Sweet baby James

Hello all:)
For those who don't already know, Jess and I have decided on the first name of James for the baby. This was my grandpa Hubbard's name, and is also the name of Jess's grandpa and his brother, and his father's middle name. James's last name will be Born, like Jesse. The middle name, however, is still a point of debate. Jess likes Braeburn. I like Patterson, Michael, and Jonathan. My guess is we will go with none of those, but who knows. I figure James can tell us what he likes best when he comes out to meet us:)
My first voice teacher, Debbie Wahlberg, threw me a baby shower in Ironwood last weekend. It was apple themed, because Jess works for apple and I'm a teacher so I have my own apple career affiliations! They made a macbook cake, and one of the shower games was to unscramble names of apples. A grand time was had by all (I think... although if that's not the case, I choose to ignore the facts!) I know there are some Chicago-area folks looking for updates to my list of recieved items, so please check my previous post, entitled "about the registry" for the new scoop. As I looked at my pile of beautiful baby gifts, I think the reality of this little guy in my belly as a PERSON hit me full force for the first time... I mean, I had thought about that he would be a BABY, and then I thought about that he would be a BOY, but it hadn't truly registered that he's going to be a whole PERSON... a MAN even, eventually. Madness. I'm growing a man in my belly. Nature is a strange and tempermental beast. It makes me sleepy. Or perhaps that's James sapping me of all my energy. 7.5 weeks and counting. I need a nap.
Love,
a very sleepy, very round version of the lady previously known as leanne

coming into the home stretch

hehehe. 31 weeks here. I have had a busy couple of weeks, as I have finally started subbing in the Madison public schools. It's a far cry from Winnetka, and several students have already addressed me in a way that prompted me to put the fear of God into their hearts by using pregnancy-induced outbursts to my best advantage. Amazing how terrifying a pregnant woman can be! :) Unfortunately, I am not always able to channel my new hormones for good. Jess continues to be an excellent sport as I grumble about my aches, pains, and fatness. I do my best not to get too grumpy when he teases me, since he DOES manage to cater to my every need and spoil me whenever possible.... but sometimes I am just downright mean despite my best intentions. I'm grateful that he is the forgiving sort.
Tomorrow we're going to go to a Madison store called "Happy bambino" to check out birth and parenting classes we might want to take. Goodness knows it wouldn't hurt for us to be armed with a little more information before this guy emerges from my belly and demands that we have some clue what we're doing!
Happy day-after-the-holiday-i-usually-completely-ignore-but-this-year-enjoyed-because-my-family-rocks!
~Leanne and co.

I heart my macbook

Hello all:)
I would like to give full credit to Steve Jobs for this photograph. I took it myself using Photobooth on my Mac! Anyway, week 29 is treating me well. I had my first appointment with my new care provider today, and she says everything about the pregnancy is right on track. No gestational diabetes or anemia in sight. She commented that I "must have a spectacular diet!" I decided that it was best not to mention the cheese puffs and diet coke I had for lunch... it occurred to me that our definitions of "spectacular" might not line up exactly! Joking aside, I have mostly been taking really good care of myself, so I was relieved to see it showing in my lab work today. In other health news, I will be giving birth at Meriter Hospital, under the care of the UW Midwives. Jess and I get to take a tour of the birth facilities tomorrow, but all the literature shows it to be a really nice place. (this is the address for a virtual tour:
http://www.meriter.com/about/tours/index.asp?v=14 ) And best of all, the insurance company has assured me that all of my care will be covered in full. Hoorah!
Aside from that, not much to report. Still settling into our new life and trying to find ways to get connected with the community without spending much money. I think that part will be easier once the weather starts to shape up. Jess and I went to the zoo yesterday (Madison has a neat free zoo!), and I may have imagined it, but I thought the polar bear looked a little chilled!
Much love!
~the Bornselhofts:)

whew.

Ok, so I've been neglecting my blogging duties, and I apologize. To make it up to you, I am giving you not one but TWO pictures this week:) Firstly, back to my traditional pregnant belly shots... Now at 27.5 weeks, I am obviously getting bigger and have switched into maternity pants full-time. Happily, I don't seem to be gaining much weight other than in my belly, so in THEORY it will come off easily at the end.

Secondly, I have graduated in my knitting skills from single-width, single-color scarves to BOOTIES. Having successfully completed this project in two days, I now consider myself capable of knitting anything at all, and I have every intention of doing so. Since I have about a week left before I can start subbing in Madison, I am using my down-time to play housewife. Jesse has been enjoying having his lunch packed for him every morning and coming home to find his house in better shape than he left it. I have been enjoying watching lots of movies, knitting, and nesting in our new place. I can't even express in words how happy I am to know that 2.0 has his very own nursery and Jesse and I have the physical and financial space we need to support him:)

In other news, we are still trying to navigate the fun and exciting ordeal of insurance and which birth place will best suit our philosophical and financial ideals. Things are not looking promising for the birthing center, even though we both LOVED it there. We would have to pay them up front in order to be fully reimbursed by the insurance, and I don't think we'll be able to come up with that kind of funding so quickly. I'm hoping to get quotes from the hospitals in the area within a week so that I can choose and start back up with the prenatal appointments.

