Nursery Update

Dear Conor,

Its been a while since I posted pictures of your nursery....since you were born there have been many changes in your little room because its now really YOUR room and not just a room we prepared for a baby that was coming!

What you see when you first walk into your room.  We spend every night rocking in this chair before bed.

Looking to the right from the door way - you and I sleep in this bed in the early morning.  We also read books in this bed.  Some special books and stuffed doggies are on this shelf.

Your crib is on the left of your room.  Its been dropped to the lowest rung and the bumpers put back on because you bump the rails all the time.  Your quilt hangs from your shelf along with your music machine and monitor.

Your diapers and blankets all stored neatly on your changing table.

Your whale toy holder (which now has only blankets in it because the toys were a distraction to you falling asleep for naps) and your fun blue rug which matches Hunter's bed which is in the lower left corner of the picture).

I love this view - this picture includes your name sign that Mommy had made for you.

And your very full closet with all the clothes that fit and the ones you have outgrown!

 

And there you have it little man - there is a view of your nursery when you are 7 months old.  I am certain that it will continue to evolve as you get older and we have to make even more changes to keep you safe and happy in your space.

xoxo
Mommy

PS.  your room is STILL my favorite place in the house!

Oh What a Night!

Dear Conor,

Today you are 4.75 months old and I can't believe how much you have grown and how many firsts we have experienced together.  Well, last night was yet another first.

As I have written before - your sleep has not been great since you turned 3 months old.  You have fought to stay asleep during the night and when you woke the only thing that would soothe you back to sleep was nursing.  But, with me working full time you were making me a very tired Mommy.

But your Daddy and I figured that you would sleep on your own when you were ready and we were not going to push you and fight what you weren't ready for.  Well, about a week ago you started wanting to go to bed earlier than your Daddy and I were ready for.  So, I started putting you to bed in your crib.  You would sleep until 11pm or so and then we would move you into our room for the remainder of the night.

Well, this past Monday night you had a terrible night and I noticed that your hands kept going to your face and that after a few minutes of this was when you woke up.  So, I decided that while you were teething (which you are now - I can see the little white bumps again) you would be back in a swaddle.  Therefore, Tuesday night (your Grandma Mary's brithday) I nursed you, took you upstairs to change your diaper, swaddled you, nursed you for a few more minutes and then put you in your crib propped on the Boppy pillow (you still need the incline due to reflux).  I had also bought you a sound machine/projector to help drown out the noises downstairs and those we made coming up to bed.  I put you down drowsy and went downstairs.

You fussed a few times before falling asleep but you did not need much comforting (just a binky re-insert) before you were out cold.  When we came upstairs at 11pm you did not wake up and so I left you to sleep in your crib.  You slept until 3:30am!!!!  At that time I brought you into our room and nursed you before putting you back down in the co-sleeper where you fussed a bit and then fell asleep until 6:30am.  I then pulled you into bed for snuggles and you fell asleep again!

Knowing this last night I made some changes to your room yesterday afternoon in preparation for last night.  I moved your rocker into your bedroom and took your activity mat and put it in our room (you will eventually have a little play corner in there for when we shower since it's further from the stairs than your room).  The rocker doesn't leave much space in your room for any playing so its a good thing that Mom and Dad have a space in their room for you!  Here are the new pictures of your room.

The big boy bed in your room with Mom's Cabbage Patch Kid - Clinton saving you a spot.

See your new shelf?  There is one on each side of the window!

And here is your rocker in your room with your quilt on the back.  Your camera and sound machine live on this shelf.  When you get a little bigger I will have to adhere the cables to the wall so that you can't pull on them.

Because we moved your rocker into your room - Hunter's bed got moved to the other side of your crib.  See him sleeping there?

This side hasn't really changed other than we are using your bassinet to hold your large stuffed animal collection.  Pretty soon we won't have room for anymore!

You went to bed last night at 8:00pm.  We went upstairs and I changed your diaper, swaddled you and then we rocked in your chair and I nursed you.  Then I put you to sleep and turned on your sound machine/projector (last night it was sea animals) and left you to fully fall asleep on your own.  You did fuss a few times but you were fast asleep by 8:30pm.  And you slept until 3:30am again!  I heard you over the ipad and so I came into your room, picked you up, nursed you in your rocking chair and put you back to sleep in your crib.  I had to stay with you for a few minutes with my hand on your chest but after a littlr fart you went to sleep and I was able to go back to bed too.  You woke up again at 6:30am and I brought you into our room to nurse where you slept until 7:30am.

