we learn as we go

A summary of what the last 6.5 weeks have taught me about being out and about as a mom.Chicco Keyfit car seats do not fit on these shopping carts:Urban Cub FoodsCostcoAldiThey do fit on Target carts though, and the bigger, fancier Cub Foods of the suburbs. O, and naturally they fit on Babies’R'Us carts. Please.Keep hand sanitizer in your diaper bag. It is impossible to effectively wash your hands while holding a baby after a diaper change in a public bathroom.When out shopping, forget the entrance and park near the cart corral so you don’t have to haul the car seat as far.When leaving a building/your house/your car on a sunny day, check the shadows on the ground to know which way to face your little peanut so as not to blind them.Stroller cup holders are notoriously dumb. By dumb I mean too small. Buy one of these:The Camelbak Better Bottle in 16 fl oz. It’s tapered on the bottom and is yet to meet a cup holder it can’t fit. Best $10 I’ve spent in the last month. (Sporting goods stores carry them, I got mine at REI).Book stores make for fabulous Imustgetout destinations. They have the book selection of the library with none of the ‘fragile silence’ pretense. Also, three words: in-store caf√©s.When you need something, ask. I have found large numbers of store employees and strangers will take pity on a woman with a young baby. Example: I got beef blood on my hands from some meat packaging at the grocery store and I asked the butcher if I could have a wet paper towel to wipe it off (if I add parenthesis after the preposition does that mean I didn’t end a sentence with one?). He more than obliged even though he was in the middle of re-stocking a shelf. Never hurts to ask!Subtract 15 minutes from your “I need to leave by…” time. This will be eaten up by the inevitable and horribly timed blow-out, spit-up, break-down, etc. You name it, it will happen as you are sprinting toward the door.And finally:The top of the trunk on sedans make for fabulous changing tables.