Busy Boy

August 29, 2008 at 9:54 am (Benjamin)

I had a successful first week of class, and while I was on campus doing my teacher thing, Benjamin was at Aunt Cara’s doing his baby stuff – he took a long nap and only had to wait a few minutes for me to arrive to feed him after I finished teaching my class. But I’ve already talked about how I feel about returning to teaching. Let me rave about all the fun new things that Benjamin has been doing.

I realized yesterday that our picture taking has slowed down this month, and I haven’t posted any pictures of Benjamin in a couple of weeks. So, I dusted off the camera yesterday afternoon and took some shots of Benjamin doing his latest favorite thing: practicing sitting and standing up.

People have told us that six months is a really fun age, and as we quickly approach that milestone, we have to agree. The last week or two, we’ve seen a lot of new things from Benjamin:

  • The latest news is that his first tooth is poking through. I discovered it this morning and was oddly excited about it all. I started praising Benjamin for all his hard teething work paying off, and he seemed happy about it, too, giving me some big smiles.
  • Last weekend he started babbling syllables: “ma ma ma ma ma…” and “ya ya ya ya ya…” in particular. Before now when he talked it was mostly high pitched squeals or soft coos.
  • He is now officially sitting up, at least with his arms in front of him for support and balance. Does that count?
  • This week he rolled over and slept on his belly for the first time. We were concerned that his arm would go to sleep because he was laying on top of it, but it didn’t seem to bother him.
  • For a few weeks now he has been laying on his side to sleep, and he looks so sweet! When we put him in bed for the night, he smiles up at us, then rolls over to his side, closes his eyes, and goes to sleep. He knows a good thing when he sees it (cozy crib, cozy footed pajamas, and a peaceful room = good sleeping environment).
  • He’s no longer picky about bottles. Although he still only has bottles a couple times a week, he doesn’t act disinterested like he used to. (He would always eventually take the bottle – it would just take him a few minutes to warm up to the idea.)
  • He gobbles down his rice cereal every night. We feed it to him while we are having our dinner, and we all sit around the dining table to eat, which is something that Brad and I have rarely done up to this point of our marriage. We used to just sit in the living room with tv trays.
  • He grabs anything he can get his hands on – The glasses on mommy’s face, daddy’s facial hair, a coffee cup, Chloe’s tail, various parts of his anatomy, plus all the things that he’s “supposed to” grab, like all his toys, his feet, etc. And so begins the “keep everything out of his reach” phase of parenting.
  • He hasn’t figured out how to roll over again and again to get where he wants to go, but he has learned the art of rotating 360 degrees while on his belly by shifting his arms and legs side to side. I’ve started laying him in the center of a blanket, surrounded by toys, and he makes his way around them to entertain himself.
  • And his favorite thing to do: practice sitting and standing up! We hold his arms and say “One, two, three!” and lift him from his back to a seated position. Then we repeat, “One, two, three,” and lift him to standing. He is very strong! And he looks so proud when he’s seeing the world from an upright perspective. See some pictures below.

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A Leap Day Journal Entry

August 25, 2008 at 9:25 am (Emily)

Pregnant Me the Night of February 29, 2008

Leap Day was six months ago, so why am I bringing it up now? Well, I happened to pick up my journal yesterday, hoping that I had written down when I felt Benjamin move in my belly for the first time (my sister-in-law Karen wanted to know). I didn’t find that info, but my last journal entry really struck me. I want to share some excerpts from the last time I wrote in it, which happened to be February 29, Leap Day – the day before Benjamin was born! It’s crazy that I haven’t picked up, much less written in my journal since then. I guess you could say we’ve had a lot going on.

When I wrote in my journal that day, I didn’t know that I was in labor, but I had an intuition that I would soon be. The first section, which I’ve transcribed below, was written during the afternoon. The second section, “Life Before Benjamin,” I remember writing at about 8 p.m. I started having contractions just a couple of hours later. The words I chose to write were very appropriate, and only looking back on them now can I see how monumental they were. I am so glad I took a few moments to reflect on all we had done to prepare for Benjamin, and on what everyday life looked like at the time. Take a look:

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Feburary 29, 2008

“Nine plus months of waiting and preparing are almost over. My due date (March 2) is two days away, and all indications are that baby Benjamin will be joining our family soon… Today I feel extra tired and crampy and wonder if those are signs of impending labor.

