Trentham – Great Haywood
We had stopped above Trentham Lock so got through that first with the help of a random bloke on a bike! By the time we arrived at the top of Meaford I had BoatBaby ready to go in his buggy seat and we set off lockwheeling. Unfortunately friends who had hoped to help werent able to make it. But we still made good progress. I worked locks with A in the buggy sleeping.
I worked out some rules for myself to make sure he was safe:
- Brake on when I am not rocking the buggy even if its flat.
- Park on flattest surface, at least 2m or so away from edge.
- Never park buggy in swing of lock beam even if it can’t move yet.
- Face A away from lock gear in case of flying windlasses
I wanted to make sure he would be safe if I needed to do something like run and drop a paddle.
He made it until the last lock (Star) when he got hungry, so I sat on a pub bench and fed him while the lock filled (I love how convenient breastfeeding is)
Once tied up at the bottom of Stone locks we met up with a friend and her baby, who is just 2 days older than A and went for proper Staffordshire oatcakes!
Then onwards towards Great Haywood and A slept most of the way but had a knack for waking up demanding to be fed just before a lock so I couldn’t be very helpful.
M. B. Willow 
How lovely you are blogging again! It is a joy to read about life with A on board. He is such a lucky little chapee to have you for a mom and James for a dad. Thanks for letting us share in the journey. xxx
Thanks Jaq, hope you are well and enjoying life across the pond. I miss your blogs!