Lots of Firsts for Leo

This week was filled with lots of firsts for Leo. Among them were his first flight, his first wedding, his first time leaving the state etc. Leo and I accompanied my mom to California to attend my cousin Tina's wedding from August 1-4. I would lie if I said it was easy, because it was anything but, but there were certainly some good times to be had. Leo did well on the flight over, but the flight back, from Orange County to San Francisco was dreadful! Leo must have had some horrible ear pain on the descent, and although I had read to have him swallow with either the aid of eating or the pacifier, he would not take to either. It broke my heart and there was nothing we could do to help him and at that point, I did not even care how the other passengers felt. I just wanted my baby to stop hurting. We did make it safely and Leo eventually stopped crying.

Leo also did not fare well in the car. Even though I was in the back seat with him, he cried nearly every time we were in the car, which was often. These car rides nearly made us pull out our hair.

Leo also knows exactly who his mommy is and only wants to be held by me. Once when we were going shopping, we decided to leave a sleeping Leo in his car seat and in the care of my Grandma, who was going to relax while my mom and I shopped. When I returned 15 minutes later to check on Leo and Grandma, a customer was trying to sooth a screaming Leo and looked at me like I was the worst mother in the world for having left him in the care of an elderly lady. It seems that in the 15 minutes, he screamed bloody murder the whole time and had created quite a scene. My Grandma was surrounded by several store clerks, customers and the store's security guard. Of course, as soon as I picked him up, he stopped crying and even had the audacity to smile at me....little brat! In retrospect, it is quite amusing and we all had a good laugh over it.

On the bright side, Leo was a champ in most social situations. We had a few lunches out with relatives and he was well behaved provided I held him. He was also a hit at the wedding. He was awake the whole time (5-9 p.m.) and didn't cry at all. At one point, every guest was dancing, so we had great fun. Everybody loved meeting Leo and I was a very proud mommy.

If given the chance to go again, I may have opted out. Leo is only 4 months old and a fussy baby too. I am thrilled that the family was able to meet him when he is still so new, so that was very rewarding. It was also great to be able to see relatives I haven't seen in many years. I just look forward to the day when travel is a bit easier and Leo can tell us what is bothering him.

Now that we are home, I feel I can handle any situation with Leo. I have a lot more confidence in myself as a mother. Leo and I were both excited about being reunited with Daddy. He missed us so much and the time apart makes us feel even happier that we are a family. Joe also swears that Leo looked much bigger upon our return. Leo ate very often on the trip (probably to soothe himself), so this may be true.