The past 8 weeks Brad and I have been super-productive, while also managing to spend quality time together that is enabling our relationship to thrive. Here’s some of what we’ve done: decorated and furnished a super sweet nursery, bought Brad a new desk and set up his new home office, learned how to do worm composting, bought a Toyota Rav4 to replace our Nissan Altima, enjoyed three baby showers, did lots of home improvements (including a new security system, new breaker box, new glass in nursery window, had carpets cleaned), prepared all the baby supplies, etc. Whew! We had a long list and have basically crossed everything off of it. I know there will be unexpected developments after we bring Benjamin home, but at least we feel semi-prepared…

Brad is very excited about becoming a dad, and he has been wonderfully attentive to me, especially these last few weeks when I finally ran out of some of my energy. He’s cooked meals, gone shopping, given me back massages, put together nursery furniture, and much more. While I’ve been focused on “preparing my nest” for the baby, he has been attentive to keeping us and the house safe. If I went into labor tonight, we would be okay. There are meals in the freezer, the laundry is caught up, my hospital bags are packed, we have our list of people to call, etc.” [This last sentence turned out to be very true. I did go into labor that night, and we were well prepared.]

Life Before Benjamin (written the night of February 29)

“Since I hear that parents forget what their lives were like before they had kids, I figured I’d take this opportunity to reflect on what ‘normal life’ has consisted of for us before baby. In the morning we enjoy drinking coffee together while watching the local Fox morning news show. During the day Brad works and I run errands, do household stuff, blog, email, etc. When I’m teaching I spend lots of time doing lesson plans and grading papers. The evenings are when we’ve really cherished our relaxing time. We usually eat dinner around 7, and often watch tv while doing so… We enjoy the quiet of our home at night, as does Chloe [our cat]. Often around 8 p.m. Brad and I are sitting on the sofa together enjoying conversation, and Chloe is curled up in a ball in her bed on the loveseat.

I have a feeling tonight may be our last baby-free night at home, and we’re spending it watching The Bourne Ultimatum and eating Joe’s pizza. One last movie and pizza Friday night – on Leap Day, no less. We know everything is about to change. I’m sure we’ll miss certain things about the way life has been, but we’ll be gaining so much!”

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Joe’s pizza turned out to be the last meal I had before becoming a mother the next day. The only other thing I had to eat before Benjamin was born at 1:08 p.m. on March 1 was a piece of plain toast that morning and some crackers during the night (in between contractions). And we never got past the first 30 minutes of The Bourne Ultimatum (and still haven’t). My body made it clear that I was going into labor, which put me in no mood to sit and watch an intense movie. Before long, Brad had fallen asleep (and continued to sleep until 5 a.m. – I didn’t disturb him since I figured one of us should be well rested), and I was setting up for a long night of labor at home.

In my last sentence of the journal entry, I mentioned that we had so much to gain. Indeed, “gain so much” we have. The last six months have been a whirlwind of rich experiences with Benjamin, filled with snuggles, laughter, some tears (especially in that first couple of weeks with the challenges of nursing), some deep sleep (any time I got the chance early on), and amazement at this little boy who changes so much everyday.

And So It Began

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Back in the Saddle Again

August 22, 2008 at 7:52 am (Emily)

I didn’t know how I would feel about it when I jumped back into my teaching job. After a nearly nine month break from my adjunct instructor position at Brookhaven, it turns out that I am excited to get back into the swing of things.In fact, I was nearly jumping off the walls last night when I got home from the fall faculty meeting for my department.

Normally this two-plus hour meeting is mostly a chore to attend. It wasn’t that I was thrilled by the new departmental procedures or student assessment plans. Nope. I was simply enjoying being with a bunch of grown ups, who happened to be colleagues I hadn’t seen in several months. There was lots of catching up to do, as well as pictures of Benjamin to share.

