We Need a Personal Sherpa
Well, we've returned from California and Nick's first ever plane flight. The short story is that the trip was an unqualified success. There were no melt downs, all children and adults behaved themselves and Jet Blue hasn't banned us from their planes. We weren't exactly travelling light, but we managed all on our own, without even a SkyCap. But we certainly enjoy fantasizing about our own personal Sherpa.We decided that since Lux hasn't been comfortable napping in our arms or anywhere else on a airplane, it would be best if we bought her a seat and brought her car seat with us, since she will sleep in it. Sadly, Lux's car seat is huge. But with a set of wheelies, it became mobile. Then there was the issue of Nick's car seat. We first planned to rent one with the car, then we realized that the car seats that are available with rental cars aren't the handy dandy buckets for carrying the baby around. Which meant that restaurant meals would pretty much be out of the question for the whole trip. Not acceptable. So, Nick's car seat came with us too, strapped on to the wheelies with Lux's seat, then checked with our baggage.
So, as we left the remote long term parking lot this is what we looked like. Paul, carrying Lux with one hand, pulling behind him his suitcase with the other and carrying his briefcase strapped across his chest. Lux carrying Dolly (and usually her pacifer, Bubba). Susan wearing Nick in the Baby Bjorn, wearing a backpack full of diapers, dolls, books, food and other neccessaries, pulling her suitcase behind her with one hand, and the wheelie with the two car seats on it in the other hand. Nick was very little help, unless one considers spitting up helpful.
But we managed to get on the plane, get Lux settled, get Nick settled and off we flew. Lux and Nick both liked the fact that there were personal televisions on the seats in front of us. It helped mesmerize them into calmness.
We flew into the Long Beach Airport, which was great, because it is so small that in order to get to the rental car agencies all you had to do was cross the street. Not having to board a bus with all our gear was a bonus.
We drove our Buick (a ridiculous car, but nice and large and equipped with XM Radio, which was great) to Grandad and Janie's house for the first leg of our visit. It didn't take long for Lux to feel right at home. The three dogs were very interested in Lux, Nick and their smelly diapers, and Lux only needed a few reminders on how to handle them (just say no and keep walking). Before long she was trying to give the dogs baths, laughing at them and drinking out of their water bucket. Yeah, that last one was a little hard on us, even though we aren't exactly germaphobes. Nick enjoyed his swing and all the extra attention he got.
On Saturday we went to Paul's alma mater for a lunch in celebration of his 20th high school reunion. It was a hot day in the valley, but we had a great time. Lux got to eat popcorn and pick all the grapes out of the fruit bowl. Nick, smiled, impressed others with his size (very similar to the 9 month old there!!!) and slept. Paul got to catch up with some old friends and we left with a pair of marble bookends for having travelled the farthest distance to come to the event. That night, Paul went out drinking with the boys, while Lux, Nick, Grandad, Janie and Aunt Danielle and Gina (who arrived that afternoon) chatted and had an early night.
Sunday we had brunch to celebrate Paul's birthday, and Jane's sister Susie, her husband Bob and their daughter Tracy came to join us. Lux enjoyed helping her father open his presents. On Monday we went to the beach. It was a bit grey and drizzly, but Lux seemed to enjoy digging in the sand. That night we dropped her off at Grandma Paula and Grandpa John's so that Paul, Nick, Susan, Grandad and Janie could go out to dinner somewhere that didn't offer crayons and kiddie meals. Lux seemed to have a lovely time and Nick cried a bit, but the Lobster (very popular restaurant) was noisy enough that it didn't matter. And he was sweet enough to fall asleep before the food came, so we could all enjoy the excellent seafood.
Tuesday had us heading for San Diego and Nana Jane's house. We arrived in the afternoon and poor Lux got abandoned again as Susan, Paul and Nick used Nana's Padres tickets. She has excellent seats, and the game was great with the Padres winning in the last inning. The new stadium was really nice to see and we had a great time. Nicholas had some trouble falling asleep, because the field lights were so bright and we were so close to the field, but once we discovered what the problem was, he drifted right off in his Bjorn. He screamed a bit before we discovered what was bothering him, but we didn't feel too terrible because the people next to us were a man, his pregnant wife and their 18 month old daughter. We were able to bond with them.
