Kalin's first plane ride went just about as well as I could have expected.
We breezed through check-in and security and then had just under 2 hours to sit and wait. It didn't help that our plane was already running a little late. Thankfully, the terminal was fairly empty when we first got there so I spent much of that first hour following Kalin around. I figured it would be best to let him walk as much as possible before we had to get on the plane. We walked up and down the terminal a couple times. 
He had a blast climbing on the seats and over the arm rests and spent a good amount of time eating Cheerios, reading books, and drinking water. Then he started to get sleepy (it was already way past his naptime) and since it was getting crowded I couldn't let him wander around as much. Finally, we got on the plane. His favorite thing to play with was the tray table latch. He did really well during take-off. We let him have his pacifier and sippy cup and his ears didn't seem to bother him at all. He looked out of the window a little bit but didn't seem quite as interested as I had hoped. 
Then he started to get really squirmy. My mom did a good job keeping him occupied with Cheerios, pretzels, and some juice. The flight went really fast and before we knew it, they were cleaning up the cabin and getting ready for landing - of course, there was supposed to be lots of turbulence on our descent so they cleaned up early to give the flight attendants time to get situated. This is when Kalin started to get really, really cranky. I don't know if the change in pressure had anything to do with it or if he was just really tired and upset that he couldn't get down and play. He spent a couple minutes crying and screaming until he finally just collapsed on my chest while I rocked back and forth. He slept straight through the landing, deplaning, the walk through the airport, and then 10-15 minutes of me sitting in baggage claim while my mom got our baggage. 
He only woke up when it was time to walk outside and the chilly wind hit him. Overall, it was a very successful trip but I really would not want to carry a lap-infant for any longer than that hour-long flight.My mom was such a big help while we were in Hemet. She watched Kalin a couple times while I needed to attend wedding activities. She even spent the night with him while I attended a bachelorette sleep-over. Yes, that's right, I spent my first night away from Kalin. I was away from him for about 17 hours. It was fun, refreshing, and sad. It was so nice to be able to hang out with the girls and not have to
worry about being anywhere at a specific time. I was free of my normal responsibilities and obligations. Of course I called in to check on him after I knew he was down for the night and I thought about him through the evening and wondered what he was up to - but I knew that if anything happened my mom would call me. It was a good experience.I spent a lot of time away from him the rest of the weekend too.
The Priors were a huge help while I attended the rehearsal and dinner. They fed him, played with him, took him to the park (because that's what good aunts do), and bathed him. I made it home from the dinner just in time to put him to bed. Wedding day came and I was feeling reluctant about leaving him again for several hours. But I didn't really have a choice. I was hoping to make it back home in time to put him to bed but he
was really tired after spending time out in the hot sun and went to bed early. Oh well. I knew that, starting the next day, we would be back to our normal schedule - where the only breaks I have are his naptimes. It's funny how much I long for some time to myself or to do something not related to Kalin, and yet when I get that opportunity, I spend a lot of the time missing him. I guess it was just a lot of time away in a short period of time. I need to space it out more.
We had a great time in Hemet and an uneventful drive home."Chocolate" seems to be Kalin's new favorite word. It started on our drive home. Kasey was sitting in the back with Kalin while I was up front with my dad and I heard Kalin start repeating the same "word" over and over. I looked back and he was pointing at something Kasey had. It was Kasey's Cadbury chocolate bar. Since then, anytime he spots chocolate, he says his special little word. I think it might be one of those words that only parents understand. It doesn't sound a whole lot like "chocolate" but it is most definitely what he is referring too. I think I got some good video of him saying it the other day. I'll have to see about posting that sometime soon. The bad thing about this being one of his first words is that in order to hear him say it, I have to offer him chocolate, and that's not something I'm willing to do 10 times a day just for the pleasure of hearing him say the word. I find it funny that this is one of his first words. It's not like he eats it that often. I really expected ball, or monkey, or Cheerios to be one of the firsts.
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