The thing is, I’ve been craving adult interaction for a couple of weeks now. I love my time at home with Benjamin and our daily routine. The only thing missing from it is contact with grown ups. Sure, Brad is working at home most days, but with Benjamin around, our conversations often get interrupted by him or turn into gibberish words like “blibbity blobbity bloo.” So, I was thrilled last night to have two hours of conversation that wasn’t about feeding times, poopies, or sleep schedules.

It was like entering a time warp into my pre-mommy days. And since the last time I was on campus I was in the third trimester of my pregnancy, memories of pregnant me came flooding back to me. I laughed to myself as I recalled waddling across campus, taking the elevators with my heavy school bag rather than the suddenly intimidating stairs, visiting the bathrooms a ridiculous number of times.

Mostly, though, it was just nice to see my school friends, many whom I’ve been working with for five years. A couple of them have welcomed babies into their family while I’ve been away, so it was fun to trade stories with them.

The other aspect of returning to teaching that I haven’t mentioned is that it will exercise my intellect. I’ve had my blogs and my books to sharpen my mind, but now I will have a true learning environment, in which hopefully I will do some good teaching! I am excited about returning to the classroom (my one class begins on Monday) and discovering creative ways to help students improve their writing and perhaps have fun along the way.

Maybe you are wondering what little Benjamin will do while I am galavanting around campus? He’s going to hang out with Aunt Cara, Joel, and Anna on Monday and Wednesday afternoons. Jacob starts kindergarten next week, so at least she’ll still have the same number of kids she is used to, just different ages. Benjamin will probably sleep most of the time he is there.

I think teaching one class is a perfect way for me to get out of the house a couple days a week, do something I enjoy (teaching and interacting with students and colleagues), and make a little money (emphasis on “little”). I wouldn’t want to work more than a few hours outside of the house, because I really do love taking care of Benjamin and playing with him. But this little job will help me not get stir crazy. In the words of a library story time song, it will help me “kick my crazies out” and “wiggle my waggles away.” :)

I’ll let you know if I still have so much enthusiasm after I get my first set of papers to grade. But with only 20 students, it really shouldn’t be too bad.

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Stopped Train Causes Mother Goose to Take a Detour

August 18, 2008 at 1:43 pm (Diversions)

Every Monday morning, I carefully plan Benjamin’s routine so that we can make it to Mother Goose time at the library. He normally naps for a couple of hours in the morning, waking up at 11:30 or noon. Since Mother Goose Time is at 11:15, I have to finagle the schedule a bit. So as usual for a Monday, I put him down for his nap earlier, and he cooperated by waking up at 10:30, giving me time to feed him before we left the house.

I had already debated whether or not to go, since it has been raining here all day (hooray!). Since the library has covered parking, I decided to go ahead. Unfortunately, our plan hit an unforeseen snag as we left our neighborhood: a stopped train on the tracks – exactly where we had to drive to get to our destination. Bummer!

Cars were turning around and going the opposite direction, rather than sitting for an unknown amount of time. Since we only had five minutes until Mother Goose time started, I decided it was best to simply return home. It was very disappointing to get all ready to go, put Benjamin in his car seat, and set out on the road, only to have to turn right around.

Rather than sit at home and sulk, we decided to go visit Cara and the kids instead. We had an impromptu Mother Goose time of our own at their house, and it was lots of fun. Each of the kids picked out a book to show to Benjamin (Jacob brought “Dr. Seuss’ ABC’s,” Joel chose a picture book, and Anna presented him with “Good Night Moon”). We sat in a circle and sang along to a kids’ CD, including “If You’re Happy and You Know It.” And we read a book about numbers.

Benjamin enjoyed himself. He touched the pictures on each page of the numbers book, smiled as he watched the kids do the motions to the songs, and showed off his newfound ability to remain propped up on his arms for balance while sitting up.

Although we missed our weekly library visit, we are glad we got to do something out of the ordinary with Aunt Cara and Benjamin’s cousins.

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Autumn in New England: A Recommended Getaway

August 17, 2008 at 3:00 pm (Brad, Diversions, Emily)
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This time last year I was busy planning me and Brad’s last hurrah before welcoming Benjamin into the world: a relaxing trip to New England. I highly recommend an autumn excursion to this area, and not just for the fall foliage. We had a great time, and it was our most relaxing trip to date. Good timing, since we probably won’t have another relaxing trip for quite awhile.

