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I touched on this lightly (and fairly hysterically) before when in the midst of travel hell. Low blood sugar, a cranky baby, and a challenging environment do not lead to good blogging.
We have traveled extensively with Elanor. Several long road trips and two trips to the western states from the East Coast here in the US. The UK was our first time abroad, and our longest trip to date at 19 days.
We were in Edinburgh for 12 of those days, and I found in incredibly difficult. The Scots are a lovely people and I want to say that people went out of their way to talk to Elanor, and (by extension) me. But as a destination, it is not a great option for families with small kids.
Things I wish I had known before we went
—Kids under 4 are not allowed on highland tour expeditions. Period. Even if you offer to bring a car seat. Even if you offer to bring a car seat and pay for a full adult fare. Even if you offer to do both of those AND sign a waiver releasing the company of all liability. I should know…I tried. FAIL.
–Conversely, most tour busses (the big red ones specifically) have a space for a wheelchair bound person OR one unfolded stroller on the ground floor of each bus. The issues with these is that it’s often hard to find one with a real live tour guide, so often you need to use the headphones, which presents multiple issues when with a small child.
–The licensing laws. Now if you’re one of those families where everyone eats before 5 (like my family was growing up) you won’t run into the sort of problems we did. However, should you want to eat after 5 with small kids (up to age 17), good luck. We found that there were two options…very expensive restaurants had paid for the expensive license OR McDonalds or a fast-food equivalent (most of which also close early). This was a HUGE pain in our asses. Scotland has a huge problem with alcoholism and so as a measure to not expose kids to the drinking culture, they’ve made licenses VERY expensive. Only one of our 5 star hotel’s restaurants had coughed up for it, and most restaurants didn’t. There was no comprehensive guide, and there were no signage laws (although the GM of the hotel told me this was changing) so the only way to find out if we could eat somewhere was to go and try to walk through the front door and get yelled at. This was not pleasant.
-Eating, other issues before 5. When traveling alone with an infant who isn’t walking, most eateries on the lower level or upper levels are unattainable. I desperately wanted Indian food. I couldn’t find one at street level, and folding the buggy up and carrying baby, buggy, diaper bag and all was not an option, especially once I tried that in a castle and broke the damn stroller so that it WOULDN’T fold up. Also, most restaurants did not have high chairs that in any way contained the kids…they were older, beat up and often missing straps. The high end places were the exception, as you would expect. But then we were paying the equivalent of over 100 for a two person meal, so there’s that…
-There’s just not much to do in Edinburgh with kids. There aren’t any kids museums or much of anything for them. Towards the end I found Molly’s…a soft-play indoor playground at a shopping Mall (Ocean Terminal, I think it was called…the royal yacht is there) and Elanor thought it was the coolest thing ever. I also heard of a children’s petting zoo that we didn’t make it to, but that’s about it. It’s just not a city with a lot of playgrounds or thought given to kids. This doesn’t make it a bad place, it just makes it a difficult place to bring a young child.
Would I say NEVER EVER go there? No…it would have been more fun with a 5 year old, particularly when we were there-Fringe Fest. There were lots of kids events, but it was made clear to us when we tried to show up at a few of them that the under 2 set was NOT welcome.
There are also some cheats we found to get around the challenges…
–We did a lot of room service, and it wasn’t bad. We also did a lot of stocking up at a local grocery store and making food that didn’t need to be cooked.
–I rented a car and a car seat and drove up to Loch Ness myself. In the end, this was far more fun than a tour group as I got to choose the route, stop whenever I felt the scenery merited a photo and Elanor was a peach, sleeping most of the time as she usually does on long car rides.
–We found a book meant for people who live in Edinburgh called Edinburgh with Under 5’s which does list some family friendly restaurants…it’s a bit heavy on the chains, but it was still a useful tool to find things to do.
Overall, I don’t find Edinburgh to be a great place to take your kids, but with some ingenuity it can still be a fun place. Easier to manage with a second adult or a walking child.
Dear Turtle
It gives me a twinge of sadness to say that you are 10 months old. You will never be a single digit number of months old ever again in your life. For some reason this saddens me…perhaps because coupled with your increased independence, it reminds me that instead of a tiny baby, I now have an incredibly active almost-toddler. I realize I said something similar last month, but it’s almost impossible to convey how amazing it is to watch you grow and change month by month and I am constantly astounded by it.
