Tucker Tuesday: Week 36 (A Week in Florida)

I was planning on doing a couple of blog posts during Tucker's naps or after he went to bed while we were in Florida, but he had a little too much fun while we were on vacation!  When we got to the hotel, they told us that they couldn't find their pack and play, so we had to put the mattress of a cot on the floor and have him sleep on that.  He had a hard time napping on it because I think he thought he was on the floor and that it was playtime.  Most nights, he would roll around and babble to himself for at least an hour before we finally got him to sleep and often it was longer, so we didn't have much time before we went to bed.  I felt like a terrible mother putting my 8 month old to bed without a crib, but it all worked out ok.  I was so worried that he would roll off and get hurt the first night that I didn't sleep very well, but I shouldn't have been so concerned.  He would make noise every time he woke up, which would wake me up, and then I would find him sitting by the mattress or on his tummy rolling around.  He has learned how to go from laying on his tummy to sitting upright, and he gets so excited after he does it because he knows that Mommy and Daddy are going to give him a big round of applause.  He still isn't crawling forwards, but he has gotten up onto his hands and feet (like a downward dog for you yoga buffs) and rocked a little bit.  I'm not sure what he's thinking he will do in this position, but it looks like he wants to move around like this.

He tried several new food while we were on vacation.  First of all, he tried store bought food for the first time!  (Check out the cute stroller picture below when we were buying the food.)   Most of the pouches of food that we bought had several foods in them, so it's hard to say if he truly liked the new foods or not.  Some of the new foods were raspberries, tomatoes, lentils, sweet corn, peas, parsnips, rutabagas, oranges, and apricots.  We also let him have some of the white flesh off of our baked potato, and you could tell that he felt like such a big boy eating the same food as Mom and Dad.

I will try to give a quick daily recap of each day of our vacation.  On Tuesday, we woke up at 2 AM and headed to the airport.  We hoped that Tucker would go back to sleep in his car seat, but he was too interested in whatever Mommy and Daddy thought would be so fun that early in the morning.  He looked around in awe as we went through security, and eventually fell asleep on the airplane.  He woke up for about 30 minutes of the first flight and then about an hour for the second flight, but he played with his toys and ate some solid food.  We got settled into our hotel, ate dinner on our balcony, and scooted around on the floor.

Wednesday and Thursday we went for walks at nature preserves in the morning.  Jeremy carried Tucker in the Ergobaby so he could get a morning nap.  On Wednesday we went to a Cuban diner for breakfast and had some amazing coffee!  Thursday we went to a Farmer's Market in Fort Myers.  It was disappointing, but it was only a couple blocks from a donut shop, called Bennett's, that I had wanted to try.  We went for lunch and I enjoyed a delicious Heath donut.  If you know my husband, you know that he must try unusual hot dogs when he finds one.  In Sweden that meant it was topped with seafood salad and wrapped in a tortilla.  In France, it meant that it was on a baguette and topped with cheese.  In Hawaii, it meant that it was topped with mango sauce.  Well, in Florida, the hot dog sat on top of a donut and was topped with chili and cheese.  Yuck!

We also went to Target which was the first time Tucker has ridden in a shopping cart.  I usually carry him in the Ergobaby, but he thought it was a great time.  (Check out the picture below.)  We also took Tucker swimming for the first time on Wednesday.  Our little water baby, of course, loved it!

Our plan for Friday was to go to the beach, but a 20 minute drive took over 2 hours!  We had time to eat a late breakfast at Heavenly Biscuits which was delicious, but then we had to get going so we weren't late for the Twins' game.  We went to Spring Training games on Friday and Saturday.  They both started at 1 pm which made it difficult with the sun and nap time.  I ended up holding Tucker up on the concourse in the shade for the first few innings while he napped.  By the middle of the game, there was a sliver of shade in the grassy area that we sat in so I would sneak back down to sit by Jeremy.  When Tucker woke up he played and we attempted to watch both him and the rest of the game.  It wasn't quite as much fun as we had hoped, but it sure felt good to be watching outdoor baseball again.

On Sunday, we went back to Bennett's for breakfast.  Jeremy had a maple donut with big bacon pieces on top and I had a donut with an almond glaze and coconut.  We went to the Manatee Park in the morning, but didn't see any Manatees.  In the afternoon, we went to Lakes Regional Park.  It was a beautiful day and a really nice walk.  We had ice cream and watched turtles begging for food in the water below us.  It was the first time that Tucker has really paid attention to animals in the wild or a zoo.  He has only ever seemed to notice the cats.

