Saturday, May 12, 2012

Steve, Marisa and Isaac in Prague

Prague was really cute and walkable.  There were narrow, cobblestone streets everywhere and a great, well-preserved palace complex from it's former life as a part of the Austro-Hungarian empire.
From Europe Trip 2012. Prague.
From Europe Trip 2012. We don't take too many pictures of the unhappy moments, but this gives a little bit of a sense of the many moods of a baby on a 5 hour train ride.
From Europe Trip 2012. Izzy was being adorable on my shoulders and about 10 people walked by and oggled him.
From Europe Trip 2012. Baby giggles at a park in Prague.
From Europe Trip 2012. Loved the art in Prague!

There were also some really old churches and synagogues, e.g. ~1100-1400. It was a contrast to Vienna and most other cities we've been to in Europe where the churches are a bit newer and more structurally complicated and advanced.
From Europe Trip 2012. Spanish synagogue.

Izzy got really good at gnawing on whole fruit via the in-season strawberries we saw everywhere in Prague and elsewhere in Europe. 
From Europe Trip 2012

Thursday, May 3, 2012

Steve, Marisa and Isaac in Vienna


On the airplane, there were lots of people and bright lights to look at, and mommy and daddy were right there for Isaac to crawl all over.  WHO NEEDS TO SLEEP??

From Europe Trip 2012

For the first 5 hours of the flight I (Marisa) thought we had made a huge mistake to take on airplanes and jet lag.  I had to take a deep breath.

From Isaac in Europe. Coffee in Heathrow that is about to end up all over my shirt.


The first night Isaac woke up at 2am screaming - he had a fever of 104 F.  We visited an emergency room for kinder. (perhaps the same one frequented by the Duponts?)  Isaac's fever dropped very quickly and by the time we got to the emergency room, he was actually happy.
From Isaac in Europe. Isaac in the emergency room.

After about 3 days we were all adjusted to the new time zone.  There was just one night were Isaac woke Steve up at 2am by climbing on top of him and pounding on his chest.  He wanted to play our new game "earthquake!!"
From Europe Trip 2012. Isaac playing earthquake (during the daytime)

Isaac, Steve and I have had a pretty good time at the Viennese cafes.  They have a luxurious ambience with waiters in suits, but you can also relax with a newspaper and stay all day, with a little bit of coffee here, and a little bit of prosecco there.  When sitting outdoors, we could also let Isaac practice walking or climbing (not sure what the other patrons thought of that).
From Europe Trip 2012


The palaces and Imperial Treasury are really rich and beautiful.  Schonbrunn Palace had a huge garden where Isaac got to "walk" around, and practice his pincer grip by picking up pebbles (and trying to put them in his mouth).
From Europe Trip 2012


The snap n go stroller we bought has worked out okay.  It's light enough to carry up stairs.  It does okay on cobblestones, and there aren't too many cobblestones in Vienna, although you're guaranteed to encounter a few on each walk.  We've seen a few Viennese people with jogging strollers, but they have a smaller profile than the Bob.
From Europe Trip 2012


Isaac loves the bread rolls here. He's been noshing on a lot of it since it's easy to throw at him when he's in the stroller.  However he's not too fond of European baby food.  The 8 month old jarred food has too many chunks for his liking, so we've been feeding our 10 mo old the 4-6 month old jarred food.

We all had a good time visiting a few small towns outside of Vienna, Melk and Krems.  The towns on the drive there by the Danube are idyllic, and the old cobblestone streets gave Isaac ample opportunity to walk.




The biggest problem for the poor little bub is that he takes all of his naps in the stroller and doesn't sleep for more than 45 minutes at a time.  He's not been too fussy though.  Regarding spending all day in the stroller, we've been a bit more careful to let him out to move around whenever he complains after the 2am "earthquake" wake-up - we'd prefer if he practices his mobility skills during the daytime.
From Europe Trip 2012

The chair in the following picture, the Brica fold n go travel booster, has been amazing.  It's only 1/2 in thick or so, and we've been able to attach it to all the chairs at restaurants and in our apartments.
From Europe Trip 2012

Here are more pictures of our little gnome and the sites we have seen.
Keeping warm in front of the Rathaus. From Europe Trip 2012
The Hofburg Palace Entry, with Izzy asleep. From Europe Trip 2012
The Imperial Treasury and our little treasure. From Europe Trip 2012
Melk Abbey. Big Poppa. From Europe Trip 2012
Schonbrunn Palace. From Europe Trip 2012
We had to forfeit our audio guide to Isaac in one of the Vienna museums, to keep him from protesting too much. From Europe Trip 2012
One of the various techniques we employed to keep Izzy entertained. From Europe Trip 2012
Jet lagged baby. From Europe Trip 2012
All of our luggage, including a baby bed, stroller and car seat. From Europe Trip 2012