As with last month, you turned 9 and then 10 months old away from home. We flew from San Francisco to Philadelphia on 8/3 and were in Scotland on 9/3 having an adventure on 9/3.
We took an extra day in Philadelphia on our way home because I had raved so much about the Please Touch Museum that your Daddy wanted to see it, too, so we took you again on 8/4. Your Daddy loved watching you explore and play in the 0-3 areas. We watched you as you crawled around after other babies (because surely whatever they were interested in was FAR more interesting than anything you could find on your own). You pulled to stand and cruised around the fairy tale land. You and Daddy went on the carousel while I took pictures. Then Daddy and I watched as you discovered a small piano with enthusiasm, banging on it for easily 5 minutes before losing interest.
Once home, we had a lot of things to catch up on. You had your 9 month well baby visit (26/27 inches tall-18th percentile, 15 lbs-1rst percentile), with a covering pediatrician as your Dr had a new little baby boy. But don’t worry, she’ll be back in time for your one year well baby visit. You also visited with your gastroenterologist and we discussed the process of introducing new foods to you. However, I’ll need to check with him if the plan is the still the same after you had what was obviously an allergic reaction to something you’d eaten in Scotland. You saw your hematologist, who talked about helmeting you for the next 6 months as you learn to walk. Which was fine, except the helmet is too big for you–a small problem with being so teeny. You also hate it and have taken it off multiple times at this point. I’m kind of ambivalent about the helmet–I do agree that there is increased statistical likelihood of your injuring yourself, but on the other hand if you’re not going to wear it and wearing it makes you miserable is it worth the increased protection? I don’t really have an answer. Your Early Intervention nurse and physical therapist worked with you while we were home, and continue to be happy with your progress. When we get home, your EI is going to be a bit different now that you’ve 85% or so got the purposefully letting go of objects skill down.
Also while we were home, you got to hang out with Auntie Kate one afternoon while I went into my volunteer job with Planned Parenthood. You spent two afternoons with your grandparents, and one day with your grandmother while I volunteered as well. During this month I also interviewed to work on the Planned Parenthood hotline. While I am helping by stuffing envelopes and filing paperwork, I want to do something a little more personal, and the hotline seemed like a great idea. It’s important to me that you see me doing things outside the home, and it’s also important that the things I do that take time away from you have meaning to me. It’s one thing to be pro-choice, which I am, and to want to pass that value onto you. It’s another to show you with my actions (which we all know speak louder than words) that I’m pro-choice. You’re far too young now to understand why I do what I do, but someday I hope to have made you proud with my efforts.
You hung out with Auntie Julie and Auntie Mary so that Daddy and I could have a date night. Which only reinforced that Daddy and I need to do this more often. I felt pretty smart though, because I managed to create our date night by asking our Facebook friends if anyone wanted you for an evening. Remember that our friends on Facebook are all real life friends whom we’d trust with you…and not just random people on the street.
Mommy had some really rough days during the time we were home–it’s hard to know how much to share with you in a letter like this, but I know from first hand experience that your parent’s depression affects your life profoundly. Statistically, you are also fairly likely to inherit our depression/mood disorders, so I don’t want to hide any of that from you either. Your Dad was diagnosed with bipolar type 2 disease, and I am trying to get evaluated, but it is suspected for many reasons that I also fall onto the milder side of the bipolar spectrum. Some of what I’m dealing with are poor coping skills. I wasn’t taught good coping skills as a child, and I never quite learned them as an adult. So I am going to go through some fairly painful (I’m sure) personal growth in the next bit of time, so that your Dad and I can teach you good coping skills and model them for you. I see a lot of my mother’s patterns in the way I act…some of that may also be inherited mental disorders, but some of it is just innappropriate behavior. I can only say I hope to do better in the future.
You had a playdate with Auntie A’s son. He wasn’t crawling yet, although Auntie A reports back that 48 hours after watching you crawl and bounce all over the place, he was crawling, too. BAD INFLUENCE!!! I was a bit worried when you kept crawling over to him and stealing his toys. Was I raising a baby bully? It was, however, evidence that points to the need to procreate again (although certainly not soon) as it’s not like your Daddy or I know how to share (as we are both only children). You, my dear, need a sibling. It was during this visit that Auntie A pointed out that you had 2 more teeth…the top teeth on either side of the top middle two had come through. It’s hard for us to know (until you chew on us, which we try to avoid these days) when you have new teeth as you hide them with your lips when you open your mouth and are NOT OKAY with us trying to open your mouth to get a good look on our own.
