Babies R Us Registry Information

We are now registered at Babies-R-Us. The website is Babiesrus.com and our registry is #70108438 - or you can pull it up by our names and Thornton, CO. For those of you who must ship things to us, we found a little short cut. If you pick what you want on our registry, then call the Westminster store at 303-650-2229, X3, and place your order (with our registry number) and tell them to call us for pick up - you don't have to pay shipping and handling. You will however have to pay our high (8%) Colorado sales tax.

We had some questions about this now that shower invites are out. So here you go and I hope this helps!

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

Well the DuBose family celebrated St. Patrick's Day this past Saturday in our traditional way - in kilts and plaids!

Chris & Susan joined us for the Denver SPD Parade. This is a very extensive parade lasting 4 hours! We always 'tailgate' for this event and have a wonderful time. We are also exhausted and (me) ready for a nap when we finally get home.

This past week we also attended our second Childbirth class. This one focused on natural birth again - with positions and other distractors such as smell, temperature changes, feel, etc. I am so observant these days that I did not realize that all the other new dads in our class are Michael or Mike! Jason is the odd man out. With my new found joy and giddiness I have again made a spectacle of myself with the giggles over one of the massaging tools! Oh well - at least I'm not crying all the time!

I also had my first day of ankle swelling - but it was after a 13 hour work day in semi-dress shoes so I'm not too worried that this is the start of something consistent.

Finally we were blessed with baby boy clothes from my mom and some of Braedan's pass alongs from Alexa. They are all washed, sorted into sizes and in his drawers just waiting for baby boy's arrival. Thank you both for thinking of us!

We got to the doctor Wednesday for our 32nd/8 month check up - so I'll report back then!

Thomas Keller Event at JWU!

Wednesday, March 5th, we had the opening of our new Culinary Arts Demo kitchen. We had celebrity Chef Thomas Keller here in Denver for a cooking presentation below are the articles that ran the next day.


Chef sprinkles a dash of awe
'Ratatouille' figure wows local crowd with art of cooking
By Marty Meitus, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)
Thursday, March 6, 2008
George Kochaniec Jr. / The Rocky
Thomas Keller speaks to students at Johnson & Wales University in Denver on Wednesday. Keller, considered one of the top chefs in the country, also gave a cooking demonstration.
Thomas Keller already has garnered more honors than most chefs ever will attain, but here's the one that's toughest to top: a walk on the red carpet at this year's Oscars.
The chef was a consultant on animated film nominee Ratatouille, entitling him to walk the walk. And Wednesday, students at Denver's Johnson & Wales University treated him like a star.
Known as one of the best chefs in America, he was in Denver for the opening of the university's new College of Culinary Arts Demonstration Kitchen.
Keller, who received an honorary doctorate of Culinary Arts from Johnson & Wales in 2003, performed a demonstration and took part in a question-and-answer session with students.
He owns eight restaurants, including the French Laundry (voted best restaurant in the world!) in Napa Valley and Per Se in New York, award-winning eateries where diners clamor for reservations.
For Ratatouille, filmmakers photographed the chef's every move in the kitchen, using him as a model for rat chef Remy. He also supplied the voice of a restaurant patron, and designed the layered version of the vegetable dish.
"It was very exciting; it was surreal," he says of his Oscar trip. And no, he wasn't concerned about what he wore: "I wore a tux - it's not as hard for men."
Dean Karl Guggenmos, the Johnson & Wales Dean of Culinary Arts, called Keller an icon.
"He stayed true to the art of cooking," Guggenmos said. "So many celebrity chefs create excitement and use the brand to create other things. They're not about the cooking, and it's disappointing because the quality of the food suffers."
Five hundred students at the university - and Colorado chefs including Paul and Lourdes Ferzacca of La Tour in Vail - turned out to watch Keller. He demonstrated a technique called "sous vide," a method of using vacuum packing to cook and store food.
"It's a once-in-a lifetime to meet a chef who's changed the culinary world," said student Bryson Billapando, 24. Would he rather be Keller, or the better-known Emeril, no last name needed?
The answer is simple. Keller.
"Emeril brought the culinary world to the public," he said. "But Keller brought it to the chefs."

COOKING FOR KELLER: It must have felt like a parish priest delivering a sermon to the pope when Rioja chef/owner Jennifer Jasinski had the honor of cooking for French Laundry founder Thomas Keller Wednesday night.
Keller, in town to speak during the opening of Johnson & Wales University's new College of Culinary Arts Demonstration Kitchen, told JWU Dean of Culinary Education Jorge de la Torre he had heard of Rioja from some of his guests at the famed French Laundry in Napa Valley.
When Keller and companion arrived at the Larimer Square eatery, Chef Jen asked Keller if he wanted her to create a tasting menu or order off the regular list of fine fare. They ended up ordering some things, and letting Jasinski send out some specialities.
They ate: house-cured salmon flatbread amuse-bouche, Asian pear and roasted beet tart, vegetarian four squares entree, black truffle gnocchi, tuna sashimi, tuna tartare, brioche-crusted Maine skate wing and fresh bacon appetizer.
"I sent out the bacon because he just had to try my bacon," Jasinski said. At the end of the meal, Keller chatted with the line cooks in the exhibition kitchen.

Black Tie & Baby Big!!

This past weekend we had a work event to attend that was black tie. Jason was the star of this evening with his new tuxedo, he was quite handsome. I was able to borrow a formal maternity dress and ended up being one of three or four pregnant women in attendance.

