Madeline Mae: Our trip so far

Ok, where to begin. Our time in Evian has been awesome so far. The weather is absolutely beautiful and I visited 2 bakeries (one of the main reasons for the visit, right after seeing my family). The French bread and chocolate croissants lived up to their expectations :)

The flights here didn't go as well as I'd hoped. The trip started out great. We decided to take a cab to the airport to save the hassle of economy parking and the shuttle. Once at the airport we checked in and then found some lunch. After lunch we let Maddie walk to the gate because she was already tired of riding in the umbrella stroller. I was so thrilled to discover that a toddler play area was built right across from our gate! This entertained Maddie for the next hour and a half. Maddie slept about an hour on the flight to Newark.

I was shocked at the crowds and state of the airport when we disembarked in Newark. We just left a really neat, EMPTY airport to find a packed airport without a seat left. We had a two hour layover and were so thankful that my credit card company sent me two free passes for the President's lounge earlier this year. It made the wait tolerable because Maddie could watch planes and spread out (plus the free drinks and food were nice).

So, now onto the long flight. I really thought Maddie would fall asleep as soon as the plane took off and would sleep the entire 7 hours (since it would be an overnight flight). Not so much. We boarded the plane on time but then had to wait for an hour and a half for a fuel problem to be fixed and then for our turn to take off. Once airborne it took Maddie 2 and a half hours to fall asleep. Our pediatrician said we could help her with some Benadryl but I don't think it had much effect. Once asleep, Jon and I tried to get some sleep. As soon as I drifted off she woke up (after just an hour and a half). I felt so bad for her because she just couldn't get comfy. She still wanted to sleep and had her eyes closed but was uncomfortable. I tried holding her, moving the car seat out of the way and laying her down, but she just couldn't fall back asleep. After about an hour of trying this we both gave up and she was awake the rest of the flight. I was so relieved when we finally landed. She refused to get in her stroller at the airport (and I really regretted packing the ergo carrier in our checked bags) so she had a slight meltdown, but I really don't blame her since she was so exhausted. She took a 3 and a half hour nap that afternoon and then was her pleasant self once again.

Now, onto jetlag. I was actually more worried about this than the flight. So the first two days here we tried to keep her usual schedule. Of course, being the unrealistic optimist that I am, I thought she wouldn't have much of a problem since she's used to taking naps. I really thought everything was going well until night time. She woke up at 7, nap at noon for 3 hours, and bedtime at 7:30. However, her time clock told her that the 7:30 bedtime was really just a second nap. Two nights in a row she woke up screaming around 10:30 and didn't get back to sleep until 12:30. Our new approach is to keep her on Nashville time (or close to it). Yesterday we let her sleep until 1:00; she took an hour and a half nap at 5:30 and went to bed at 11:30 at night. She really did great all day. It was strange for me to have her up so late and sleep in the morning but I think our new schedule here works great for her. The schedule is also nice because now we can get out in the afternoon and evening and not worry about a mid-day nap or bedtime. Hopefully this will help us ease back to Nashville time next week.

Our first day here (we arrived at 7:45 in the morning) was the last day of the LPGA tour in Evian. After Jon and I took a nap, we met up with my dad to follow around golfers (the 16th tee is right behind their back patio). My parents had a party that night to celebrate the tournament. The next day we hung out in the morning but then after Maddie's nap we went to a great park with trains and miniature villages and bridges. It was so cute that I think I enjoyed it more than Maddie. We rode on two trains and then hit a carousel and bouncing slide that she enjoyed.

On Tuesday Maddie slept in until 1:oo so my mom, brother Jon, and I went to the weekly market in Evian. That afternoon we walked the Evian waterfront and took a boat to Thonon's waterfront. We had just enough time in Thonon for a hotdog in a baguette and had to catch the ferry home. That evening my parent's friends came over (who were our neighbor's in Japan) and Maddie was the life of the party since she now has a new bedtime. It was good day.