We survived our very first overnight trip with Jackson. I learned a few things, which is always beneficial. This parenting thing is always about learning. You learn one new thing and quickly have to be ready to master the next lesson.

  1. Jackson HATES, and I am not being dramatic about this in the least bit, HATES the pack n play. He does not like to sleep in it at night or nap in it during the day. I do not blame him. It felt uncomfortable to me when I was just putting it together. The little mattress thing they provide seemed miserable. He woke up a total of 4 times that night.
  2. He likes to take naps on beds. He fell asleep on the king bed in the hotel room for his morning nap. So we learned something new about him. Later, we did not try to force him to nap in the pack n play at his grandparents’ home. We let him nap on their bed. Surrounded by a barrier of pillows.

    So he is not sleeping in this photo, but this is where he was when he did fall asleep. He also enjoyed lounging like this. King Jackson

  3. He enjoys falling asleep watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Ok, so I knew this to an extent. He often dozed off watching this in his swing. I just associated that with the swinging motion. But he likes to do that while laying still too. I even tried it for his evening nap in our living room yesterday, on the floor. So now we have a new nap space at home. He doesn’t meet the weight limit for his swing yet, but he is so tall he really doesn’t fit anymore. He can also make the entire thing shake, it is starting to get dangerous. So we have to stop using it.
  4. He is GREAT at riding in the car, if you adjust his straps. I didn’t realize he was getting too big for the strap setting we had, which is why he likely complained whenever I put him in there. We fixed it and now he is a happy camper. Silly momma!
  5. I have never in my life worried so little about what crap I am bringing with me for myself. Seriously. I normally pack 2x’s the amount of things I need for me. This time I packed only what I knew I needed and then focused on packing 2x’s the things he needed. To my detriment actually. I ended up spilling my coffee all over myself in my workout clothing, before I worked out. I had to rinse my shorts and dry them with my hair dryer because I only had ONE pair of running shorts because I only needed one pair! Go figure, right?
  6. Sigh, and I hate to admit this, but I will. I am seriously obsessed with his “schedule” more than I ever realized. I always claim he doesn’t have one. Well, really he doesn’t when it comes to doing something at a certain hour and minute. But the kid needs 2-3 naps a day. If he doesn’t get them, I am not sure who is more crabby, me or him. He does best when he starts getting ready for bed at 8pm. I like to feed him his solids anywhere from 4-6pm. I really hate doing it earlier than that. He knows when it is time for solids too. He doesn’t drink as much milk around that time. Like I said, he isn’t on a totally rigid schedule, but there is a theme that is there daily and it was interesting trying to adjust that.
  7. We will be co-sleeping on this next trip that begins this Sunday. We are not even going to bother with trying to make him sleep in the pack n play. His cry wasn’t even his normal cry that night. It was like a scared whimper. Poor baby. So in between us he goes. I mean, we get this luxurious king sized bed. Soft and comfy and he is in this uncomfortable jail cell??? Poor kid, I would be complaining too. He will be over 6 months at this point. He is rather mobile and strong. He will be fine in bed with us.
  8. I do not want any more children. Ha, this is not because this experience was miserable. But at 2:30 while I was laying in bed listening to Jason try to comfort Jackson and get him back to sleep I started thinking. I thought about how we are able to give him our undivided attention always. I truly enjoy being able to totally devote my time and energy to him. I cannot imagine how it is with two or even more children. Someone is always left out or not given quite the same amount of attention. I know many people do it and probably are successful, but I just like how things are. I don’t want it to change. I also cannot imagine loving a child as much as Jackson. I do not mean that to sound awful, but I really love him. More than anything. I am sure it is possible to love another child just as much, but I just cannot imagine it. I am just totally satisfied and happy with our life how it is right now. What a wonderful feeling to experience! To feel totally satisfied with your life. I would not change one thing. So I do not want any more children. I enjoy Jackson. I enjoy our time together. I enjoy how much attention I can give him. I love life exactly how it is!
  9. Last and most certainly not least. I had a blast traveling with my two boys. It was nice doing a little family road trip. It wasn’t a super far drive but it was fun traveling with them. I am really looking forward to every other vacation we take!

On a side note, Jackson has begun sitting up! He still uses his hands to balance, but he is getting awesome. He is even so brave as to let go with one hand and try to do things, like grab a ball or pet the cat as she walks by him.

My proud little lion cub!

The family was even cheering him on loudly on Sunday. People were taking photos and saying “GO Jackson!!!” He looked like a little proud lion, puffing his chest out and sitting up straighter. It was the most precious thing. He can sit up for over a minute most times. He is still wobbly and I won’t leave him alone just yet, but he is doing so well. I can see what a brave child he is. I see this courage in him. He is willing to take risks. It is so interesting how early their personalities seem to come out. He is not scared to let go with one arm and tries to do something risky with it while sitting, he sticks his toes in his stroller fan (the blades are made of foam lol) Jason was snapping grill tongs together being silly, Jackson reached out like he wanted to stick his hand in there, Jason was clapping his hands together last night while Jack laid on his lap and Jack just stuck his foot in between Jason’s hands. He is curious and a little daredevil. I am in for a world of adventure shortly as he gets more and more mobile. But I swell at how proud he gets with himself when he accomplishes one of these daring tasks (don’t worry we didn’t let him stick his fingers in the snapping tongs!) There are limits to what I will let my brave little cub do.

 

Trip number two takes place this Sunday-Tuesday. I will take my learned lessons and apply them to this adventure. I am looking forward to it. Now it is time to workout before my little lion cub wakes up for the day!