Everything is slower when you have a baby — especially if you go on vacation.
My husband and I hemmed and hawed about whether to take our 6-month-old daughter to visit his family on Long Island. We tend to be anxious about germs. Packing up the baby and all her stuff seemed like a lot. But dozens of aunts, uncles and cousins would be in town for a family funeral. My mother-in-law was excited about the prospect of a visit, and we wanted our daughter to meet her big Italian clan. Could she really spend hours in the car? We decided to find out.
Our first hurdle: getting out the door. Packing the car meant playing baby gear Jenga, learning that no matter how hard we tried, there was no way to wedge both our stroller and our bassinet into the trunk. I packed the bouncy seat, sterilizer, bottles, breast pump, pump parts. I remembered teethers, toys, play mat, diapers. But I forgot something important: wipes.
A four-hour road trip does not actually take four hours when you’re traveling with a baby. We stopped just 45 minutes into our drive when the screaming reached a fever pitch. I nursed our daughter at a rest stop, sitting in the front seat of the car, in view of a bunch of 18-wheelers, until we discovered that inside there was a lactation room (bravo, New York State!). We changed another diaper by the side of the road, and didn’t get to my-mother-in-law’s house until very, very late.
Driving might have been a challenge, but introducing our daughter to the family was a joy. She smiled at everyone she met. People’s faces lit up when we brought her into the room. And the trip felt like a vacation: we brought the baby to the beach and put her toes in the water. We took her swimming in a pool. We grilled burgers and stayed up late, talking to our relatives and watching the fireflies.
Many of you reading this are seasoned parents, and the days of cramming baby gear into the car are now in the rear view mirror. But if, like me, you’re new to this whole parenting thing, I encourage you to be brave. Take your baby somewhere you want to go. It might just be the vacation you need.
— Sarah Harris
I’m Sarah Harris, the Addison Independent’s new Digital and Calendar Editor.
Do you have a story to share about life with young kids in Addison County? We’d love to hear from you! Email [email protected].