On the Road with Nicholas

Some of our readers (I can only assume the ones who don't know us personally) may still harbor delusions that Sarah and I retain even a shred of our sanity.  Please allow me to correct the record with the following factoid.

When we left Baltimore yesterday morning to drive to Louisville, the clock in the car read 3:04.   Yes, we decided to get on the road at 3am.

In a strange way, it made sense.  We had meant to leave right after one of Nicholas's feedings during the night, so that we could get a few hours under our belts before he thought it was daytime.  We packed up the car on Sunday afternoon/evening so that we could leave early -- we figured sometime like 4:30 or 5:00.  But at about 2 am, Sarah and I were both awake with to-do (and shoulda-done) lists in our heads for the trip.  Sarah said she felt good enough to drive, I was too tired to question her.  So we finished loading the car and put Nicholas in his car seat.  As I was buckling him in, he woke up and gave me a little smile, and then got a look on his face that said two things: 1. Where are we going in the middle of the night?!?! and 2. My parents have spent 12 weeks trying to get me to sleep at night ... have they lost their minds?!?!

With everything packed up, and Nicholas still looking completely puzzled, off we went, into the darkness of the Maryland mountains in the predawn hours.  Near the city Nicholas was awake because of the street lights, but he soon enough fell back asleep.  It was a little hairy for a few minutes when it was particularly dark and there weren't enough other vehicles on the road to help us navigate, but all in all it worked out fine.

It actually worked out perfectly for Nicholas.  He slept until 7 or so, so we stopped at a McDonald's, got a little bite to eat, and fed him and let him be awake.  Towards mid-morning, we stopped at a rest area in West Virginia, where we could walk around a little and give him some awake time.  And of course we got to rest from driving.  And we stopped about 3 hours short of Louisville to see one of Sarah's aunts, who was very anxious to meet Nicholas (and is a regular blog reader ... hi Aunt Peggy!).

So now we're in Louisville, where Nicholas has met four of his great-grandparents, and will be meeting a yet-to-be-determined number of great-aunts, great-uncles, and cousins.  And so far he seems to be taking things well.  He was up frequently overnight, with the new bed and unfamiliar surroundings, but he's had a great day today.  Here's hoping he has a few more in him!