Connor's Growing Up

Well, we went to Hawaii this summer, and just returned a couple of weeks ago. It was my first trip there, and of course Connor's as well. It was a great time, as we spent it on the Waikiki Beach at the Queen Kapiolani Hotel. While there we of course went swimming at the ocean. Connor enjoyed the water, though I think he enjoyed playing in the sand more. We also got to visit the Honolulu Zoo, which was just across the street from our hotel, as well as drive to the Polynesian Cultural Center, Pearl Harbor, Disney's Aulani, and the Dole Plantation. And for some exercise, we even rented bikes with a toddler trailer from our hotel and took a ride around town. In-between we did a lot of walking and exploring of the Waikiki area, and of course trying out the many restaurants they have there.

All in all, it was a great trip, though I'll have to go back again when I'm not saddled with a toddler and visit the Polynesian Center and Pearl Harbor. Kind of tough to do cultural things with a baby. Especially when he starts screaming because he's tired. Like he did at the USS Arizona Memorial. Sigh. And the Polynesian Center - fun place though it's basically open from 12-5 basically, since the performers in each land have to also do the evening luau show (which we didn't attempt). You really need more time than that to fully explore the place and really try out all the cultural shows and activities they have.

Anyways, the thing we worried about most before leaving on this trip was the plane ride, since, although we bought Connor a seat so he could be in his car seat, it was still a long time to expect him to accept sitting in one place. A 90 minute delay on the trip out due to a faulty warning light didn't help either. But, really, he handled it pretty well. And having distractions such as toy cars and plenty of Pringles certainly helped!

Well, he's made another milestone since we got back. Just this week we upgraded him from a crib to a toddler bed. So now, he technically doesn't HAVE to stay in the bed once we put him down. On the first night, he actually wandered out a fell asleep just inside the bedroom door. I discovered this as I went in to check in on him and promptly ran the door into his head...ooops. But he didn't wake up! Thank goodness. At 2:40am that morning he awoke crying; I think he got scared because it was dark and he couldn't remember where he was. So I put him back in his bed and he fell asleep fairly quickly after that.

This was three nights ago. The last two nights he's actually crawled back into his bed himself after exploring; I guess he realized it's much more comfortable than the floor!