First flight with the baby
Okay, so I'm a bit late. Forgive me. I basically lost a day traveling and it's still Thursday evening where I'm at, so I don't feel so bad.
We touched down a little less than 24 hours ago. I'm so proud of Bash. He was such a champion. We had two flights to get here and the first one was only an hour long. I considered that one the tester flight. Bash sure aced that test. Swedie gave him a bottle as we were taking off to combat ear popping. It must have worked. He drank in peace and went to sleep for most of the flight. It was awesome.
The second flight started off a little scary. First off, in typical Expat Jon fashion, I strategically walked away and abandoned Swedie in an awkward conversation with a fellow traveler. Glad it wasn't me. I came back and Swedie tried to return the favor, but I was too slick for that. Won't get me! We got on the flight at Bash's lunch time. We tried to hold off until we departed so we could feed him like that first flight, but Bash did not care about our plans. He wanted to eat. I understood. We gave in and fed him to keep from being "those parents". His whining was loud and it felt like every parent on the plane was judging me.
It worked out. If his ears popping bothered him at all, I couldn't tell. I even got a little cocky about it. People always told me how things are just... hard. But that hasn't been the case. My boy has been quite the All-Star since he got here. Not to brag, but that's just cold hard facts. I know I sound a bit biased, but he's literally the best kid ever.
The cool thing was seeing Bash try and engage with other kids. He gets excited and tries to do his little knee-bender dance. He looked over the seat at the Danish kids behind us. He wanted to play. They mumbled back and forth to each other. Bash slept for most of the flight. He whined only when he got hungry. Swedie was such a trooper taking care of him. I just did whatever she said (as always) and all went well. It was a smooth flight. Bash is the best!
When we got here, our good friends had everything set up for us as perfect hosts do. We really appreciate them. I wish they would come to Sweden so we can try and spoil them as they do us whenever we come here. This morning I got a phone and made the ride into Liberty City. I love that nostalgic feeling I have whenever crossing that bridge into the hood. To the left is a beautiful view of downtown and to the right is the beautiful pastel mosaic of the gritty neighborhood that I spent so much of my childhood in. I thought of the stories I'd tell Bash whenever he gets it. I can't wait until he's old enough to understand this city of mine and gets a familiarity with his roots. One of those roots is my uncle Moonk. Moonk has always been wild and carefree with kids. I still remember him playfully throwing his young daughter into walls and doors when she was a baby. She never got hurt, but it still used to scare me. As soon as he got a chance, Moonk snatched Bash up and ran around with him. It was so awesome to see. The next generation is here and ready to learn from us oldie-but-goodies.
Bash was not impressed. He was scared of this bearded man running around with him like he was a football. Bash began the cry stage (pouted bottom lip). Is it weird that that's cute to me? Everything that kid does is cute to me. Moonk got him back calm and then Bash was a big fan. He flirted with any women around and acted suspicious of the men/boys. That's my boy! It was so cool to see my little eight-year-old cousin crawling around with my son. Such a good feeling. I was just taking it all in.
There are more people for Bash to meet. He's met Moonk, Moonk's son and Grandmother so far. Seeing their faces as they look at my son is an awesome thing. Tomorrow we delve in deeper into the US relatives. Bash doesn't even know what's in store for him. I can't wait! Until next time.
We touched down a little less than 24 hours ago. I'm so proud of Bash. He was such a champion. We had two flights to get here and the first one was only an hour long. I considered that one the tester flight. Bash sure aced that test. Swedie gave him a bottle as we were taking off to combat ear popping. It must have worked. He drank in peace and went to sleep for most of the flight. It was awesome.
The second flight started off a little scary. First off, in typical Expat Jon fashion, I strategically walked away and abandoned Swedie in an awkward conversation with a fellow traveler. Glad it wasn't me. I came back and Swedie tried to return the favor, but I was too slick for that. Won't get me! We got on the flight at Bash's lunch time. We tried to hold off until we departed so we could feed him like that first flight, but Bash did not care about our plans. He wanted to eat. I understood. We gave in and fed him to keep from being "those parents". His whining was loud and it felt like every parent on the plane was judging me.
It worked out. If his ears popping bothered him at all, I couldn't tell. I even got a little cocky about it. People always told me how things are just... hard. But that hasn't been the case. My boy has been quite the All-Star since he got here. Not to brag, but that's just cold hard facts. I know I sound a bit biased, but he's literally the best kid ever.
The cool thing was seeing Bash try and engage with other kids. He gets excited and tries to do his little knee-bender dance. He looked over the seat at the Danish kids behind us. He wanted to play. They mumbled back and forth to each other. Bash slept for most of the flight. He whined only when he got hungry. Swedie was such a trooper taking care of him. I just did whatever she said (as always) and all went well. It was a smooth flight. Bash is the best!
When we got here, our good friends had everything set up for us as perfect hosts do. We really appreciate them. I wish they would come to Sweden so we can try and spoil them as they do us whenever we come here. This morning I got a phone and made the ride into Liberty City. I love that nostalgic feeling I have whenever crossing that bridge into the hood. To the left is a beautiful view of downtown and to the right is the beautiful pastel mosaic of the gritty neighborhood that I spent so much of my childhood in. I thought of the stories I'd tell Bash whenever he gets it. I can't wait until he's old enough to understand this city of mine and gets a familiarity with his roots. One of those roots is my uncle Moonk. Moonk has always been wild and carefree with kids. I still remember him playfully throwing his young daughter into walls and doors when she was a baby. She never got hurt, but it still used to scare me. As soon as he got a chance, Moonk snatched Bash up and ran around with him. It was so awesome to see. The next generation is here and ready to learn from us oldie-but-goodies.
Bash was not impressed. He was scared of this bearded man running around with him like he was a football. Bash began the cry stage (pouted bottom lip). Is it weird that that's cute to me? Everything that kid does is cute to me. Moonk got him back calm and then Bash was a big fan. He flirted with any women around and acted suspicious of the men/boys. That's my boy! It was so cool to see my little eight-year-old cousin crawling around with my son. Such a good feeling. I was just taking it all in.
There are more people for Bash to meet. He's met Moonk, Moonk's son and Grandmother so far. Seeing their faces as they look at my son is an awesome thing. Tomorrow we delve in deeper into the US relatives. Bash doesn't even know what's in store for him. I can't wait! Until next time.
Comments
Post a Comment