A vacation from sleep

Have you ever heard anyone say that they needed a vacation to recover from their vacation?  My guess is that they were probably traveling with babies.  We took our three and half month old, JT, for a week on the beach in Charleston, South Carolina, along with seven of our friends.  Little did we know that the nine hour car ride from Nashville to Folly Beach would be the easy part.  Starting with the first night, and every night thereafter, JT woke up every 2 hours.  Since we were sharing a room with the baby and staying in a beach house with seven other people, we could not let him cry himself to sleep.  Being new parents, we had not even considered the possibility that the change might affect the baby's sleeping pattern.  So, for seven lovely nights and six fun-filled days, we took a vacation from sleep.  And, oh yeah, a few other things happened.  Here are some highlights:

1 - I was pooped on during lunch in a fancy restaurant.
2 - I b-fed the baby while standing in a bathroom stall, sitting on the toilet of an unconditioned restroom, and sitting on the floor of a culinary store.  (Gross, I know.)
3 - I changed the baby's diaper on said fancy restaurant's ladies' room sink and on said culinary store's restroom floor.
4 - I sat on the street in Charleston with the baby for an hour and people watched while I missed my Low Country cooking demonstration. 
5  - I had a nice momma meltdown on day 6 trying to take family photos on the beach. 

I have learned a few very important things from this experience.  First, there is no place like home.  No matter what paradise you visit, nothing beats the comfort of your own things.  Second, spending time with your hubby and baby can be the best vacation in and of itself.  Despite the good food, exploring and relaxing on the beach, my favorite moments, however short, were those of me and J sharing special moments with the baby.  Listening to the baby find his voice, watching him try to figure out how to get his toes in his mouth and getting splashed by him for the first time during his bath - those are the sweetest moments.

I'm not sure I had to lose a week's sleep and travel 1,142 miles for these nuggets of knowledge, but I'll chalk it up to experience.