Baby, You Drive Me Crazy

We have just completed our first family holiday. Well, more of a long weekend than a holiday, but it was Little Gem's first overnight stay away from home, so quite the milestone for us. But it wasn't exactly the relaxing road trip that I had imagined. Oh no, that was the height of my naivety.
I should have known it wasn't going to be all sunshine and roses when it took me two days, three bouts of tears, and one nervous breakdown before I had packed everything. And I really had packed Everything, so getting it all the car almost required medication.
Days 1 and 2 went well. Little Gem coped remarkably well with the trip, stayed her happy and social self, and charmed the life out of everyone she met. Day 3 was the start of her downhill slide. On day 4 she made a slight recovery, and with the beautiful gift of hindsight, we should have taken this as a sign and hightailed it home then. But we didn't. Instead we extended our stay for an extra night, and we certainly paid the price.
Mother Nature is very clever. Baby giraffes, horses, sheep etc are able to walk within hours of birth. A baby monkey has the strength to cling to his mummy's back. Kangaroo's have built in pouches to keep their bubbies safe and warm. My baby isn't so independent. But she can scream. Loudly. And she screamed all the way home. Loudly. She wasn't hot, cold, wet, hungry or sick. She was just unhappy to be in the car and she let us know about it. Loudly. All The Way Home. Most repetitive noises are able to be tuned out, but not a baby's cry. Thanks for that Mother Nature.
And so, as my dearly loved first born wailed and sobbed in the back seat, I could do nothing but blink my tears away and count down the kilometres. In an attempt to distract myself, I also made a list of what I had learned over those few days.

1. Little Gem does not actually require 20 outfits, 30 nappies, 10 packets of wipes, and 4 towels per day.
2. The boot of our car is indeed massive. But not massive enough.
3. Mosquito nets are extremely versatile... portacot, pram, and rocker (a win for Mum!)
4. Myer children's section reduced racks are terribly addictive.
5. A five minute walk along the beach ON MY OWN can be a slice of heaven.
6. Despite my focussing on the negatives, Little Gem is a pretty great baby. She slept through every night and made me melt with every smile.
7. Home might not be where my heart is, but it is where she is most comfortable.
8. Oh, and packing 10 tonne of clothing requires one million loads of washing upon return. NOOOO!