Owen's First Long Car Trip

This past weekend we took our first long car trip with Owen. Generally Owen falls asleep in the car, although lately he has decided to stay awake until the moment we arrive at our destination and then fall into a deep, impenetrable sleep. We weren't sure how he'd respond to a four hour trip, but on the way to our destination he slept until we were forty-five minutes away, and then he woke up crying and hungry. We stopped at a McDonald's and changed his diaper in the restrooms (much cleaner than a gas station bathroom) and then I fed him in the backseat of the car. He was reluctant to get back in the car seat, but as soon as the car was running and the lights were out, he fell fast asleep. Whew!

On the way back, though, Owen decided that he had already been in his car seat for too long and was ready to get out. We had an hour left on the New York Thruway, Dave driving, when Owen began screaming bloody murder. We pulled over at a rest area and I jumped into the backseat with Owen. He calmed down once he didn't have to be by himself, although he was still fussy. So Owen and I held hands all the way back to Syracuse.