I am so proud of you my little man for spending your first full night in your room.  While I am proud of you it also is sad because it means that you are growing bigger and soon you wil be off to college (well - not really but that's how Mommies feel sometimes!).

I love you little man.

xoxo
Mom

Nursery Update - Week 39

Dear Conor,

Your nursery really looks amazing - I can't wait for you to see it.  Last night your Dad and I hung the curtain rod (it was difficult to find a curtain rod for your room given your window size and so many seemed very feminine) and your navy blue sailcloth curtains.  I decided to get the light block curtains so that I could darken your room when and if we ever needed to.  I am glad that I made this decision because the curtains hang beautifully with the heavier backing.

Curtains from Pottery Barn Kids

Well, what do you think of them?  I haven't decided if we will get curtain hooks to allow the curtains to be pulled back or if we will leave them hanging like this - only time will tell.

I also took advantage of black Friday deals and ordered your duvet cover.  It should be arriving shortly.  We saved $17 because shipping was free!  I made up the big bed in your room last night with the dust ruffle (navy), the sheets (light blue), and the winter blanket (tan) as well as the uncovered duvet and the quilt.  It looks so inviting - I want to sleep there!

Detail of Kasey Quilt - there is also a chocolate brown stripe that you do not see here.

Doesn't the bed look so soft and comfy??  I just need the duvet cover to arrive and to pick up two more pillows.  Your Dad thinks it needs a headboard and while I agree with him I know it will be hard to find something to fit with the ceiling being so low.  So, we will take our time :)

I also took some more pictures of the nursery portion of your room to remember what it looked like.

Your crib & whale toy basket

Your changing table and diaper bag

Detail on your quilt - Jackson from PBK

I love how everything in your room ties together so beautifully!  Your Dad and I are very proud of all the hard work that went into your room. 

We also ordered your monitor this week and we have decided to mount it above your crib on a shelf so now I have to locate shelving for each side of the window (both your Dad and I like symmetry).  But first I am waiting for the monitor to arrive so that I know what type of shelving would work best.

Your due date is only six days away so we are in the final moments of preparation - I can't wait to meet you little man!

xoxo
Mom

To Do List Update

Dear Conor,

We have been very very busy this week preparing for your arrival (some might call it nesting).  Your dad is still working on the bathroom shelves and they are coming along beautifully!  It is my hope that they are finished tomorrow as I would really like to finish your closet and I can't with all the bathroom stuff in there :)!

In preparaton for the shelves being done I picked up the last of your things from Grandpa Tom's house which included your bathtub and some bath supplies.  It's a good feeling to know that all of your things are here in the house should you decide to arrive early (but remember - we talked about this, you can't come before November 30th and we would really like you not to arrive before December 3rd just to ensure you are as healthy as can be!).

This week you received several things in the mail.  Grandma Mary sent us a book from Shutterfly that memoralized the shower that was held for you at her house.  My camera battery is currently being charged but once it's done I will be certain to take some pictures and post them for you.  A friend of mine sent you a monogrammed travel diaper wipes case - she made it in colors to match the diaper bag.  And Great Nannie sent me a beautiful Mother's poem (so this is really my gift but I received it only because of you so we can share it).  Oh, and Auntie Ana sent up her breast pump so we are all set in that department as well.

So, how are you doing?  You seem to be doing well.  You are active in morning and at night but you have started to grow more active during the day as well.  We are experiencing little contractions but nothing that indicates you are coming any time soon.  You haven't dropped and 'locked' yet and I know this because the heartburn is still pretty intense at night and I can often feel you practicing your kicks and they are still pretty high up on my right side.  But, you do practice dropping because at times I can feel you very low in my pelvis.  I think I might prefer that you not lock in until closer to the big day because it can be very uncomfortable for me when you are down LOW.  We have a doctor's appointment this Friday to check on you and see how you are doing so I will know more then.

