fun!

By the way, the official countdown to Florida is just under 73 1/2 hours. I'm so excited! Though, I am starting to wonder when I'll blog - but I'll figure it out!

No Nap Nick

That's what I call Squiggles when, uh, he doesn't want to take a nap. Yeah, I'm not the most creative person.


As I mentioned earlier, we're working on dropping a feeding (5 down to 4) and a nap (3 short to 2 long). I think he's got the feeding thing down, and I must admit I feel like less of a milking cow when he eats every 4-5 hours. The nap schedule, however, is still in flux. At the middle of last week, he really seemed ready for two naps. But by the end of the week and into the weekend, he wasn't doing so well. Maybe an hour, hour and a half in the morning, which led to a short 30 minute snooze somewhere in the afternoon, and then maybe another hour in the late afternoon/early evening. Maybe.

Today, he took an hour and a half nap in the morning, then a 30 minute nap in the late afternoon. That was it. Needless to say, he was beyond tired by about 7:15pm. We managed to drag it out for another half hour with singing, dancing, and a bath, and finally put him down around 8:15. I hope he doesn't wake up at 6am!

I think I'm going to be vacuuming more often...

Squiggles managed to roll all the way over to our bedroom doorway this morning while I was getting ready.

Our day with Sarah was great fun: pancakes, shopping, makeup, coffee...it was wonderful. I don't get to have days like that very often.

I could go into more detail, and regale you with a few cute Squiggles stories, but I'm tired because somebody woke up at 3:30 last night and wouldn't go back to sleep for almost an hour. But I won't name names.

Friday Soup

So it's late - well, late for me, which is after 10pm these days. I remember staying up later on Friday nights, knowing that there would be some extra sleep coming to me on Saturday morning. But Squiggles doesn't care what day it is, or that the weekend is for relaxing. We're up at 6:30 and that's that. So I guess it's not such a surprise that I have a hard time staying up past 10:30 anymore.


Yeah, it's late and I've had a long day and I've got a migraine that's been hanging on since this morning. And I haven't blogged yet today. So this will be a Friday soup post - "cream of walk-in" as Chef would say. Bits o' randomness to tie up loose ends and clear everything out at the end of the week. Maybe it will catch on.

More oatmeal today - another 2 tbsp. Squiggles really seems to like it, so I am encouraged. Of course this is making the diapers messier, but we're learning to roll with the punches. I think we may start introducing veggies over the Thanksgiving week.

Dinner at The Pub last night was excellent. Good beer, good scotch, good food, and, best of all, good company. I will make the suggestion, though, that if you go to a restaurant called "The Pub", please order pub food. Don't expect a place trying to be close to an authentic British pub to have killer salads. That said, we loved the Shepherd's Pie and Fish and Chips (well, Chef had Crisps instead of Chips). We also all determined that our new favorite beer is Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale.

Squiggles is in the process of dropping a feeding (4, down from 5), and moving to two long naps instead of three shorter ones. This has not been the smoothest transition. Tonight he had a meltdown around 6pm. I finally got him to doze off around 6:30, and 25 minutes later he had finished his power nap. Maybe the oatmeal will help him with all of this.

This weekend should be nice - Chef is away for the weekend, Sarah and I (and Squigs, of course) are going shopping tomorrow, and I'll probably start working on getting the house in order on Sunday. There should be plenty of time to blog, though I'm starting to wonder how and when I'll be able to blog while we're in Florida for our big Thanksgiving vacation. Oh, well, I have 7 days to figure it out. Right now it's time for sleep-sleeps.