While I was in Nashville, Fox took every opportunity to use the king size bed at our hotel to practice crawling. And he got good – maybe too good. By the end of the trip he was pulling himself onto all fours and successfully climbing around the bed, making his Mama a nervous wreck!

Since then I realized just how many things I didn’t prepare myself for before this crawling phase began. I baby-proofed the house and bought a play mat and corral, but none of that would prepare me for a few major obstacles.

Here’s what I found (and what I wish I knew before baby started crawling).

Getting Baby Dressed

Dressing Fox is a monumental task these days. I may as well sell off our changing table since my little wiggleworm doesn’t want to stay on it. And once we’re on the rug trying to get a onesie over his head, he’s doing triple Salchows out the nursery door with one arm in and the rest hanging off his squirmy baby body. I noticed that talking to Fox and repeating his little noises helps to settle him and buy me more time to get him decent 😉

Sitting Still for a Photo

Trust me – your child is going to look like a blur on film as soon as he starts to crawl, and shaking a rattle near the lens will only work so many times before it’s lost its appeal. Try the manual setting on your camera, shooting with wide open aperture, as high ISO as you’re comfortable with, and try to keep the shutter speed faster than 1/1000 if possible. Use lots of light, as your camera’s auto settings will naturally increase shutter time first if there isn’t adequate light when shooting – which produces blurry photos. But remember, those photos can be cute too!

Extra Coverage Needed

You guys, this is a biggie! I guess it never struck me that with big moves comes a major chance of leakage. Since Fox started rocking himself onto all fours immediately before our trip to Nashville, I knew I needed super coverage for the plane ride, hotel, and sightseeing. I decided to give Huggies Little Movers Diapers a whirl knowing that they are designed specifically with a Moving Baby System for outstanding grip, fit, and wetness protection which absorbs on contact, so babies get the most out of every little move as they begin to kick, roll, crawl, and walk.

Huggies Little Movers Moving Baby System is made up of three key features:
•  A DryTouch Liner that absorbs on contact
•  Double Grip Strips for comfortable movement and a comfy fit that lasts
•  Contoured Shape for freedom of movement

Trust me when I say that between all the “keep your seatbelt fastened” and “this tour is 45 minutes long with no chance to change a diaper along the way,” these Huggies Little Movers Diapers really came in handy. I grew more confident each day knowing that we wouldn’t have any embarrassing moments and that Fox would be comfy and dry.

Keeping Baby Busy in Tight Spaces

Speaking of airplanes: Fox’s first couple flights went beautifully, and then he realized he no longer wants to be held. Since he wants to be mobile and sometimes it’s just not possible to give him what he wants, we were sure to pack a small arrangement of toys that he had never seen before to introduce to him along the semi-long journey. Each time he fussed we gave him a new item to explore. The teething picks came especially in handy when he decided to break his second tooth ON THE FLIGHT. Seriously happened.

Safeguarding Baby’s Legs

With all of the crawling, I was excited (for the first time in my life) to have carpeting. But I soon realized that the carpet wasn’t as comfy as I thought it would be and it left red marks on my guy’s knees. Do yourself a favor and invest in pants or leggings at this stage. Your baby may wear through them, but they won’t hold back from crawling when they’re comfy.

Before I mentioned that Fox was doing really well crawling on the bed. He uses his hands to grasp the covers and pull himself forward! Being a worrywart, I decided to put the blanket on the ground and see what would happen. He went to town! I spread toys out all around and he made his way to each one. I made sure to encourage him to bend and twist (putting toys behind him or to his side) to get his muscles working extra hard.

I’ll be sure to post an update when he’s an expert crawler. I’m sure it won’t be long!

Today’s post is sponsored by Huggies, but my love for their Little Movers Diapers is all my own! Be sure to share a photo of your active baby in their #HuggiesLittleMoversDiapers with the hashtag #SetBabyFree fore a chance to be featured on their page!