Baby's First Road Trip

How would carseat-hating 4-month-old GrandBoy cope with an extended road trip from Georgia to Connecticut? That was the question gnawing at Daughter and Son-in-Law in the weeks leading up to the July journey. Well, thanks to an animated fish (and, I suspect, a GrandBoy who somehow understood deep down that he was stuck, for better or worse), the question has been answered most positively. All that needless worrying.

The drive was made in one fell swoop, in large part because Liam snoozed for long stretches, the theory being that as long as Baby was asleep or occupied - with no hysterical, nerve-splitting crying - push on while the going was good. When he wasn't sleeping the miles away, he was otherwise in the magical visual spell of "Finding Nemo." He rejected "Toy Story," "101 Dalmations," and "Lady and the Tramp." Nemo, however, captivated him - the colors, the motion, the sounds. And his daddy was grateful there were no mind-numbing musical numbers to get stuck in the driver's head. So, little Nemo saves the day, as well as Mama and Daddy's nerves.

Funny how even a tiny child can be visually enthralled for long stretches of time. Wonder what Liam was thinking as he watched Nemo? Did the underwater animation soothe and relax, or was there more to it?

Well, no matter. The point is, GrandBoy is now officially a Traveling Man. And until he's old enough to face forward and watch the world whiz by (which his GrandMary hopes he'll do instead of watching videos on the move), we're more than glad to have a little fish as a travel companion.