As Dad and I have been decorating for Christmas I took that time to add some of your ultrasound pictures to the dinningroom wall.  I can't wait to add real pictures of you but for now the ultrasound pictures will have to do!  Your P&P has been moved to the dinning room to accomodate the Christmas Tree and it fit in there pretty nicely which was a huge concern of ours.  Your swing remains in the living room next to the tree and I think you will enjoy looking at all the pretty lights as you swing each day (assuming you like your swing).

We also added a little Christmas tree to your room.  I bought it last year as I really wanted a little blue tree for our room (and my little pink one was going to go in your room when it was going to be just a guest room) but I can't very well give you a pink tree so I have traded with you.  The tree is set up and it adds a little bit of holiday cheer to your room too.  I still have to purchase curtains for you room but I am going to be doing that today and the duvet that I want is on backorder but it should arrive in the next two weeks.  At that point - your room will be complete.  Hunter's new bed was even washed and is now set up in your room so he has a place to go when we are spending time in your room.

Well, I think that's it for updates other than the promised pictures which I will try to post later tonight.

xoxo
Mom

PS.  Auntie Cathlin told us that her friend Jen reads this blog too so we want to say "HI" to Jen and her husband Keith!!!  We hope they like your blog :)

Nursery Before & After

Dear Conor,

The meat and bones of your nursery is finally complete.  We are still waiting on some smaller items to be purchased but the painting and cleaning and organizing is all done.  Therefore I thought it would be a great time to do a Before and After post.

Prior to your room becoming yours it was our home office.  It was the first room that we renovated when we moved in as I would need a place to study and law school was starting in a few weeks.  We selected the moose theme because I thought it was cute and I was excited to be in Maine.  Here is what it looked like when it was our office:

Once I opened my own practice we moved the office to the main floor of the house and moved the guestroom up to the "Moose Room".  I hadn't gotten around to decorating it as a guest room because we were toying with the idea of painting it so it stayed as a Moose room for several months.

Then, we learned that you were coming and we just knew that the renovations we had talked about would be perfect for a baby's room - so I started painting and the work began.  Here is the room now....almost 100% ready for your arrival!

I just love how your room has turned out and I can't wait for those finishing touches to arrive.  Your room is by far my favorite room in the house.  It makes me so happy that we were able to provide you with such a nice space to come home too.  Having such a beautiful room also makes those sleepless nights that I am certain we will share seem not so terrible (of course, I might not say that when I'm running on a few days with no sleep!).

I hope you like your room as much as we do!

xoxo
Mom

Week 33

Dear Conor,

Thursday's birthing class was very informative but also made the idea of birthing you a little scary.  Your Dad had to leave about 20 minutes early because Hunter had been home for 4 hours alone and that is about his time limit.  When he left we were watching a movie and it was just getting to the actual birth viewing.  The teacher came up to me after class and wanted to make sure that he was ok.  The look on her face when I explained why he had to leave was priceless - and then she shared a picture of her grandpuppy that lives in Sweden.

Friday we had a doctor's appointment.  This was our first biweekly appointment.  We talked about carseats, prelabor contractions and a few other things we had discussed in our class just the night before.  After talking (and coming to the conclusion that I needed to wear wrist guards at night to help with my hand issues) we began measurements.  You are measuring spot on for 33 weeks and your heartbeat was a strong 145.  You are head down (and have been for several weeks) and curled in a "C" shape with your little feet touching my right side.  Your butt is up by my ribs and the midwife thinks you have a boney butt (this made me laugh because that is a trait that runs in my family).

Today I worked on so many projects but nothing is wanting to come together very quickly.  Tomorrow I have a little bit of painting in your room left and then I have to wash the floor and it will be done.  The shelves have gone up in the bathroom and I am working on staining those tomorrow as well and painting the supports.  Staining takes time because you have to do each side and the edges and then poly so I will be working on those all week.  I am going to try to convince your Grandma Mary to come up in the the next two weeks and help me paint the bathroom (and maybe the hallway or my bedroom) and make sure that there is nothing I am overlooking in our preparations for your arrival.

The bedding for your room arrived and we are not in love with it so I am sending it back and ordering the original bedding that I liked.  If I can return it on Monday then I should have your new stuff in by early next week and that element of your room will also be complete - then it will just be curtains and decor!