I realized yesterday that in 9.5 weeks, I'll be considered full-term, which means that I 2.0 would not be considered premature from that point forward. I can't believe how much things are changing and how quickly this pregnancy is flying by! He just gave me a big kick... I guess he'd like me to say hello to all of you for him.

We all send lots of love! Thanks for checking in!!
~Leanne, Jesse, and a very active 2.0

about the registry

A few quick notes about my registry for those who might be looking:
Firstly, I'm keeping a running list of everything we acquire posted here so that people know if I've purchased/received something already. Secondly, I have mostly registered (at babiesrus.com) for somewhat "practical" items like thermometers, because those are the things I know we need. I figure everyone who wants to get the baby something cute wants to pick it out themselves anyway, and I trust you guys.... So, what I guess I'm saying is, while we would love to receive the things that I registered for, we want you to feel free to do whatever you want. Hopefully this will help guide you if you're wondering what else we might still need.
Here's the list of what we have so far:
I got a lot of new clothes for baby James... I'm not going to list everything, but most items are for size 3-9 months. I have a few things for every size up to 18 months, but could use a little more of the smaller summer stuff to get us started and/or bigger stuff to save for later.
Baby Book (very hungry caterpillar themed)

Newborn Diapers (4 pkgs)... this is probably plenty for this size, especially since we're planning on a cloth diaper service. A pkg or two of some bigger sizes would probably get used up, but it's not one of my higher priorities at this point

Wipes (2 pkgs)

Nursing Pads (1 pkg)

Medela bottles (1 pkg)

Lamaze tummy time playmat and positioner

Galloping Fun Jumperoo
Crib

Rocking Chair
Nursing Stool
Lanolin (2 oz bottle)

Memory Box
Chicco Umbrella Stroller
hooded towels (2)
washclothes (7)
Baby Nail Clippers/Tweezers
Cradle
Ducky Booties☺
Diaper Bag

Changing Pad Cover
Changing Pad
Bottle Warmer/Pacifer Sterilizer
Piggy Bank
Complete Guide to Pregnancy and Childbirth
What to Expect when you’re expecting
Hoppy Days Bouncer
Receiving blankets (4-froggies, 4-sports, 4-jungle animals, 5-blue patterns, 1-very fuzzy black/white stripes, 1- yellow, 2- footprint pattern)
Boppy w/ 2 slipcovers
Organic baby t-shirt
Organic Burp Cloths (3)
Organic Hooter Hider (coverage for breast feeding)
Baby Bjorn
Organic T-shirt Onesies (9), Bears Jersey Onesie, Lizard Long-sleeved Onesie
High Chair
Baby hats! (6)
Bibs (7), Northwestern Bib
Pack n’ Play
"Life is Good" outfit
Bassinet
Wrist Rattles (6)
Swaddling Wrap
Socks (4pr)
Precious Moments Teddy Nightlight
Teddy Bear (2)
Caterpillar piano toy
Lavender aromatherapy stuffed puppy
Infant Carseat (up to 20 lbs, rear-facing)
Wipes warmer
Infant Bathtub
Booties (4 pr)
The Ultimate Lullaby Collection (CD set/lyric book), Dreamland World Lullaby CD
Books: The Little Engine that Could, Goodnight Moon Counting Book, Beatrix Potter Nursery Rhymes, The Night Before Christmas, Dinosaur, ROAR!, Goodnight Moon, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, What do Bunnies do All Day?, Love you Forever, Runaway Bunny, Pat the Bunny, Sleepytime Song Book

and a happy new year!

Jesse and I had a mutual day off today, and we both decided to do NOTHING! I don't remember the last time that happened, but it has definitely been months. What a joy:) It has been nice to be back here, although I'm feeling antsy about the move at this point. We set the date of departure for January 12th, so hopefully we'll have enough time to settle in before Jess starts work on the 17th. I'm not exactly sure what I'm going to do to make money for the home-front once we get there, so if anyone has any brilliant ideas, let me know. It seems likely that I will be carrying over my waitressing prowess to the great state of Wisconsin.
In other news, I spent my Christmas in San Diego with Mom's side of the family, and we all had an incredible time. The baby was a big fan of the star trek museum, as well as the box seats at the poinsettia bowl (he was especially thrilled with the all-beef hot dogs with
sauerkraut!). He is also grateful to Santa (and Auntie Kate) for maternity clothes which prevent mom from squeezing into her pre-pregnancy jeans here in month 6. Belly pics to return next week, i think.
In lieu of belly photos this week, I thought I'd post a couple pics of Jesse and me from our summer trip to visit my family, for those who may not know what our faces look like yet!

Go Jesse! Go Bears!

Hello all!

Courtney came to town and treated me to a trip to Babies-R-Us this weekend.  She is a die-hard Cheesehead, but she bought us this Bears onesie anyway:)

Also, WE HAVE MORE BIG NEWS.....

No, not twins (thank heavens!)

Jesse got the transfer to Madison!!!! We are moving in early January, and he will start work at the West Towne Mall on January 17th.  I'm so proud and excited I hardly know what to do with myself.

Many loves!

~me