We went the third week of October, but you have to plan in advance since hotels and B&Bs fill up quickly. We spent two days in the Boston area, doing everything from seeing Harvard’s campus to doing a historical walking tour of the city to eating lots of good food. Then we spent two days in Rockport, MA, a coastal town northeast of Boston. We stayed at a great bed and breakfast (Seven South Street Inn), went whale watching, walked around town, and ate some fantastic fresh seafood. The last day of our trip we drove to Lexington and Concord, where we toured Ralph Waldo Emerson’s house, walked through the cemetery where some famous authors are buried, visited some Revolutionary War sites, and saw amazing fall foliage.

Some of the highlights, in pictures with captions:

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Again, I enthusiastically recommend this trip to anyone interested in cooler weather, pretty trees, literary history, early American history, seafood, the ocean, and relaxation!

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A Morning at the Zoo

August 14, 2008 at 4:15 pm (Diversions)

This morning Benjamin and I joined Aunt Cara and her kids at the zoo, as guests on their annual membership pass. Despite the heat and humidity we had a fun time. Benjamin fit in two naps in his stroller, so he missed a lot of the animals, but he was intrigued by the penguins. Like mother, like son. (For those who don’t know, I am something of a penguin collector, mainly Christmas ornaments now.) He watched them swimming around underwater, as well as waddling about on the rocks.

I didn’t get a picture of it, but Benjamin also experienced his first carousel ride, and he loved it! We sat on a bench on the carousel instead of a horse, and despite this I still got a little dizzy. It had been forever since I’d ridden one of those! Benjamin loved it, though. He was fascinated by all the sounds, lights, and colors, as well as the spinning, and he was thrilled to see his cousins riding on horses behind us.

Jacob, Joel, Anna, and I took a moment for a photo op on this turtle statue:

Right behind us were these two turtles. Just after I snapped this picture, the turtle on the right got all up in the face of the other one, opened his mouth wide in a snapping posture, and intimidated the other one into retreating into its shell. I wonder what caused the rift between them!


Continuing the turtle theme, the three kids climbed up on this turtle shell replica in the children’s area, after they splashed around in the fountain and stream.


Other highlights of our morning:

  • Watching a gorilla finish off several orange slices, down to the peel
  • Touching stingrays as they swam past us (they felt kind of slimy and gross – I agree with Joel on that one).
  • Searching carefully for and finally spotting a tiger cooling off in some water. Then we followed it (on the safety of the trail, of course), as it walked around its area.
  • Getting some great exercise going up the “steep incline” (there was a sign posted) while pushing the stroller on the way to see rhinos and other large African animals. That gives me an excuse to not go to the gym today!
  • Watching the elephant swing her trunk and head back and forth. We wondered if this strange behavior is part of her mourning process for her elephant friend who died a couple of months ago. :(

We look forward to returning to the zoo when the weather is cooler. We reached the end of our energy road around 12:30 today and headed home. Perhaps in a few years Brad and I will purchase an annual pass and let zoo visits become a regular part of Benjamin’s fun activities.

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Water Makes the World Go ‘Round

August 12, 2008 at 11:22 am (Family, Miscellaneous)

Brad and I had some unexpected (and unwanted) excitement on Sunday. That morning when I woke up, I discovered that we had extremely low water pressure from all of our faucets. An hour later, that low pressure had become no pressure. Not a drop was coming out of any of our faucets. Brad went outside to check the water meter, and it showed lots of water activity. Since the water was obviously going somewhere it wasn’t supposed to, he turned off the water to the house.

So began our two-day adventure of living without running water in our house. Don’t worry, though. We didn’t try to tough it out. Instead, we moved in with my sister’s family until the problem could be solved. Conveniently, they live just a few minutes away from us. Although the circumstances of our visit were unfortunate, we enjoyed our time of communal living with them. And I must say they were excellent short-notice hosts. Monday morning Cara made us a breakfast worthy of a bed and breakfast, and that night we had an equally tasty dinner.

