Road Trip!!

It was a dark and stormy night...that's funny, this is how Kalin's birth story started out. Except this time it's true. Our trip to Hemet started out dark and stormy. The forecast called for rain for pretty much the entire state which meant we would be traveling in it our whole trip. I love the rain, but not when I'm traveling. We made it out of the house at 6 (which was my goal!!) and had an uneventful trip (except for the rain which started as soon as we got on the 5 to head south). The heaviest part of the storm was in the LA and Pasadena area which we drove right through and wasn't much fun at 12 o'clock at night. We saw numerous accidents which made me even more nervous but we rolled into town at 2:30, ready for a nice warm bed and some sleep. Well, that's what Kasey and I were ready for. Kalin was ready to play. I had the trip all planned. I would sit in the backseat with Kalin for the first couple hours to keep him awake. We would play, sing, and read books. We would then stop where I would feed him for the last time that night and then he would sleep the rest of the trip and we would walk into the house and put him to bed where he would stay for at least 5 more hours. Why I thought it would work this way, I don't know. You'd think after having a baby for 11 months I would be smarter than that. It all worked great until it was time for Kasey and I to go bed. Kalin would NOT go back to sleep!! To make an already long story short, Kasey and I got less than 3 hours of sleep that night. Not the best way to start off our vacation. But we recovered and were able to have a WONDERFUL time with family. Sadly, we didn't get to see many friends but we will be back down in a month so we'll plan on seeing people then.

I had thought with Kalin being almost 11 months (and not needing to nurse every two hours), driving at night (again, and not needing to nurse every two hours), and this being our 4th "vacation" with him, things might go smoothly from start to finish. The trip itself was great, it was the after effects of 8 hours in the car that caused us problems. He was crankier than usual and more "mommy-obsessed" than here at home. It seemed like if he could hear me, see me, or even smell me, he had to be with me. He gets like that a little bit here at home but it seemed so much worse. It's not that I mind holding him and carrying him around with me (although it would be nice to go to the bathroom or eat a meal without him whining for me) but I felt bad for everybody else that was there. Our families hadn't seen him since July and they wanted to hold him and play with him and take care of him but he kept crying for me. It seems silly to complain about this since I'm sure the days of his attachment to me will come to an end all too soon and I'll be looking back with fondness saying, "Remember when I was the only person he wanted to be with?" His crankiness was probably more evident to Kasey and I than to anybody else. I know that they all still enjoyed him immensely and loved seeing his new "tricks" and skills. And, of course, nobody ever got tired of his "cartoon" smile.


It was Kalin's first Thanksgiving and I was so glad that he was old enough to try alot of the different dishes available. It made it so exciting that he could share the meal with us. He and his cousin Hailee sat next to each other in their high chairs while my sister, Bekah, and I fed them bits of meat and other delicious food items. Good times.


Kalin also got his first haircut!! It was really just a little trim. Grandma Jody trimmed his long bangs and the hair over his ears along with the hair on his neck. And, of course, I have a little baggy of his hair for his baby book.

The trip back home seemed long but was uneventful (just the way a road trip should be). We got home at 11:40 Saturday night and Kalin went right back to bed (thank goodness!!). We all slept in Sunday morning (even Kalin) and took it easy the rest of the day. It was a good vacation and we look forward to seeing everybody again in a month for Christmas "South" and Kalin's FIRST birthday.