Niebauer Family: Fun in Madison

We flew out to Madison for a 5 day stay with Mike’s parents, Jane and Joe. Both of his brothers, John and Joe, were able to join us there, and my mom came along as well. We had such a nice relaxing time. Mike’s parents have an amazing home right on lake Mendota, so we had a fantastic view and several fun boat rides too.

Mike’s brother Joe and his wife Lisa have a new son, Owen, who is just 3 weeks older than Caroline. It was so fun to see the babies interact with each other. At first, they didn’t seem too interested, but when we put them down for tummy time together, they interacted a bit more- looking at each other and reaching for the same toys. It was interesting to see how they were so different and similar at the same time. They’re both pretty alert and want to grab everything with their hands. They’re also both pretty drooly- Owen already has 2 teeth, but Caroline’s haven’t emerged yet. But Owen is definitely a boy- a big, solid boy. He’s built like a bouncer, with a bald head to match. Caroline feels downright dainty compared to him. She also seems a bit squirmier and wants to move around more, running her legs like a sprinter when we put her down on her back.

Caroline had another milestone while we were here- she rolled from her back to her tummy for the first time. It was a little tough to watch, because she got caught on her arm and couldn’t pull it out from under her for a long while. I really wanted to go pull it out, but Jane encouraged me to let her struggle to get it out herself, since “that’s how they learn.” She did it eventually, and we all cheered for her, which scared her to death and she started howling. Too funny. She did it again a couple of times over the weekend.

For the 4th of July, I spent the morning with my mom and Jane at the botanical garden, which was just lovely, except for the mosquitoes who were loving my sweet blood. In the afternoon we had a big party and barbecue at the house. Mike’s cousins- the triplets, who are nine- came over with their parents. We played games and set off fireworks and ate altogether way too much.

Caroline in one of her many University of Wisconsin shirts--Mike is convinced she'll be a 5th generation Badger. She's been smiling like mad lately, though every time I get the camera out, she decides to put the smile away. We were lucky to catch this one!