East coast bound

Tomorrow (well, technically today) I make my second cross country trip with the Bumpus. Somehow I have a feeling I won't be as anxious as last time, even though there are all kinds of new variables this time - traveling alone, having to park in a long distance lot and take a bus to the airport, bringing the stroller. While in NYC I will probably only use the carrier (can't imagine using a stroller on the subway), but in DC I think the stroller will be more useful. Bumpus can actually hang out in it happily these days, and the carrier gets hot. I am trying to cram everything into a small carry-on sized suitcase and it's proving to be very difficult. And it's dumb because I'm going to check it anyway. But I just can't deal with my giant suitcase - not with a stroller, too. Once again, I need about eight hands to handle this and I only have two (the Mother's lament)!

It will be interesting to have the baby in the place where I (primarily) grew up. I wish he was old enough to be interactive with it (see, this is where mommy lived when she was your age). Lately I've found myself wishing a lot that he could enjoy things - all the cool
places we can go and stuff we can do, but it's all lost on him because he's just a baby. He can't play yet. But when I think that I try to remember to enjoy the time now - he's easy and full of joy and innocent. It's like my parent friends tell me - every age has unique advantages and disadvantages. So I'm just trying to enjoy today.

Having a few pregnant friends and reading blogs of recently pregnant women is like walking down (recent) memory lane. Oh lord, the sickness! The progesterone suppositories! The fear of miscarriage! This time last year I was pretty much glued to the bathroom floor with a small piece of cardboard from the Mad Men season 3 DVD box in my hand. With the searing heat, and the unused pool outside my bedroom window taunting me. The summer of '11 is for me officially The Summer That Never Was. But it was the summer that grew me a healthy baby boy, so I guess that's something!

Bumpus had another huge poo explosion in his bouncy seat again this morning. I have tried to wash it to
little avail. Anybody want to buy a used bouncy seat stained with my son's excrement? 10% off!