We left Boston on August 24th and arrived in Scotland on the 25th (local time). I was cursing the decision to keep you in lap for this trip (significantly cheaper than buying you your own ticket) after the first leg of the trip (Boston to DC). You spent the entire time climbing down off Daddy’s lap and standing up on the floor and then crawling to me on the floor (over the feet of a nice australian woman on her way to South Africa, who was incredibly kind to you) and then back. You also tugged on the Aussie’s pants legs and used her to stand up many a time. Luckily, she was enchanted by you.
Unlike our previous trips, where you either slept happily or just hung out in the MOBY (both ways to Colorado) or had your own seat (by luck to San Francisco) or were pretty okay with being held (from San Francisco, although you eventually got your own seat thanks to the seating shuffle and the fact that you puked on someone, who then wanted to be very very far away from you), you were NOT OKAY with being held. I was dreading the long trip to the UK as you had forcibly not slept on the trip to DC or in the airport in DC–staying awake without a nap for over 6 hours–and were cranky. Luckily, although you are technically too old for it, you still weigh few enough pounds that the cabin crew got the baby bassinet for you. Once you gave in, you slept most of the flight to London. You then slept a bit of the way from London to Scotland in Daddy’s arms. I am praying we can get the bassinet again on the way home.
Your Dad, you and I had a few days of adventuring together before he had to start attending conference events. We went to the Edinburgh Zoo and saw the Penguin Parade (and the only Koalas in the UK!), toured Edinburgh Castle and saw the Scottish Crown Jewels, and then spent a day in Glasgow. Daddy carried you (in your stroller) up a flight of stairs so that we could all have tea in a MacIntosh Tea Room! But the most exciting part of Glasgow for you was when we bought you a balloon twisted into the shape of a flower. That was also the day where you learned about the inevitable consequence of chewing on a balloon.
Your Daddy has been attending a conference for the last week, and you and I have been on our own. We have walked the Royal Mile, explored Holyrood Palace, driven all the way up to Loch Ness, done a bus tour of Edinburgh, been to a “soft-play” center at a shopping mall, and plenty more.
The most memorable stories I want to share with you about this trip are
–That I broke your stroller going up the very tight spiral staircase to Queen Mary’s chamber in Holyrood Palace. There is a small washer or screw somewhere in the palace that once belonged to your stroller. The arms that control whether you’re sitting or laying (the back of the seat) in the stroller are what broke, and I currently have McGuyvered your stroller so that it will still be usable until we reach London and the replacement seat arrives at our hotel there (thank god for the Bugaboo warranty and their excellent customer service). Basically I’m wrapping the rain cover behind the seat and securing it on the handle of the stroller so that you can sit up. It works, but it’s not terribly effective in a rainy climate where I often have to unMcGuyver your stroller to use the rain cover for it’s intended usage.
-Your favorite part of Glasgow was the flower balloon. Your favorite part of Edinburgh was the doggie balloon I got you…until I took you to a soft play center.
-That I have you to thank for such an amazing trip.
There are things about being in Europe with an infant and a stroller that have made me wish you were old enough to leave with your grandparents. Many places here have strict rules about who can eat where at what time of day that were never issues for me as I’d only ever been to Europe as an adult. Beyond that, the sheer difficult of getting a stroller around a city that was not built in an age of accessibility is a struggle. I forwent a few attractions and more than a few restaurants simply because it was just too much of a challenge to get you, the stroller, the diaper bag, and the camera bag/my stuff up or down a flight of stairs.
But these restrictions on small children forced me to be creative in a way I never would have been were I here without you. Without you, I would have been a good little tourist and paid for my highland tour and sat on the bus and read on the way up to Loch Ness and back, only glancing out the window occasionally or when instructed to by the tour guide. Because I couldn’t take you, and the combined cost of a ticket for the tour plus a sitter for the day was incredibly high, I instead decided to rent a car and do it with you on our own. I NEVER would have rented a car in a foreign country, where the cars are driven on the opposite side of the road otherwise. Because I did, I learned that I could do something I never would have tried without the combination of rules and my own stubborness and desire to see Loch Ness. I have you to thank for that. As I did rent a car, I had to pay attention as we drove to Loch Ness and back. I saw sights I never would have seen otherwise. I stopped whenever I wanted to, to get gorgeous shots of the Highlands that I never would have had the chance to on a bus. I saw roads, we made side trips (such as stopping at Culloden), and all in all, even without a Nessie Sighting, I think our trip was FAR more successful than my experience on a tour would have been without you.
