Week 12 - On the Road

Week 12 Picture

I apologize for being a late on my post this week. It's been a crazy couple of days between trying to get the house ready to be listed, getting caught up on a pile of time sensitive work, and hitting the road for Jay's first trip to the motherland - beautiful, colorful, Colorado.

This is a big trip for us. For all but a select few members of our family and friends, this trip will be the first chance for all the important people in our life to meet our little man. We just arrived in Pueblo a few hours ago to begin the first leg of our journey. We'll be down here until roughly Tuesday, when we head up north to spend the second half of our trip in Denver.

Although I never though it would be easy, I somehow think I managed to underestimate how much more complex a long car ride becomes when you have an infant. Our car is packed to the brim with all the various things we need to take care of his various feeding, sleeping, pooping, and entertainment needs. The first couple hours of the drive were a bit rough, as he had never been in a car for that long his entire life. After that, he settled into a rhythm and slept most of the remaining trip. If anything, the long car ride improved his overall disposition in that it gave him a chance to catch up on some much needed sleep. This may explain why he's been especially sweet ever since we rolled into town - exactly how you want your baby to behave when meeting new people.

One big change we've noticed in his gross motor skill development over the last week is a marked preference for  maintaining his verticality. It can be a bit disconcerting holding him when he tries to throw his head forward so that he can get a better view of his surroundings. Letting him support his own neck goes against all those new parent instincts you quickly develop in the first few weeks that tell you an unsupported baby head is strictly forbidden. If anything, this is only a sign of things to come. Jay rolled over from him tummy to his back for the first a few days ago, although he's only successfully performed this feat on soft surfaces thus far. As with any change, there are things to look forward to as a result of his impending mobility and things to dread. The older he gets, the more advanced our relationship becomes, which has been super rewarding. Still, I'm not looking forward to the million additional things you have to worry about when baby's are able to navigate their surroundings on their own. Just today, I heard a story of a baby admitted to the ER after ingesting a watch battery. Nevertheless, Jay's continual development is really encouraging. It's when things stop developing that you have to worry.

So keep growing and changing son of mine. Just not too fast.