Joining us at our table from JWU were Josh Casto, Jenny Hightower, Alethea Stoval her husband Joe. We ended the evening on a high note when Jason won the centerpiece - that we were able to share with the other ladies at the table.

Last week was pretty rough - I wrote earlier that 'Bright Beginnings' came to our home Monday and we had homegroup on Tuesday. Wednesday we started our weekly Childbith classes. There are 3 other couples in our class and we are all due within two weeks of one another. So far the class has been very educational and not boring or 'lame'. It's the same instuctor we had for another course and we like her very much. This week and next we are focusing on natural labor. Then we will look at medicated labor and finally cesearans. So far all the information we are reading we're thinking we can do this whole natural labor thing with a little work! Of course we are certainly not closing our options to pain medication.....since I don't know what labor pains are like I can't make that decision at this point and may be overly optomistic right now.

Baby boy has become more and more active and very foreceful/strong in his movements. I don't know if he's running out of room or what but he certainly can shake things up! I have a feeling that we won't have to wait until May 17th to meet him and there are others that are betting on an early birth too. As long as he comes after the safe date mark I am okay with getting to meet him sooner.

We will be having our first shower in three weeks and can't wait to start getting items for his daily use. Jason and I agree that the anticipation for these baby items is better than the anticipation of our wedding gifts - I guess it's becuase we are looking forward to the little bugger that will be using them all! :)

Happy March! The next photos you will see of us should be from the St. Patrick's Day parade.

29th - 30th week / 75 then 30 degrees!

The first photo was week before last, the start of my 29th week. The rest are from this past weekend and the start of my 30th week!

Here in Colorado we had a beautiful, sunny, 75 degree Saturday. We took advantage of the beautiful weather by going to our local park and walking Sid. The next day we woke up to blowing snow, 30 degree weather and 4-5 inches accumulation. The one thing you can say about CO weather is that you can't always predict it!

Jason and I have had a lot going on this week. Monday we had 'Bright Beginnings' stop by with some free baby information. Tuesday night homegroup. Wednesday I have Chef Thomas Keller from The French Laundry, Per Se and Bouchon and "Ratoulli" on campus for the opening of our demo kitchen . (Google him to be impressed!) Wednesday evening we start our Childbirth classes and Thursday I will collapse only to get ready for a black tie event Saturday night (yes they make maternity formal wear)! Jason's job has really started getting busy and he's turning into an iron fisted Foreman if you can imagine.

Pregnancy is going great. The baby moves all the time now and is very strong. You can see my whole stomach moving when he's very active. We are also getting weekly exposure to a newborn - Karen & Bill our homegroup leaders bring 3 week old Sam to homegroup so we can get experience holding him! He's such a cutie it just makes us more anxious.

Less than 10 weeks to go! Can I really get any bigger?!?!

Perfect Pregancy and Cheerleading Splits!

Let's start with the good news. I had a check-up yesterday and everything looks "perfect". My weight gain, baby's measurements, everything up until now. So instead of going to every other week my doctor is going to let me go another 4 weeks before starting the every other week appointments. I also got to see my doctor one last time! She thought she had started labor, but no - so they booked her patients with other doctors - but no - so got to see her yesterday and discuss labor & delivery a bit. She will return to work the last week in April and will see me for my last check-ups and delivery.
Now to the stupid thing I did - I pulled a muscle in my groin while standing on the first (carpeted) step of our stairs and trying to reach to check that a door was locked. It was further than I thought so I put my foot down on the hardwood - where it went sliding. I caught myself with the wall so I didn't fall, but I did pull a muscle in my cheerleading spit position! I could tell Monday night that it hurt - but the real hurt did not set in until Tuesday morning. I got up and was in such pain! It felt like when I had a kidney stone. The left side of my belly, back and groin was in such pain. I was trembling and pacing and not getting relief. On top of all this my stomach went rock hard - protecting the baby from whatever had my heart rate and pain levels up! The baby also moved to the side that wasn't hurting me. So after some panic we called the OB emergency line and explained what happened. I was instructed to take Tylenol, warm baths and to take it easy. Tuesday brought no relief, but the baths helped. Wednesday as I walked around the muscle loosened up and everyday it has been better. I guess there will be no more cheerleading splits for me during this pregnancy. I found out the hard way that a pulled muscle during pregnancy is very different than when you are not pregnant!
Besides that things are going great. Keep us in your prayers that things will remain great for the next few months!

7 months!

Picture in green is last week at 26 weeks; picture in white is this week at 7 months.

I am now at 7 months with 12 weeks left until my due date. We have signed up for our Childbirth Preparation Classes that will run for 5 weeks and then I will attend a breastfeeding class in April (all offered through our hospital). We will also get a tour of the birthing center and will be allowed to pre-register. It's time to get serious about figuring out what we are suppose to be doing!

Last week I saw my pulmonary specialist and I will now be put on over the counter Zyntac thru my OB to help with any aggrevation that heartburn may cause my cough. As the baby gets bigger and bigger and takes up more space he's making breathing more difficult. My breathing test results came back great, but I sound and truly am winded most of the time! I will see this doctor again in April and then after the birth.

Wednesday I go for my monthly check-up. My OB has had her baby boy so I will be seeing someone else in the practice until the end of April. My OB was confident that she would be back to deliver our baby in May.

So now that we have completed our nursery, have our shower dates set, and classes scheduled - we are just waiting!