Drake Meets His Chinese Family

It didn't take very long before Drake was adjusted to the time difference.  I think babies are better at taking cue from the sunlight and darkness.  However, we were traveling in another country after all.  Drake was a busy little man. He had to stay up for a few late family gatherings which he met his granduncles, grandaunts, cousins and his great grandmother (who is 97).  Drake was a big hit with the family.  I didn't get to hold him much since there was always someone in the queue to hold him.  He also collected quite a few red envelops.  It is tradition that the elders give the new member of the family red envelop at their first meeting.

Drake also drew a bit of a crowd wherever he went.  Mixed babies are still a novelty in China.  People constantly commented how gorgeous his eyes were and he looked like a real life doll.  As a mother, of course, I was really flattered, especially when he was very well behaved when people who he never met before picked him up.  When I was at the spa, every shop girls wanted to play with him and passed him around like a little puppy. I got really nervous since one of them could just take him away and he probably still wouldn't cry.

Everyone might love babies, but China wasn't particularly a baby friendly place.  There was no such thing as changing table anywhere.  I felt very odd changing him in the middle of a restaurant where people were eating but I soon got use to it since no one else cared.  Babies can get away with anything.  No ramps where there were stairs. I really appreciated my Kelty Kids stroller that converted into a backpack.  It was a great investment!  I did think 99% of the people tried their best to accommodate Drake.  The other 1% were the idiots who had no problem smoking right next to Drake.

One funny thing I noticed was aside from commenting on how big Drake's eyes were, people always thought Drake was wearing too little clothing.  China was still a little chilly in the March.  But not so cold that Drake needed 10 layers.  All Chinese children we saw including Drake's cousins wore so much clothes they couldn't even put their arms down and they always had red cheeks.

We had a great visit in China. I am so glad Drake's Chinese family got a chance to meet him and Drake got a taste of his heritage so early on in his life.

Drake's going to China

We are on the road again.  The plan is for Drake and I to go to China for 2 weeks and then Greg will meet us in Shanghai to head to Australia for 3 weeks. This will be the first trip with Drake, our 7 month old baby. I am really excited and nervous about this trip.  Excited because Drake will meet his family from China for the first time.  Nervous because Drake will take his first 12 hour flight.

We arrived at the airport very early to check-in. I requested a baby bassinet for Drake which put me in a bulkhead seat. When our flight was called I really appreciated because of Drake we got to board the plane first.  No waiting in the aisle for people to put away their luggage or showing up at our seats with no overhead compartment space left.  It definitely took some stress out of traveling with an infant.

Even though I was seated at a bulkhead seat, it didn't guarantee us a bassinet. It was first come first served. Once the plane reached altitude, I asked the stewardess for one right away. It was about 75cm long and held a baby up to 20lbs.  There were two studs on the bassinet that were inserted into the bulkhead in front of my seat.  There were two pieces of flaps that zipped together over the bassinet which acted as the seat belt.

Even though I was so happy to have the bassinet, Drake didn't get much sleep on the flight.  The stewardesses (and other random passengers) kept coming by to play with him, especially when he was about to fall asleep. I could tell he was getting really tired and increasingly fussy.  But I didn't have the heart to tell people stop bothering him.

Drake however did have a very good appetite.  I brought tons of food with me on the flight: an apple, a peach, two hard boiled eggs, steamed carrots and oatmeal.  He ate them all.  I packed a big bag of dry oatmeal for the trip.  Just add hot water and butter. Easy and healthy!

When we finally arrived in Shanghai, I was running on about 20 minutes of sleep and was happy for this flight to be over.