Monday was supposed to be a day at the beach, and it was our last chance.  Unfortunately, it rained all day.  It continued to rain until our plane left the next morning actually, so we spent the day at the hotel.  Tucker played and scooted on the floor, and we tried to get him some extra nap time so he wouldn't be too overtired for the plane ride home the next day.  I'm so bummed that we never got him to the beach, but we'll have to make it more of a priority next time!

He was a very good boy on the plane rides home.  He slept for about 30 minutes on the first flight and 2 hours on the last flight of the trip.  I was so nervous going into the trip that he would scream on the plane, but he did better than I would expect from any energetic 8 month old!

Tucker is an excellent conversation starter.  When he is with me or Jeremy, everyone wants to talk to us.  It is so funny how a baby can do that.  I don't know how many times an old lady would talk to Tucker, he would flash his famous smile, and then a 5 minute conversation would ensue.  Or, someone else would ask "How old is your baby?" and before you know it, you're talking about where you went for dinner last night or where you live.  I can't tell you how many times someone has commented on what a good baby he is while we were on vacation.  Every single time we went out to eat, to a Twins' game, or pretty much anywhere, at least one person would tell us what a good/cute/handsome/happy baby we have.  Jeremy and I, of course, give an appropriately modest Minnesota reply, but when we get to the car or out of earshot, we smile to each other and gloat a bit!  Here is our good/cute/handsome/happy boy...

Mommy had fun playing with her new camera lens and I was her muse.

I loved sitting on the balcony with Mommy and Daddy.

This was my first ride in a shopping cart.  We were picking out my food for the week.

I can't believe I've been missing out on so much fun all my life!

This was our view from the hotel.  The Florida canals were so peaceful.

I loved the swimming pool!  There was a ledge that I could sit on and splash.

I played with Mommy in the pool for an hour the first time.  We had so much fun!

That is Mommy's huge Heath donut at Bennett's.

That is Daddy's nasty donut dog.  Yuck!

Me and Daddy before one of the nature walks.

Our first attempt at a family picture.

Me and Daddy before I took my morning nap on the walk.

Another attempt at a family portrait.

Our final attempt at a family picture for the day.

This was the first time I've played in the grass.

Mommy and I at the first Twins' game.  It was so sunny!

Me and Daddy being silly at the game.

Daddy kisses for Tucker...

and Tucker kisses for Daddy.

Mommy isn't the only one who can make yummy food.  Sometimes I ate off a spoon and sometimes they let me eat it right out of the pouch!

The start of another pretty nature hike.

This is one big gator!

This is a poisonous cottonmouth snake that Mommy saw on the side of the hiking path.

Can you spot the alligator?

There were several piglets searching through the mud.

Another attempt at a family picture.  This time we had someone else take the picture.  I didn't feel like looking at the camera, though!

I think I'll look at Mommy instead.

This was the only manatee we saw the whole trip.

Mommy and Daddy let me play with an alligator.

He was stuffed though.

This hand teether got me through many trips in my car seat and many meals at restaurants.

I usually like my car seat, but by the end of the trip I didn't want to be tied down anymore.

I got to play in the grass more at the Lakes Regional Park.

I like to pull the grass like I pull kitty hair.

I tried to eat it, but Daddy stopped me.

I like to practice my yoga moves.

Daddy helps me practice my standing, too.  The grass felt funny on my feet.

I've been practicing using a sippy cup on the trip.  I could drink pretty well from it by the end of the vacation.

This is me in my cool new shark stroller.  I fell asleep during this walk.

Mommy and I looking at turtles.

They made me wear this silly hat, but I didn't mind most of the time.  I like to chew on my stroller strap.

I loved playtime at the hotel.

Mommy took this picture during one of my naps.

I woke up when the shutter clicked.  This isn't a great picture, but Mommy loves how it captures the moment right after I woke up.

I always wake up happy and ready to play!

I liked sleeping on the floor, so I could scoot right into play time!

Mommy's friend, Megan, made me this toy.  I love playing with it and it was the perfect size to bring on vacation.

I love to smile.  Smiling is my favorite.

Grandma thinks I look like a crab here.

I can only crawl forward a couple steps, but maybe this will work better.

See you next week!