Brad and I commented how nice it is to have family/friends who have space to take you in during situations like this. It is so much better than a hotel! We hope we can do the same for someone else if the need arises.

You’re probably wondering what caused our mystery water loss. Thankfully, it wasn’t a slab leak, which would have required drilling through the floor of our house to get to the leak under the foundation. Yikes! Instead, it turned out to be a leak where the outside pipe from the water main connects to the copper pipe that leads into the house.

The good folks at DFW Pipe Restoration were at our house within an hour of when Brad contacted them. They spent most of the day digging a trench from the street, under the sidewalk, around some tree roots, up to near the house in front of our dining room. Needless to say, our front yard now looks like a disaster area, complete with yellow caution tape. After they finally fully exposed the pipe, they replaced the faulty existing pipe with a new, more durable pipe. Hopefully that will prevent any future leaks. (We’ve had problems in the past with leaks as well.)

Here are some things we learned from this experience:

  • It is very hard to find a good plumber – I asked several people for recommendations, and most of them would give us a name with less than glowing reviews. (“We paid him a bunch of money, and he never came back to finish the job.” “He did okay. It wasn’t great or anything.” “He does good work, when he keeps his word to show up.”)
  • When you have a leak, you need a Leak Detector, not just any plumber - So now I have a leak detector and a plumber I can recommend to anyone who needs one.
  • We use water all the time! – I didn’t realize how often I use water until I didn’t have any access to it. To name a few uses: drinking, cooking, rinsing/washing dishes, bathing/showering, flushing toilets, washing hands. I found myself automatically turning on the faucet even though there was no water. The public water system is an amazing thing.
  • Benjamin adapts to any situation – We’ve really already learned this about him, but he continues to prove that it’s true. He didn’t mind sharing the guest room with us at Cara’s, or taking a bath in their kitchen sink, or living without most of his baby gear for a couple of days. In fact, he had a great time playing with his cousins, and they are getting better and better at entertaining him. Five year old Jacob even said, “I could babysit Benjamin for a whole year!” I just may take him up on that in a few years. :)

Here are a few more pictures that chronicle the mess in our front yard:

This picture shows part of the trench that runs from the street and curves under the sidewalk before moving on toward the house:

Here you can see how the diggers had to tunnel under two parts of the sidewalk:

And here the mess continues as the trench goes under some tree roots. The “excavation team” will return today to fill in the trench after the city inspector comes to officially approve the new pipe.

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Our Family Vacation to Colorado

August 8, 2008 at 11:11 am (Diversions, Family)

In my previous post I chronicled our long and tiring journey to Denver. I am happy to report that our return trip went smoothly – our flights were on time, Benjamin was happy and well rested, and we were happy to return to temperatures in the 80s (rather than the 100s) in Dallas.

As for our trip, we had a good time. We quickly learned that you can’t do much sight seeing with a five month old, unless you’re willing to exhaust your baby and test his patience. Instead, we were content to relax, drink coffee on the deck, and venture out no more than once a day to see the sights. Here’s a brief run down of what we did:

