Parents who brag about their kids are annoying …

Especially since it's painfully obvious that Carrie and I have the best kid around.

Case in point, last week, the three of us took a family vacation to the Bahamas where we met up with Carrie's parents, Erin, Scott, Kailey and Maisy.

While Park had been a great traveler in the past, this one had us worried … really worried. This one was bound to push the little guy to his limits.

For starters our flight left Wichita at 6:30 a.m., meaning Park got a very unpleasant 4:45 wake-up call, signaling the beginning of a very, very long day—one which included a three-hour layover, 40 minutes stuck on the runway waiting on a gate, an hour getting through customs and a half an hour waiting outside in blistering heat for a ride to the hotel.

But through it all he was amazing, sleeping on me nearly every minute of both flights and spending the rest of the time entertaining fellow travelers. He never let out one single cry, whimper or hint of a tantrum (Carrie can't say the same for me).

Then of course there was an entire week of an altered routine and strange new environments, but I'll let Carrie get to the actual trip in another post, instead I'll just fast forward to the trip home.

The way out was nothing compared to this.

The trek started out with a three-hour wait in a very crowded and seemingly non air conditioned Bahamas airport, followed by a four and a half-hour layover in Atlanta. That's right, FOUR AND A HALF HOURS. Needless to say we got to know every single terminal down to the very last tacky magazine stand and rude airport employee. By the time we actually got home, it was close to midnight … the perfect time for a complete meltdown, especially when the plane's lights flipped on waking him up from a deep sleep to which he sprang up, brow furled, lip stuck out and hair looking like he just got struck by lightning (Carrie and I really wish we had the video camera on, it might have been the funniest moment of the trip).

The thing is, the meltdown never came. Instead Park was still smiling and laughing between every eye rub.

We're pretty damn lucky.

Until Carrie posts her official rundown, here are a couple of pictures I took of Park during the trip.

Crib Notes: Month 14

It was the month we've been bracing ourselves for - the kid turned mobile. It was bound to happen at some point, and I think we've been pretty lucky that Park waited this long to seek out independence. It started with a scoot on his bottom and kind of a hop with his legs crossed (not something the physical therapist was really happy about). Now he digs in his heels and really gets going. But as of Friday, he's officially a crawler. A belly crawler.

In our effort to help Park develop his gross motor skills, he's also developed a pretty impressive six-pack for a 14-month-old. As he's been learning how to sit from laying down, we've been trying to encourage him to roll to his side to push up. Park would have none of that. He has always preferred to just do a big ab crunch to get from laying on his back to sitting up. All his hard work has paid off. He's now quick to sit and is thoroughly enjoying this new trick at nap time. It's hilarious to walk by his room and see him just sitting there in his crib and staring at the door. Next up, pulling up to stand.

In addition to being mobile, we have transitioned the munchkin to the adult bath tub in an attempt to get him more comfortable around a swimming pool. He's terrified of pools, but was also growing out of his little inflatable tub, so we had hoped having more room to splash around would help. We tested it out last week at the north Y and I'm happy to report that it was a much better experience. While he's not lining up for the high dive, he didn't mind getting wet or even getting close to the shallow end. Baby steps.

We also finally introduced Park to ice cream. I know, child abuse. But honestly, he prefers broccoli over birthday cake so we saw no rush to push the sweets. And our hunch was right on. He had more fun practicing with the spoon and getting the ice cream in his hair than actually eating it. I guess the sweet tooth hasn't popped through the gums yet.

Here are just a few photos from the last month. If you have time and want to see more, check out Craig's online photo gallery. The password is "Scooting".