I have you to thank for all of the wonderful Scottish people I’ve met here. I would have talked to a few cab drivers, and maybe a person in a store here or there, but your presence draws in strangers like moths to a flame. Obviously without you, I never would have had a reason to go to a soft-play area. Because I wanted to treat you with a day where you could be out of the stroller and social after the long drive up to and back from Loch Ness, I decided on a soft play area. While you crawled and played, and copied older babies (throwing ball pit balls!!–not AT anyone, but doing the purposeful release is exciting!) I sat nearby with other moms and we chatted and connected over our kids. At the laundromat today, I talked to strangers because of you when on my own I would have just opened up my laptop, put in my headphones and zoned out while the laundry washed and dried. To say nothing of strangers on the street. So many people have been very kind; holding doors, helping us on and off busses, and a thousand other small kindnesses. It really does reinforce my belief that most people are good. I’m grateful to you for that–for helping me be more present in the day to day aspects of this trip.
Of course, your screaming in the carseat while I was on the phone with Alamo, trying to get my flat tire fixed, was not an enchanting experience. But it’s part of parenting, and I understand that you were just incredibly frustrated with being in the seat and that you were incredibly bored. Unfortunately, it wasn’t something I could do anything about. Regardless of the truth (which is unknown), I’m still choosing to believe that the valet drivers were the ones who ran over the screw, causing the flat tire and that I didn’t drive all the way back from Loch Ness (or to and back from Loch Ness) in the rain on a flat tire…because that’s just too freaking scary to think about.
I realize that this isn’t a trip you’ll remember. That in fact you may one day think we were insane to take you (perhaps the first time you take a baby on a plane or see a screaming baby on a plane). But it’s part of the world I want to give you. Travel opens your mind because it teaches you (to paraphrase Barack Obama) that people in other countries are PEOPLE. As someone who first flew when she was 20, and who grew up in a small town, I could have easily misunderstood my fellow humans, finding our differences too large to overcome. But as I travel the US and the world, I learn first hand that people are people. I see things and learn things that expand my understanding of my fellow man and that bring me closer to him (and her). I dreamt of Britain as a small girl, especially after reading books like “A Little Princess” and “The Secret Garden.” I watched “Mary Poppins” and “My Fair Lady” and wondered what it could be like to live somewhere like that. Obviously modern Britain is a far cry from those books and movies, but seeing a castle that is over 500 years old, breathing it’s air, touching it’s stone walls, walking in the gardens that Kings and Queens have walked in isn’t a feeling you can get from a book or a tv show or a movie. While these are experiences that will be lost to the mists of your memory, I want you to grow up having similar experiences. Knowing that the world isn’t as big as it seems. Walking where so many others (both Kings and beggars) have walked.
I hope some day that you’ll treasure the silly shots I’ve taken of you…10 month old Elanor with a “hairy coo.” Elanor at Edinburgh Castle.
Each day is a chance to experience the world anew with you, because it’s all new to you. And while you’re not overly impressed by a castle, I am in awe of standing in a castle with you.
I love you
Mommy
Darling Elanor
You are nine months old. You have been outside my body longer than you were inside, which is unfathomable to me. It’s difficult to see you as the same baby I gave birth to nine months ago; that little girl was so unformed and while she had flashes of personality it was nothing like the opinionated and vivacious almost-toddler I see before me today.
You spent the majority of your 8th month of life out of state. You turned 8 months old in Virginia as we were visiting with your cousins, and you turned 9 months old in San Francisco and Philadelphia (can you guess what we were doing on August 3rd?) In your 8th month of life you visited Virginia, Connecticut, New Jersey, Washington DC, North Carolina, Maryland, Delaware, New York City, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Berkeley and Santa Cruz. That’s 1 district and 9 states! You were a passenger in a car and on an airplane.
