Mommy and Daddy aren’t the only ones who have been out and about. Tanner is getting his fair share of outings, too! We’ve taken him on lots and lots of walks and we’ve been to the beach, restaraunts, stores and even amusement parks. Every trip has been an adventure, some easier and more fun than others. Below are some experiences, among many, that we’ve had with Tanner in public.
Experience: Buca de Peppo We decided to splurge at an expensive restaurant for Jeremy. (This was one day before his class party in LA). I had gone to a restaurant with MomZ the week before, and it was a piece of cake. Well, that wasn’t the case this time. As soon as we were seated, Tanner started fussing. Hungry again! I swear I fed him right before we left, which couldn’t have been more than 30 minutes ago, right? Wrong. I fed him, then got ready, then packed his diaper bag, then loaded the car, then drove to the restaurant, then waited to be seated. So even though it only felt like 30 minutes, it really was 2.5 hours since he last ate.
So there we were at the restaurant trying to order, trying to have adult conversation, and there’s this baby fussing and screaming in our ears! We managed to pacify him until the food came. I got three bites of my dinner and then he lost it. I wanted to nurse him right there, but it seemed weird with the set-up and the chairs. So I decided to feed him in the car and come back as soon as he was satisfied.
Poor Jeremy ended up eating all by himself. I should have known better! Jeremy waited for 35 minutes, then paid the check and came to find us in the car. I wasn’t joking when I asked him, “Is this what our lives have come to?” He assured me that we would get the hang of things soon.
Experience: Universal Studios When the Zavoral family came to visit, they planned a day at Universal Studios. I figured, “Why stay at home all day when my family is in town?” So Tanner and I tagged along. When we were in line for the studio tour (which was awesome), I noticed that we were the only ones with a 5 week old baby. I started to wonder if I was crazy for bringing Tanner there. But then I noticed we were also the only ones with great-grandparents, too. So I just decided if really old people could be there, then really young people could be there too!
The day went better than you’d expect! Probably because of my meticulous planning the night before. I spent almost two hours filling the stroller, diaper bag and adult backpack with all the essentails. I’m very proud to say that it paid off! We had everything we needed. Tanner slept in both the stroller and bjorn most of the day. I visited with the family in the lines and if Tanner couldn’t go on the ride, I just walked through while the others rode. There were times when the entertainment was so loud that I wanted to cry for Tanner’s ear drums. But Tanner only cried when he was hungry. I used a bottle of breast milk for every other feeding so that we didn’t have to stop the group so much. For the other feedings, I figured out how to breastfeed in public really quick!
Below: This is what much of the weekend looked like- deciding what to do next.
Experience: Wahoo Taco Explosion- My sister’s flight was delayed, so we had time to eat out at Wahoo Taco’s. Once we got the carseat situated on the table, Tanner started fussing. I pulled him out of the carseat, and was just about to hand him to Desha when a stream of pea-green poop oozed down my arm and dripped onto Desha’s placemat. Ugh! No wonder he was fussy! There was poop smeared all over the carseat and Tanner’s clothes. We booked it to the bathroom. But does this place have a changing table? Noooo. Of course not. So I made a human changing table with the changing mat and Tanner draped over my arms. Desha used about 50 wipes to clean up everything. Another funny thing, I had been carrying around a change of clothes and plastic baggies for explosive situations this whole time, but of course, were either of those in my diaper bag when we needed them? So is life!
