If You Want a Baby Badger...It Takes Due Dilligence

As most of you know, I am a Wisconsin Badger through and through. I grew up just outside of Madison, I completed my undergraduate degree at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and I returned to the good old UW to complete my graduate degree a few years later. My allegiance to Bucky Badger is strong. My dad (along with my aunt and uncle) has had season tickets to Badger football games for several decades, suffering through the years of Don Morton and experiencing the rush of beating Michigan in 1993 to go to the Rose Bowl for the first time in 31 years (and to win for the first time ever). In the last 15 years or so, many of my family's vacations have revolved around traveling to see the Badgers play in a post-season bowl game. (Thank goodness they don't have the Garden State Bowl any longer!)

One of the (many) benefits of marrying an international man of mystery like Nick is that he did not come into our relationship with an allegiance to any particular college sports team. This has saved our relationship from much agony, as he readily converted into a Badger fan. His love of American football in general has also been beneficial, as he has no trouble spending Saturdays curled up on the couch, catching a Badger football game.

Maintaining your Badger status while living in Minnesota (land of the Golden Gopher) isn't hard when you have a strong Badger pedigree like I do, but it will likely be more of a challenge for Jack. Because we truly want a Baby Badger, we are working diligently to expose Jack to all things Badger. He has already watched at least two Badger football games on TV, he has a Badger mobile that plays On Wisconsin attached to his crib (thanks Aunt Janet), he has some Badger clothes (thanks Aunt Jane and Uncle Steve), and we sing Badger songs to him every chance we get.

One of my personal favorites for serenading Jack, stemming from my days of living in the Lakeshore dorms, is "If You Want a Baby Badger." Many of you are probably more familiar with the traditional version of this song, that is, "If You Want to Be a Badger." The Baby Badger version, is sung to the same tune, but using the lyrics below:

If you want a baby badger, just come along with me,
By the bright shining light, by the light of my room.
If you want a baby badger, just come along with me,
By the bright shining light of my room.

By the light of my room,
By the light of my room,
By the bright shining light, by the light of my room.
If you want a baby badger, just come along with me,
By the bright shining light of my room.

I'm not sure where we got this version from, but, boy, did we have some good times at Badger football games with this one. (Perhaps the tailgating before also had something to do with it.) Maybe one day, Jack too will decide to go to the UW and will get to experience this fun as a student. If he does, he will be one of the best prepared kids in his class!

Jack after the loss to Illinois

Come on, Badgers!

Jack and Bucky

Note: Those of you non-American readers of this blog who are not very familiar with college football teams may want to check out the hyperlinks that I have embedded in the text above, as they may help you understand what the heck I am talking about in this post!

First Road Trip

Last weekend we took Jack on his first road trip to Madison (Wisconsin, for those of you who are familiar with Madison, Minnesota). The leaves were turning which made for a beautiful drive. Jack traveled pretty well; Mommy and Daddy just needed to realize that the trip will no longer take 4 hours on a good day. Slow down and enjoy the ride, right? More like drive as fast as you can while the little man is sleeping so you can get as far as possible and try to coincide his need to stop with an available exit, preferably one not in the middle of a cornfield, but with real commercial buildings and such. (Don't worry, Grandpa, we didn't drive that fast.) My friend Jen used to pride herself on knowing every exit between here and Madison that had a Dairy Queen. Before Jack turns two, I am confident that the Henderlembckes will know every exit with a baby changing station available on that stretch of I-94.

Aside from the road trip itself, the big news is that on the way home Jack rode in the back seat all by himself. One of us had been riding with him limo style for the first six weeks of his life (yes, even on those short Target or Costco runs) so when he turned six weeks plus one, we decided to move him on. (Actually, I just got tired of being the chauffeur and having Nick ask "what" after everything I said because he couldn't hear me over the fade of the radio.) After several attempts, we finally figured out the little mirror dooblebob so I could see more than just the top of Jack's head from my rearview mirror. By Thanksgiving, I'm sure Jack will be ready to ride shotgun and by Christmas, he should be ready to drive us. In 2008, he can start making solo trips. Who needs parents after the first three months of life anyways?

Friday night, we arrived at Grandpa's house about 5:30pm and decided to go out to dinner at family favorite Gino's with Grandpa and Auntie Anne. Mommy had gotten a little cocky about feeding Jack on the road and left the bottle at Grandpa's house. Big mistake. Halfway through the meal when Jack was once again hungry, I attempted to breastfeed him in the smallest booth east of the Mississippi. Quite different from the relaxing living room at home or even the (relative) luxury of the backseat of the Altima. While lying on the table, with his legs sandwiched between me and the side of the vise, I mean, table, Jack looked at me like, "you've got to be kidding." He managed to get a few drops of a milk in his mouth, despite the table's best efforts. After a bit, when everyone but me had finished their meal, we decided it would be best to leave and just feed Jack in the comfort of the backseat of the Altima once again. We took off from the restaurant very quickly. I wouldn't be surprised if we left the restaurant with half of my bra (or boob) in view, which luckily would not have drawn any attention from the college crowds on State Street. Lesson learned: not a great idea to go out to eat after a long car ride that has thrown everyone out of whack (especially Mommy who did not get her usual afternoon nap because she was driving) and ALWAYS bring a bottle EVERYWHERE, just in case.

Saturday morning we (including the bottle) went to the Hubbard Avenue Diner for breakfast with my friend, Xandy, her husband, and their baby, Riley. It was great to catch up with them. We had last seen Riley when he was about 10 weeks old. Riley is almost 4 months older than Jack. He is a handsome devil with long eyelashes, bright blue eyes, and the shoulders of a future defensive tackle. Jack looked at him in awe (see picture below). Maybe someday you will be that big, Jack. Like when you are 3. Or maybe 13.

That dude is freakin' huge!

Yeah, yeah, he's bigger, but the ladies love the hair

After watching the Badger football team lose to Illinois, on Saturday night we went with some extended family to dinner at the Great Dane, Hilldale location. The Great Dane is one of my favorite Madison restaurants and I had not been to this new branch of it before. It was very nice, but I thought it was strange that you couldn't get their own brewed beers there, especially since at the other locations, they don't have anything BUT their own beers. I guess there is some old law on the books from the time of Prohibition that prevents this. Weird. They put us in a small private room which worked out really well for our group. Afterward, we were lucky to have some yummy chocolate torte at Aunt Janet's. (You can always count on her for a chocolate fix.) Thanks to all of the relatives that came to meet Jack, including Great-Grandma, who, despite her disappointment that Jack is not a girl and her propensity for negative commentary, managed to say he was cute and hold him a bit.

This lady puts me in a chocolate coma

This one's giving me a cousin soon

I've been meaning to talk to you about this "little monster" stuff

Are you sure this guy's held a baby before?

You can't change me into a girl by looking at me that way

And you call yourself a Badger fan

On Sunday, we made our way home, shaving about 50 minutes off our previous record time of 6 hours. Daddy and Jack relaxed by watching the Packers lose to the Bears and Mommy by tuning in to Desperate Housewives and Brothers and Sisters. (Don't worry, Wisconsinites, I managed to catch the Pack a bit before my shows, as well as during commercials.)

We're sorry that we weren't able to see all of you who live in (or near) Madison. We wish we had more time on our visits. It is always such a whirlwind to get there, visit my family, and get on the road again Sunday to get settled before the work week. We hope Jack gets to meet more of you soon. We're home (or at least in the TC Metro area) until Thanksgiving.

And miles to go before I sleep (or maybe not)

Some captions courtesy of Jack's daddy; all captions meant in fun.