Baby On Board

Shane, going up the mast

Provisioning the boat for two picky eaters and a baby was easy—bottled water for Paisley’s formula and frozen pizzas, hotdogs, fruity cereal, lots of tortillas, and beans for her mom and dad, and we were ready to hit the seas! 

     First things first…we started the trip by sending Shane up the mast to fix a light. Only when he was waaaaayyy up there did Savannah mention that he was afraid of heights. Turns out he is even more afraid of The Big Guy, so he didn’t mention it when he was getting strapped into the chair.

Paisley, in her snorkel suit

     With the mast light fixed we were off like a prom dress.The kids and Big got some diving and snorkeling in while I babysat the little power napper (read: naps in 5 minute intervals about twice a day). It should be noted here that the words “baby” “boating” and “relaxing” cannot under any circumstances be used in the same sentence. I know, I tried.

    
Since she wasn't quite sitting up by herself it meant that she had to be held constantly, which was not a bad thing unless you are a baby with little pimply bumps all over you.  Between the heat, the sticky salt air and the sunscreen she developed a rash over her entire body, except for that place under her chin where she stores up lint. We assumed it was itchy because...well it looked itchy and she cried like it was itchy. 

     For the most part she was a real little trooper! She sat through the entire (2 hour) Pirate show without crying—no wait a minute, that was me. After a long afternoon of doing the bar crawl on Jost Van Dyke she fell asleep in the dinghy on the ride back to the boat—ummm, come to think of it that was me too. Well never mind all that. 

     The truth is she was an absolute joy to have on board! By day she was a happy, smiling baby and I barely noticed that at night she turned into a screaming-mad, pacifier-spitting, diaper-dirtying machine.
     Oh, but I love my little Paisely and can’t wait to spend time with her again.  This baby is always welcome on board!

    It's hard to go wrong with grilled sandwhiches and kids.  I love paninis and make them all the time, with one of my favorites being turkey, pears, and fontina cheese. The possibilites are endless...ham, a pineapple slice and Gruyere cheese...tuna, artichokes and sharp cheddar...I usually make a flavored mayo, like pesto mayo or red pepper mayo to go along with. No recipes needed!