Mama and Our First Family Vacation

The day before we left for our vacation, I got a wonderful surprise! Mason said his first recognizable word - Mama. He's been talking about someone named "Ina" for quite some time, but we've never been sure what that meant. So, my heart warmed as I was called Mama for the first time!!

Our First Family Vacation

The preparations were plenty, the anxiety high, but all paid off and we had a wonderful first family vacation to Legendary Lodge with my mom's side of the family. Our reunions started in 1977 (when my brother was 1 month younger than Mason is now) and have continued every other year ever since. We are happy to say that we were able to continue the tradition and attend this year's reunion.




The Drive:
We spent our first night in Spokane after a 6 hour drive. Despite only really sleeping for about 10 minutes or so a couple of times, Mason did great in the car. He entertained himself by watching the stuff in the back of the truck (still rear-facing as he's teetering around 20#) and playing with his toys. Papa rigged up a feeding pole across the ceiling of the back seat in the truck so we could feed Mason on his regular schedule and keep driving. The next day, Mason didn't really want to get back into the car for another long drive (I'm not sure how he knew, but he did), but again was a champ. He slept for about an hour this time, but was still not fussy during the drive. The drive back was no different. For all we have to go through with everything else, we are lucky that our little traveler is so good in the car.

The Fireworks:

Mason has had a sensitive spirit in the last month or so. Whenever someone yells or talks in a stern tone near him, he reacts with the cutest little pouty face and if not reassured soon, he will cry. The same thing happened with the 4th of July fireworks - at first. Once we were able to reassure him that they were not going to hurt him, he actually enjoyed the fireworks quite a bit. Sitting on his aunt's lap, he kicked his feet happily and looked up expectantly every time he heard a boom. I think he really enjoyed himself.

The Oxygen:
It took Mason a couple of days, but he ended up needing about the same if not a little less oxygen than he needs at home. We were so grateful for his oxygen stability. Mama's anxiety lessened over time as we were sure he was doing ok and would continue to do so throughout the week - well, and after the 2nd delivery from the oxygen vendor (after they only delivered 1/2 of what we needed the first time).

The Mood:
Unfortunately, we saw a little increase in crabbiness in our little one. The timing for the vacation couldn't have been worse for him with the heat (and no air conditioning), the wind (sustained and very difficult for Mason to catch his breath), the constant stimulus (lights, noise, and things to look at), and of course teething (cutting 2 molars right now). He was still able to entertain us most of the time with his smiles and giggles.

Thanks to everyone who helped us out over the last week. We had a very fun and very successful family vacation. We look forward to many, many more in the years to come. It's nice to know we have such a great traveler!