  • Friday: I already described our journey. We arrived at the Graves’ house (friends of my parents) at 10:30 p.m., and were in bed by an hour later to rest up for the next day.
  • Saturday: We spent the morning continuing to recuperate from our tiring travel experience. As we often did, we sat and had coffee on the deck that overlooks the mountains. After lunch, we drove to Brainard Lake to do some light hiking (too bad we didn’t bring our Baby Bjorn!). One thing we learned on this trip is that it takes two hours to get in touch with nature in the Denver area. We were staying on the southeast side of the city, in Parker, and the mountains are to the northwest. Unfortunately, the trek to Brainard Lake required us to travel extremely zig zaggy mountains roads. Those of us who took turns in the third row seat of the Ford Explorer got queasy. It was like being on the Runaway Mine Train at Disney World! Thankfully, the drive was worth it, as Brainard Lake was beautiful, and temps were in the 70s.
  • Sunday: We spent the morning relaxing at the house, and in the afternoon we headed over to Brad’s grandmother’s place to introduce the family to Benjamin. We had a very pleasant time visiting with Grandma Hershey, Uncle Jim and Aunt Jan, and Aunt Theresa. That night we enjoyed some homemade ice cream on the deck.
  • Monday: We decided to stay close to home, since the previous day of visiting family had worn out Benjamin. So, we went shopping at the mall! Benjamin enjoyed riding around in his stroller and watching the water at a fountain, and Brad and I enjoyed drinking coffee and browsing through the books at Borders. That night we watched a beautiful sunset from the deck.
  • Tuesday: Mom, Dad, Brad, Benjamin, and I drove to Breckenridge, which turned out to be another two hour trip. I felt a bit claustrophobic as we drove through a mountain tunnel and were surrounded by steep drop offs and huge mountain ranges. The town of Breckenridge was cute, and surprisingly crowded for a summer day. We ate some tasty burgers at a cafe and walked around a bit before heading back to Denver.
  • Wednesday: We had to get up early to leave the Graves’ house by 7:30 a.m. to make sure we would have time to do everything we needed to to catch our 10:00 a.m. flight. The extra early start gave us a chance to enjoy breakfast at the airport before flying home. Mom and Dad entertained Benjamin on the first leg of the flight, by first giving him a bottle, and then snuggling with him while he slept. He was very content for most of the trip. We were all glad to get back to Dallas to resume our routine.

Here are some pictures from the trip:

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Benjamin’s First Flight

August 3, 2008 at 11:17 pm (Benjamin, Diversions, Family)

Since we’ve settled into a routine at home, and feel confident taking Benjamin on a road trip, we decided a few weeks ago that we were ready for the next milestone: taking him on an airplane. So, after some quick planning, we booked our tickets to Denver for Friday, August 1. The main purpose of our trip is to introduce Benjamin to his great-grandmother, Grandma Hershey. An added bonus is that my parents decided to come with us, because they have some friends in the Denver area they wanted to visit. We are all staying with my parents’ friends, where there is plenty of space for all of us and all of Benjamin’s things. Anyway, back to the flight. I think our travel adventure is best described in a timeline, some of which I guesstimated, since I didn’t write all this down as it happened:

