Yay! Traveling with a Toddler!

Lily Ruth and I took a trip this past week. We flew to Wisconsin to see Kittyn and her daughter. They crossed the pond for a visit, and we all decided that there were more kid-friendly options in Madison (where Kittyn grew up - and where her parents still reside) than there are here... also, we were hoping for (and got!) a break from the heat.

Lily is now a traveling pro. The first leg of our three-legged flight was full, so I had to contain my baby pretty tightly. Luckily for us, she was still pretty tired from waking up four full hours before she normally does, so she was content. The second leg was mostly empty, so we spread out and got acquainted with our surroundings:



She happily played with her toys, watched The Wiggles and Elmo on my laptop and talked to every passenger in a 2 row radius. She fell asleep just before we landed for a quick stop in Kansas City and slept through that break and the final leg of our trip.

Arriving in Wisconsin was a delight. Small, quiet airport. Favorite Kittyn waiting for us. Beautiful SEVENTY (not 100) degree day... ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. We had some lunch then went to the playground. In the middle of the afternoon! I think it would be impossible to impress on you how amazing it was to be outside and comfortable. I can hardly wait for November... that's right - November. That's when it will cool off here...

Our first full day there involved a trip to the zoo, yummy lunch out and new shoes for Lily Ruth on a whim (and on sale :-P). Then there was the accidental 2 1/2 hour nap. I laid down with my baby girl in order to calm her down for her nap, and woke up to evening sun streaming through the windows. Wow. Talk about relaxed!

Wait, let me back up. The zoo in Madison is wonderful. Even with a good portion of it closed for renovation, we still had a great time. They have a fantastic children's play area. Maddie threw herself into the fray immediately. Lily Ruth was cautiously optimistic, but wanted my hand in hers. We climbed the stairs of the play structure and watched bigger kids adventurously climb, run and slide. She decided that we could go down the big slide together, so we did. Then she wanted to go back up, and indicated that she wanted to slide again. I got Kittyn to wait for her at the bottom, and sent her down. Then, um, this happened...


Yep, that's Lily Ruth stuck gecko-style in a giant slide. Giving Mama the 'you had BETTER get me out of here' glare. Kittyn had to climb up and dislodge her. It was hilarious.

The next day was our trip to the Madison Children's Museum. That place is AMAZING. They just re-opened in a brand new building. The photos in the link look like they were taken before the exhibits were finished. The space looks much different, and absolutely blew us away. It was packed in there, so I didn't take many pictures - I was too busy watching out for my baby in the throng of childhood that surged around us :-) I did get a few...

stacking translucent magnet blocks on a light board:


a bit giddy about the sandbox:


and 'I know I'm not supposed to put crayons in my mouth - what are you gonna do about it?':

and a few of the structure itself...

rooftop retreat with grass, gardens, chickens and glass overlook of the state capitol:


amazing mosaic pillar in the art area:


incredible mosaic floor in the toddler area:


Don't even get me started on how awesome it was in there. I'd never stop talking. Oi, then there was the snack we had at the Bean Sprouts Cafe in the lobby... oh, the injustice of living in this non-kid-friendly town!

This was such a lovely trip! From the gracious accommodations at Chez Luttig to the fantastic activities to the made to order weather. YAY! I could go on and on, but you won't find it as awesomely interesting as I do... so I'll leave you with this view of Lily Ruth LOVING herself some swing time:


SO, when are you going to come over? We really should visit more...

Today's Random Tidbits - 5

We had a really great visit in Colorado. My sister-in-law and her family are WONDERFUL, and it had been waaaaaaay too long since we had spent any time with them. That being said, I am not traveling with an infant again unless there is a payoff for me in the form of an awesome activity or a beach. Traveling with Lily Ruth right now is like doing the exact same thing I do every other day, but without use any of my stuff, her stuff or our 'routine' (such as it is). We are both still so tired that it's sad.


I'm very glad that we went. Daddy got a chance to unwind, and it truly was his turn to do so. I'm just glad to be home... and I'm putting my foot down about future trips. No more random traveling. Beach, specific Mama fun, or NO GO. :-)

I am almost sorry that I taught Lily Ruth how to climb stairs. Now she wants to climb EVERYTHING, and her legs are just about long enough for her to be successful :-0

We no longer measure Lily's walking progress in number of steps taken. Now we measure distance! That girl is going strong!

Get ready, Rachel's World - there's about to be some rearranging / organizing / upgrading! Time to make good on my resolution to make this house more functional and fun to be in.

Lily Ruth Flies the Friendly Skies

Well, we did it. I looked like it wouldn't happen, but we got packed, got to the airport, waited out a flight delay, and finally flew to Denver. All with only a few minor melt-downs from an exhausted 11 month old. She was a true trooper. In fact, all of the melting down occurred in the airport when she was bored and tired but it was too bright and noisy for her to switch off and relax.

I think that I did more melting down than the baby did. I managed to NOT pack even one single thing until after 3:30. Um, we had to leave for the airport at 4:30. It was ridiculous. Don & I ran around the house like the Keystone Cops hollering helpful things like 'did you pack my toothbrush? Then where IS it?' at each other. We discovered that we had never requested a copy of Lily Ruth's birth certificate. We remembered to bring underwear. We talked ourselves into leaving our bathing suits (bad idea) and taking the stroller (great idea). My grandparents waited patiently in their car to perform shuttle service duties. We ran out of there (only 15 minutes behind schedule) leaving a HUGE mess and confused pets.

Lily Ruth was pretty excited. This level of activity usually signals Big Fun...


The airport was new and exciting. Big, bright, loud and full of strangers. There was lots of big girl walking and loud vocalizing. Eventually, we went in search of one of those bins they use to check the size limit for carry-on luggage...


In the interest of full disclosure, this picture was staged as a response to my friend June who sent me a similar picture earlier that same day of her 1 year old daughter in the same pose. It probably wouldn't have occurred to me to do that on my own. Especially since we had to hunt down the bin - most of them were located on the actual jetway for the gate and were therefore unavailable to us :-( but it is trés adorable, non?

Then came the actual plane ride. Lily was charmed by the view of men working hard on the runway. She waved and smiled. She tired of looking out the window before we took off, and was sitting in Daddy's lap checking out the new toys that Mama had cleverly procured. When the plane left the ground and the pressure started changing, she grew a bit nervous, and reached for me. We agreed that nursing was in order. I was less than thrilled that the off-set seating made our session visible to more folks than I would like, but they all ignored us, and we carried on. She nursed through the first couple of times that my ears popped, then asked to go back to Daddy. She played with new toys again and nursed a tiny bit more when she grew concerned about another pressure change. Then there was light snacking on Cheese Nips (thanks Southwest, and Daddy for sharing:-/) a tiny, almost unnoticed tantrum, serious nursing, and a 45 minute nap!


Check it out - airplane cocktail, crashed out infant, and Alice in Wonderland on dvd. Not too shabby...

Our traveling champ woke up right as we began our descent. She checked out the view for a minute then stood on the floor in between our seats and visited with any nearby passenger who would make eye contact with her. Then she started saying 'tickaticka' and tried to reach between the seats to tickle the passengers there. She obviously felt that they were not paying enough attention to her. Luckily, they found her adorable. They even commended her on her traveling skills, and played 'peep-eye' with her until it was time to de-plane. She found them enchanting.

So, YAY! We made it!