Road Trip!

We took Juliet on her first over night trip this past weekend.  One of our clients at work was the sponsor of a beer fest in Tampa, so I got to attend the festival.  Ray and I decided that it would be a nice trip for us - not too far away, a place we enjoy going, and a chance to see our friends Austin and Katrina.  After deciding to go, it then occurred to us that perhaps a baby wouldn't be allowed at a beer fest, so I checked with the guy coordinating the event, and he said that as long as we didn't feed Juliet beer, we'd be good to go.

Juliet was passed out in the baby backpack contraption.  But not passed out from drinking beer!  Just passed out from being a tired baby.  We definitely did not give her beer.

With very few exceptions, the trip was perfect.  Juliet did well in the car on the way down, and Ray and I became even more grateful that she's a power-eater.  Our stop to feed her took a total of 20 minutes. 

It was quite chilly in Tampa on Saturday, so we were sure to bundle Juliet up in her bunny jacket, and off we went.  Almost everyone was very supportive of our decision to bring the baby out.  We had one couple stop us and tell us about their two-year-old twins whom they'd left at home for the first time that day.  They told us that for the first year, they didn't do anything with the kids.  They just stayed at home.  They praised us for doing things right by getting out with the baby.  We only got one "WTF?!" look, and it was from some girl who looked like she'd probably used a fake ID to get in, so I don't really care what she thought.

Juliet not drinking beer.

Chilling with Dad on the couch after the beer fest.

We brought the pack and play to the hotel for Juliet to sleep in.  I think it was moderately successful.  I didn't sleep well because every time she moved or made any noise, I woke up.  I really don't know how people co-sleep.  I now understand why they co-sleep (because Juliet is the snuggliest thing ever), but I don't understand how.  She woke up a lot, too, which is very unusual for her.  I theorized that it was because the pack and play mattress wasn't as soft as her crib mattress, but Ray thought perhaps she was just a little cold.  Her nursery at home is the warmest room in the house, and our hotel room was definitely cooler than what she's used to.

Hanging out on the big bed before we went out to dinner with Austin and Katrina (and Zoey).

The only real issue we had on the trip was the ride back.  In our effort to get home fairly early, we left at a time that meant we'd have to feed Juliet twice on the road.  The first feeding went pretty well, but then we had a lot of struggles.  Juliet got pretty fussy in her car seat, and it took a steady stream of peek-a-boo and other entertainment from me to keep her from crying a ton.  She took a 15-minute nap at one point, and I thought we were in the clear.  Yeah.... not so much. She woke up crying fast.  So we pulled over and I got her out of the car seat to change her, thinking maybe that was the problem.  It was.  And it was a bigger problem than I thought.  The exact second I got her pants back on her after the diaper change, she filled up the new diaper.  The good news is that Ray and I were laughing so hard we were crying at the comedy of the situation.

Lunch was also challenging.  We stopped about 30 minutes before Juliet normally eats because she was still really, really fussy.  We were hoping to do a quick feed and get back on the road.  Juliet had other plans for us.  After feeding her, I tried to put her back in her car seat, and she lost her mind.  So we decided to just take a break.  We took Juliet inside the Wendy's in Lake City and had a nice family lunch.  Juliet sat in a high chair for the first time (and I failed to take a picture) while Ray and I ate our lunch.  When we got back in the car, she went in with no issues.  I guess she just needed to get out and stretch her legs for a little while.  I can't really blame her.

We had a really good time, and it was really nice to have a quick weekend away with our little family.  I'm looking forward to doing it again soon for sure!