On Wednesday we went for the beach again. This time we decided to go for the bay, because the waves seem a little intimidating to Lux. Our first choice had a great playground but a lousy beach because the bay was being dredged in preparation for the summer. But we got to watch bulldozers at work and play on the slides (well, around them. Sometimes Lux loves slides and sometimes she just loves to talk about them). Then we went to a better bay and Lux actually ran down to the water and splashed around, proving she isn't frightened of large bodies of water, just large waves. We ate lunch at a restaurant on the beach that let Lux look at surfers. We had pushed things a bit, so Lux was tired and grumpy, and Nick had an explosive diaper which Paul had to deal with in a bathroom that wasn't equipped with a changing table, but we managed like pros. Susan even managed to change Nick's clothes completely in the middle of a restaurant without making a scene. Even more importantly, she had remembered to bring a change of clothes for him.
On Thursday we went to the aquarium at Scripps and Lux loved it. She learned a new word (shark) and couldn't get enough of the fish. At each tank she looked, said Wow, Wow! then noticed the next tank and took off saying "More Fishies!". That evening we met up with Grandpa George and Grandma Norma at Grandpa's office building. Grandpa, who only recently had heart surgery, looked surprisingly well, although he had a lot of discomfort and may be in for a second surgery to help his bones to heal. The kids did well in the restaurant and Lux was particularly pleased when Grandma Norma suggested ice cream for dessert. Lux also enjoyed the gifties that Grandpa George and Grandma Norma brought - some great books and a cozy blanket. We may even have gotten some decent photos!
Lux really enjoyed her time in San Diego. She is very at ease in Nana Jane's house and loves the backyard. Nana bought her a toy golf set that she loved making Paul and Susan play with and Lux learned the word golf. Lux even slept well, going to sleep in Nana's bed at night and sleeping as we transferred her to a little bed in our room at night. Nick slept like a baby in his crib. From the beginning of the trip the two of them adjusted to the time change really well and generally they both woke at 6 am - Nick to eat and Lux because she likes to come into our bed to cuddle in the morning. Then we all went back to sleep for an hour or more.
On Friday morning we headed back for Los Angeles and Grandma Paula and Grandpa John. Lux loved the little bedroom they had set up for her and went to sleep in her little bed each night, waking up only come early morning for her cuddle. Lux also liked to watch their goldfish being fed and loved all the toys they had for her. We celebrated Paul's birthday again, this time with a cake decorated with photos of Paul's latest scientific effort - the search for information on a new space object that he and his associates have discovered that the press has dubbed the space burper. We were even able to spend some time pretending we were rich and jobless like everyone else in the Palisades by walking around the village and sipping fat free sugar free Ice Blendeds from Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf.
On our last afternoon in LA we went to Venice Beach to walk the boardwalk. We picked up some souvenirs for Emily, who was watching after our house while we were gone, and simply enjoyed people watching. Lux had a fabulous time pointing out things that were familiar to her (and there are so many! Dogs, babies, hearts, kites, fish, Elmo and any other Sesame Street character, bikes, balloon, popcorn...the list is too long to continue). She particularly enjoyed watching the big boys on their skateboards and she looked like such a California beach girl with her wild blond hair that we couldn't resist buying her a funky silver ring from a boardwalk vendor.
Then, before we knew it, we were headed home again. The flight home was nearly as event free as the one out had been. We knew exactly what needed to be done to get the car seat on the plane and strapped in and went ahead with it as preboarders. The only difficulty we had was getting Lux into her seat. You see, on the flight out we had sat in the last row, so when we boarded the plane from the rear she went into that row, got in her seat and started watching TV. We really had to work hard to convince her that this time we were going to sit elsewhere. While on the flight out, Lux had been a bit scared for a few minutes at take off, saying "No Fly! No Fly!" this time she was excited. She had learned to say plane (well, P) and went through her standard roll call. "Dada fly P? Mama fly P? Nick fly P?". The only real problem came when we landed and Dulles and discovered that because some security equipment had malfunctioned, we couldn't park the plane at the gate, so Lux got a little frustrated (didn't we all) as we waited on the tarmac.
Everyone seemed glad to be home. Both Lux and Nick stayed up a bit late that first night home and got right back on schedule. In fact, Lux has been sleeping though the night now, which she wasn't doing before we left for California.
Well, there are lots more updates - for Nick and Lux both, but perhaps we'll put those in a new post.
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