  • 3:10 p.m. – We arrive at The Parking Spot to park our car, and after some brief deliberating, we decide not to bring our GPS navigation system with us (a decision that comes slightly into play later on). As I stow the unit out of sight in the car, I get a nasty paper cut on our Dallas Entertainment Book. Not a great way to start the trip, but better than how I started our trip to Boston last fall, when, as we stepped out of the airport shuttle bus, I promptly destroyed my cell phone by promptly dropping it on the ground (because of my pregnancy butter fingers, I suppose).
  • 3:30 p.m. – Brad and I, and Benjamin in his stroller, enter the check-in and baggage check line at Love Field Airport. It is unusually long and slow, and everyone is irritable because we feel like we are inside a clothes dryer. Apparently the airport’s a/c system couldn’t compete with the 100+ temperature outside.
  • 3:45 p.m. – Still standing in the painfully slow baggage check line, I comment to Brad that everyone looks sweaty, humid, and therefore fatigued. I note that this is the appearance that people always have in movies set in the south (think A Time to Kill), which I always complained was unrealistic. I didn’t think that people really were covered in sweat all the time. I stand corrected!
  • 4:00 p.m. – We finally turn over our suitcases, and Benjamin receives his first ever boarding pass! (We didn’t have to pay for a ticket for him; he was just designated “an non-ticketed lap child.”
  • 4:05 p.m. – We make our way through security, which was a new experience with a baby in the mix. The Southwest employees were very friendly and told us to take our time.
  • 4:10 p.m. – We meet my parents at our gate (they drove separately from us), where we learn that our flight is delayed. (We were supposed to take off at 4:40, but now our estimated departure time is 5:10.
  • 5:00 p.m. – Our plane has arrived, and Benjamin has fallen asleep in my arms after growing tired of the scenery at the airport.
  • 5:15 p.m. – We take our seats on the plane, managing to find seats (on a fully booked flight) in two adjacent rows so Mom and Dad can help out with Benjamin, who is still asleep.
  • 5:30 p.m. – Our plane leaves the gate and proceeds to take off. Conveniently, this coincides with Benjamin’s feeding time, so I am able to nurse him to keep his ears from hurting while also keeping him in his routine. His eyes get wide as we ascend, but other than that he doesn’t think much of his first voyage into the sky.
  • 6:05 p.m. – After a quick 30 minute flight (which I spent most of the time nursing Benjamin), we land in Oklahoma City for what is supposed to be a quick stop to drop off some passengers and pick up others. On our descent, Benjamin sucked on his pacifier, something he hadn’t done since he was about six weeks old! He has continued to use the pacifier on our trip at any time that his ears are popping due to elevation changes. Smart baby. :)
  • 6:30 p.m. – Still on our plane, we’ve been stretching our legs and letting Benjamin stretch out on one of the seats. He is very happy to have full movement, and has been squealing and chattering enthusiastically. However, our luck is about to take a down turn. The pilot informs us that there is a problem with an indication light on the plane, and we aren’t going to be able to continue to Denver without switching to another plane. They tell us to stay tuned. We start to imagine various scenarios that have us staying overnight in Oklahoma City, having to go back to Dallas, or being diverted to several more airports before arriving in Denver.
  • 6:45 p.m. – We receive the good news that the airline has done a plane swap, so we deplane and head over to a nearby gate to wait for that plane’s arrival. While there, we learn that the plane we are “borrowing” was supposed to go from Oklahoma City to Houston, but instead those poor passengers will have to wait for another plane to arrive, at 9:30 p.m.! We felt guilty that we were stealing their ticket home, when it was our plane that had mechanical trouble. We certainly got the good end of that deal!
  • 7:00 p.m. – We are standing around waiting to board our new plane, and Benjamin is losing patience. He’s tired of all the delays, and is complaining a little bit. We distract him with toys.
  • 7:15 p.m. – We board the plane!
  • 7:35 p.m. – We finally take off in our new plane. We are frustrated when we realize we would have been landing now had everything gone as planned. :(
  • 8:00 p.m. (Mountain Time) – Benjamin has his first poopy of the day, and I fear that it has exploded out of his diaper. Fortunately, it miraculously remained in the confines of the diaper. Thanks, Huggies! Brad and I become trapeze artists of sorts as we change the diaper right there in our seats, somehow managing to not make a mess. Benjamin is very grateful to have a clean diaper.
  • 8:30 p.m. – We land safely in Denver. We are tired and starving, but glad to almost be there.
  • 9:15 p.m. – After taking a train to baggage claim, grabbing our luggage, and taking a shuttle to the Rental Car area, we discover that Hertz did not give us a 7-passenger SUV, as we requested. Brad corrects their error, and they give us a Ford Explorer, but we have to make a long trek to the other side of the parking lot to our new vehicle, with all of our luggage and with Benjamin in his stroller. (I’m not impressed with Hertz’s customer service.
  • 9:55 p.m. – Benjamin has been asleep for most of our drive, but he has finally reached his breaking point. Poor little guy. It’s past his bed time, and he’s a sad baby. He is crying his saddest cry, tears streaming down his face, which doesn’t happen often. We try to cheer him up by singing, which kind of works.
  • 10:15 p.m. – After a couple of wrong turns (where’s our GPS navigator when we need it?) and several turns, we finally arrive at the Graves’ house. We are exhausted, and since we haven’t eaten dinner, we are starving!
  • 10:45 p.m. – We sit down to eat the light (and late!) dinner that they have made for us.
  • 10:55 p.m. – Benjamin is relieved when I finally put him in his PJs (we skipped his bath) and sat down to nurse him. I put him to bed at 11:30, and he slept soundly all night.

So, if you skipped the timeline, the short version of the story is that our flight was delayed by two hours, but it could have been much worse. Benjamin was a real trooper, remaining pleasant until the very last leg of our long journey. Even then he wasn’t screaming, just crying sad little tears. :( His easy going travel attitude encourages us to plan more trips, but we know things will get trickier once he starts crawling, and then walking, since he’ll want to be on the move and not stuck in a seat.

Now it’s Sunday, and we’ve all had time to recover from our day of travel. We’ll be in Denver until Wednesday. I’ll post some pictures and info about our trip at the end of the week.

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