The Travel Challenge Part One: Driving to Denver

   Our first vacation with Oliver was a week long trip to Denver. We not only drove to Denver but we also stayed in a hotel for a week. I was a little nervous about the car ride because it was eight hours totally dependent on the whims of an infant. Oliver is an extremely laid back kid and tends to handle new things well so I put my faith in his ability to keep his cool. My confidence in him was rewarded. He did great and seemed to enjoy all the new experiences.

   The car trip started off well, we left in the morning and Oliver immediately fell asleep. He slept for two hours. Easan and I were able to sit up front together and talk and tick away those miles. He woke up when we stopped and I changed him and tried to nurse him. He wasn't too into nursing in the car, so I plugged in my pump (love having a car with a regular plug in the back seat) and pumped a bottle for him. He drank the whole bottle no problem. After that, I didn't even try to nurse him in the car, just pumped a bottle and fed him in his seat. That way Easan could drive and we wouldn't lose any time. We took turns sitting in the back with him, playing with toys, watching Sesame Street on the tablet and playing peek-a-boo with the blanket. Easan is particularly masterful at peek-a-boo. He started getting a little cranky as we arrived at the city limits of Denver. It had been eight hours of driving and the kid doesn't get cranky until the very end? Not too bad.

Ready to hit the town in Denver.

 We stayed in a Hotel downtown for the entire week. Funny the things you get nervous about and the things that don't even phase you. I was all worried about the drive, but the thought of sharing a hotel room with an infant for a week didn't even occur to me as a bad idea. A friend said something about it right before we left, but it was too late to change our plans. Luckily, Oliver did great once again. He slept in the pack-and-play just fine even when the light was still on and Easan and I were still awake watching TV.  And he didn't really cry at night, much to the relief of our neighbors. The cutest thing about staying in a hotel with a baby is how he became a little celebrity. As one valet eloquently put it "Damn! That's a cute-ass baby!" Everyone loved to see him and he drew lots of attention every time we brought him with us to the hotel bar's happy hour. Yes we brought our baby to the bar for a drink. We couldn't leave him in the room!

Oliver met a shark!

Denver was a blast, Oliver and I went to the Aquarium, the zoo, the Museum of Science and Nature and the Denver Art Museum. I think he most enjoyed the aquarium and the art museum. The aquarium was full of exhibits that surrounded you on all sides which he seemed intrigued by. Unfortunately, it was also full of really loud little kids who at one point made him cry. the jerks! The zoo may have been a little advanced for him, he didn't seem to register many of the animals, except for the Monkey Island exhibit. There were all kinds of monkeys running all over the place and they kinda looked like kitties. Oliver was intrigued. 

One happy guy even after eight hours of driving.

   The drive home was even better than the drive there. Oliver was cheerful the entire way back. But the best part of the trip home was when we actually arrived back at our house. Oliver was so excited to be home. When we took him out of the seat, he was looking all around and squealing and kicking his legs. We put him in his jumper and he bounced ecstatically while making happy shrieks. I guess the kid missed his house.
  


 Things I learned about long drives with the kid: distraction and naps all the way.