With so much travel, you might wonder if we really noticed any changes. But some of them were hard to miss, such as
CRAWLING!!!!! I don’t know why I’m excited as it has made my life much more difficult. You are into things you weren’t into before. You can decide to be someplace else and get there, and sometimes that’s no so easy on your mommy and daddy.
TWO MORE TEETH–the two top teeth have made an appearance, but are not yet fully in. I’ve now been officially bitten, and let me just say—ouch.
STANDING UNASSISTED–Yes. Standing without help. Only for 10 seconds or so at a time, but we can see the writing on the wall–you are gearing up to walk, and as soon as you figure out all the things that need to happen together to walk successfully, you will be on the move, no question.
CRUISING FURNITURE–when we got back from our road trip I had put you over in your play area to play and sat down on the couch to catch up on email. The next thing I knew, you had crawled over to the loveseat and had cruised the length of the loveseat and the couch to grab my power cord out of my laptop. This is when I realized that baby proofing really did need to happen and much more thoroughly than we had thus far.
You are, as ever, extremely social. Especially with other babies. You are fascinated by them. When we have gone to places like the Please Touch Museum in Philly or the Bay Area Discovery Museum in Sausalito, CA you have attempted to engage with other babies. You reach out with your chubby baby hands and clap in delight at their accomplishments. You mimic them. You crawl after them. When they hug you, you delightedly hug back. However, you have also done some hair pulling and some innapropriate touching (exactly what it is about boy’s butts that you find so attractive? you’re a little young for that sort of thing, missy).
This does not mean that there is no separation anxiety. Perhaps it’s because you spent some weeks without spending time at your grandparent’s house, but when I left you there so that I could begin to volunteer outside the home, and when we have left you with a friend to get some down time, you have spent a good 5-10 minutes crying.
We discovered that this month you have officially fallen off the growth charts. I struggle with this knowledge. The truth is that I haven’t always had a healthy relationship with food, and having a child with food issues is about the worst thing I could think of in terms of triggering my own emotional responses. It’s so hard not to count every ounce, every bite throughout the day. On the other hand, you have rolls of fat on your thighs and your cheeks are round and chubby. You don’t act as though you are malnourished. You are vibrant and bouncy and constantly on the go. Part of me wonders if the reason you’re so small is that you just burn so many calories with your constant exploration? I have also gotten the advice that because American growth charts are effectively written for caucasian kids and you’re half asian, that may affect how you look on the charts…that asian kids tend to be small.
We saw a nutritionist this month. She advised ditching the baby food and mostly just putting you on table food to supplement your bottles. She advised that we give you things that will excite your palate and make you more interested in food. To that end, you have eaten hummus, salsa, and many other things I never really imagined giving a baby, and your palate is already far more advanced than mine was at your age. She said that you need foods with exciting flavors, so within the constraints of your (presumed) food allergies, we are trying to do that.
You love fruit slices as much as you love the fruit baby food. You’re open to new flavors and liked guacamole. You are a bit unsure of hummus, but are willing to try and retry it. You still have a deep and abiding love of pickles. I have let you chew on things like deli meat. French fries in ketchup and bbq sauce are also a hit.
Some favorite memories from this month
—On the 4th of July we went into DC. We saw a reading of the Declaration of Independence at the National Archives, and then were perfectly positioned to see the 4th of July parade. There were tons of giant balloons, but you couldn’t care less. The thing that grabbed your attention were the marching bands. You watched them with unwavering attention, clapping your hands and bouncing with delight. We also took you to the American Museum, one of the Smithsonian Museums. You weren’t that impressed by any of the exhibits (even though you saw a Kermit the Frog and the Ruby slippers from the Wizard of Oz) but you were endlessly fascinated by a neon colored ball that lit up when it was bounced from the gift shop. We watched your first fireworks on the National Mall; you were unimpressed. You spent the whole time playing with your light up ball, which you felt to be vastly superior to the stupid fireworks. your dad and I disagree, by the way.
–Seeing you with your cousins J and A. A is a 5 year old girl who was happy to pick your toys up off the floor. J is a one year old boy who can walk, something you were very jealous of. But the memory I have of our time with them was when your auntie K and I were pushing you and J in side by side Target carts and the two of you began baby babbling at each other, and reached out and held hands for a moment. It just melted our hearts.
–This is the month you began physical therapy. Hopefully you won’t need it for a long time…they are helping you crawl properly, as you have an awkward gait when crawling, regardless that you get where you want to go.
