Sunshine State
Yesterday, in a bit of a travel daze, I started to write a lengthy blow-by-blow of the previous three days flying to and back from Florida (and all the fun bits in between). But as I sat there rereading what I had managed to get out, I realized that it was too disjointed, too confusing, and really didn’t tell you what we did, how much fun we had, and how Henry single-handedly charmed every single person in our journey. 
(It’s true. The flight attendants coming back from Chicago all referred to him as “Mr. Cheeks” and couldn’t keep their hands off him.)
So instead of a diary of every little thing that happened, I’ll just give you the high (and a couple of low) points of our trip. We’ll all be better off for it in the long run.
– Henry has no trouble with flying. (I, on the other hand, hate it.) We had heard horror stories from friends whose babies cried the whole flight (and I’m sure you’ve experienced something similar in your own plane travels), but Henry did not shed a single tear both there and back. (In fact, the only time he was anything but cheerful was when I had to change a dirty diaper in a cramped airplane bathroom and he was propped uncomfortably on top of the toilet.) He smiled and talked and generally hammed it up with me, Kristen, and every single other person on the airplane. What a baby!
–Henry loves the ladies. While at the airport (for our ungodly 7:00 AM flight Sunday morning), there was a gaggle of college co-eds heading off for spring break. I had Henry strapped to my chest in the baby carrier hoping to get him to fall asleep, but instead, as we walked around the gate area and whenever we passed the group of giggling girls (how about that for alliteration!) he’d whip his head around and give them all the biggest smile ever. These girls then proceeded to collapse on the ground as if one of the Jonas Brothers just gave them his phone number. (Do college girls like the Jonas Brothers? Am I so far removed from these things to even ask such a stupid question? Am I that uncool?) Then, while on the plane, he’d completely ignore any male (except for me) and just ham it up for the women. This kid is going to be trouble. While unpacking today, I found 5 slips of paper with phone numbers on them! The kid was getting digits!
–Of course, the woman whose heart Henry stole the most was his great-grandmother’s. He is her sixth (she also has 5 grandchildren), and, if I do say so myself, he has jumped over all of them and is now firmly entrenched as the favorite. Yes, yes, I know. This will likely create a rift amongst the group that will cause problems in the decades to come, but sometimes the truth hurts. And can you blame her? I mean, the boy has the most beautifully round head in all of babydom.
–We went out to dinner twice while there, in both cases to semi-formal places. (Of course, semi-formal in Florida means you have to wear your nice flip-flops.) Both times, Henry was terrific and was more than happy to sit either in his stroller or on someone’s lap. All flatware, dishes, glasses, and butter (oh, the squishy, wonderful butter) had to be pushed to past his reach, but he was great. (At dinner on Monday, we saw this 55-year-old man wearing a t-shirt with an airbrushed picture of what we assumed to be his deceased bichon frise. That goes beyond semi-formal to welcome to Project Runway.) We haven’t really gone out to nice dinners with Henry in Chicago, not because we were afraid he’d be a bad dinner guest but because he usually is in his crib by 6:30. This gives us hope that when he does decide to stay awake a little later, he’ll be fine.
–Speaking of sleeping, the one issue in which Henry was not so great was taking naps and sleeping at night. Too many exciting things, too much sunlight, and a crib that is not his regular one meant that those nice long naps were shortened or abolished when he refused to snooze and waking up three times at night was the norm. Even when we got home, and Henry having dark circles under his eyes, we had to battle for him to take his nap. (He finally did succumb to the snooze for a nice 2-hour sleep, but he didn’t like a minute of it!)
–Henry likes the beach but is not so fond of the cold water. The Chicago winter is long and not so fun, and it’s been many months since he’s felt sun and 80-plus-degree weather, but Monday morning we went off to Clearwater beach and walked along the pier and through the sand, and Henry (slathered in SPF 950 and wearing a hat) loved every minute of it. The only thing he didn’t care for was the water, still a chilly 66o, so I suppose we’ll have to return later on when it gets a little more like bath water.
Overall, it was a great trip, and as soon as we recover from lack of sleep, carrying around too-heavy luggage and car seats, and the metal bar that was positioned right in the small of my back on the sofa bed (why did they ever think that was a good design?), we’ll be back.
March 11th, 2009 at 5:10 pm
Loved having you here for a visit… more visits are definitly in order
<we’d love to see the other pictures too>
March 12th, 2009 at 10:29 am
We heard you were headed down there… Jeff and I still have to find a way to see Oma with Tyler and Austin. Sounds like you had a great time!! And you get him in bed by 6:30 every night? I’m so impressed! We’re usually not even home by then. Austin and Tyler never make it to bed until 8:30, at the earliest.