—Your reaction to your Uncle Chris. He’s Australian, and you found his accent hypnotic. As I’m a sucker for accents, I can’t really fault you for that.
–Taking you to Santa Cruz. You encountered your first beach…you loved the sand. You kept picking it up and letting it drift back down. I took you to the water’s edge to get some pictures, and felt horrible when the water came in faster and deeper than I expected. You were knocked over by a small wave and I had to grab you and pull you up out of the water. I hope that it doesn’t give you negative associations with water. You also rode your first carnival ride by yourself there–there was a little whale ride where you went around in a circle and up and down specifically for kids who were smaller than 36 inches tall–perfectly you sized. You liked it, but I think it was a bit long for you–at the end you were looking concerned, but not crying. You also “played” a fishing game with daddy’s help and won a stuffed turtle! It was a really nice family day.
–Seeing you stand for the first time unaided. We were in the Yerba Buena Park in San Francisco with your Uncle Harit. I had helped you stand, and you let go of me and stood unaided for about 10 seconds! I got you to do it agian and got a picture! Since then you pull up to standing on some piece of furniture and occasionally let go.
–We also took you to a Ren Faire. We got you another pair of devil horns, and you were a major hit. Everyone stopped to say hi to you and many people remembered you from Wicked Faire (the person who organized the Ren Faire, Jeff, was the same guy who organizes WF). You also aquired a gorgeous purple fairy wand.
You met so many people for the first time. I love sharing you with our friends and family. So many people followed your story on Care Pages when you were sick, and although they can see your pictures on Facebook, it’s a powerful experience for them to see you in real life so happy and healthy.
This was also the month when I began to work outside the house again for the first time since you were born. I have begun to volunteer at Planned Parenthood. I want you to see as well as know that I try to live my values, including my firm belief that you should control your sexuality and your fertility. I hope that you will grow up proud of my involvement with Planned Parenthood. That you will know that I crossed picket lines and learned where panic buttons were to help keep your rights safe. I’m doing it for me-in fact mostly for me-but also for you.
Every day you look a little less like a baby and more like a toddler. Your hair is growing and I’m seeing the start of curls…my fingers are SO crossed that you’ll get your dad’s natural curly hair. You are fearless and wonderful. You are my precious precious little girl.
love always
Mommy
We are currently back on vacation. Yes, again. Although really, it’s only vacation for Elanor and I, as Ravi is working.
Elanor and I went to the Please Touch Museum in Philadelphia on Saturday. It is quite possibly the best kids museum I’ve ever seen, especially for those of us with very young children. I have to admit to feeling torn as I drove past the Franklin Institute, which advertised its huge Star Trek exhibit…but I came to realize I’d made the best possible choice.
There are 8 or 10 rooms of exhibits. In each of the rooms there is a gated off section aimed at the under 3 crowd. Even our kids museum in Boston, which is a great kids museum doesn’t offer that kind of support to the under 3 set. There’s also a carousel, which Elanor rode by herself (well, she sat on the horse by herself with the strap around her and me standing next to her, holding her).
I think MY favorite part of the museum is the Alice in Wonderland exhibit. Kids can sit at a table and have a tea party with the Mad Hatter and March Hare. They can experience the hallway of doors where the doors got smaler and smaller and they get bigger and bigger. They can play croquet with a flamingo that really moves. They can crawl (if they’re as little as Elanor) through a croquet hoop (?) made of a playing card. They can paint the white roses red in the Queen of Hearts’ garden. They can be huge inside the White Rabbits’ House. There are mirrors and a maze. There’s a rock to stage your very own caucus race around. On and on…and the under 3 area there is nursery rhyme themed. Elanor was particularly enchanted by the cow (from jack and the beanstalk) that mooed when she touched it, and the spinning wheel (from sleeping beauty). There was also a line to hang mittens on with the 3 little kittens who had lost theirs, a ship like the one that the owl and pussycat rode on, and other things.
We spent an hour there, and would have stayed longer, but they were closing. I had thought an hour would be more than enough, but really I should have budgeted at least two, even with only an almost 9 month old.
I really have to say that I wish I had taken Elanor back on Sunday instead of taking her to the Adventure Aquarium which was okay, but nothing spectacular. The next time we’re in Philly, it’s my #1 destination with kids.