A pregnancy issue this last week has been heartburn that can't be easily cooled and occurs more than twice a day.  I am currently eating a few Tums a day and taking Pepcid at bedtime along with my prenatal vitamin.  It is my hope that once you drop I will have a little relief.  I think you will drop in the next few weeks because you tend to "bobble" down low towards the evening hours and then you float back up by the next morning.  I have also had a lot of swelling in my feet.  This is normal and is not currently a concern for the midwives but I have been told I need to put my feet up at the end of the day.  This is very hard for me but I am going to give it my best try because I don't want my feet to hurt.  I also have an odd symptom in which my finger joints hurt when I try to bend them.  They hurt more in the morning than any other time of the day but the pain is present during the entire day.  I am now going to be wearing wrist splints at night to prevent my from sleeping with my wrists in awkward positions which might help alleviate some of the pain in my hands and is that doesn't work then it might be time to see a physical therapist or another type of doctor to get some relief.  I am also looking into some prenatal aqua-aerobics classes as there is some belief that swimming or being in water can help with both the swelling in my feet and the pain in my hands.

So, that's the update for this week - next week I am going to start packing hospital bags......I have a feeling the next few weeks are going to just fly by and we don't want to be caught off guard!

xoxo
Mom

More Nursery Sneak Peaks

Dear Conor,

The nursery is about 99% complete and I couldn't be happier with the results.  The crib went together rather easily and the bedding is just what I had hoped it would be.  It provides a lot of soothing light blues with punches of red and dark blues to stimulate your eyes.  The furniture is beautiful.  I can honestly say that you have the nicest furniture (and the nicest room) in the house.

I wasn't going to give any more sneak peaks till it was 100% done but all that's left is to finish installing outlet covers (I have to buy them first) and to finish trimming out the blue paint.  That will likely be finished this week - I  had to wait for the white paint to really "cure" to ensure no bleeding between the paints and to ensure that any tape won't peel the white paint off.  I also have to decorate the walls but I am going to wait on those until the guestroom side is done.

So, without futher ado - here is your nursery:

The changing table - I love the mix of green and blue basket liners!

Your crib as viewed from the guest bed.  The whale basket was the first thing we bought for you.

A close up of your bedding.

The entire view as seen from the guestbed - the stroller bassinet is next to your crib.

Your dad and I have put a lot of thought and work into this room; I truly can't believe that only a few months ago the room was forest green and had a moose/bear border; and we really hope that it suits your needs for several years to come.

We have now turned our focus to the guest bed and ordered the bedding for that this past weekend.  I'm not going to sneak peak that right now because we don't have it here yet but hopefully it will arrive by this weekend and we can dress the bed.  After that it will be time to pick out curtains and a night stand.....and decorate the walls but that will come in time of course :)

As of today there are only SEVEN weeks left till your arrival - and we can't wait to meet you!

xoxo
Mom

Nursery Progress

Dear Conor,

These last few days I have been so busy working on your room.  I can only do so much at a time because (1) I have to let paint dry and (2) my body (with you growing in it) can't handle as much physical labor as it used to be able to do.

Last night I finally finished painting your woodwork.  As I said before - your room is the first room where we have transformed the woodwork from stained to painted white.  It was a long and hard process but I love the final look.

After painting I started washing the floors.  Because we had to paint your ceilings - paint splatters were on the floor so the only way to wash it was by hand with a hot sponge and scour the areas where the splatters were.  So that is what I did (well, I'm almost done - I have to finish today or tomorrow).  First I scoured the floor with the hot water, then I used the wet swiffer to get all the little dots up and give the floor a quick cleaning.  Once that dried I used our regular wood floor cleaner to finish it all off.  I got two large sections of the room done.  All that is left is the closet and the area where your crib will go. 

Because so much  progress was made we moved somethings back into your room in order to give us more room in other places of the house.  The queen sized frame and box-springs went back into your room (the mattress will likely go in this weekend once I purchase things for the legs of the frame and finish a few touch-ups on the blue wall that I have yet to do) as did your changing table.  Your changing table has had a few homes in our house since we brought it home from the store but it finally came to rest where it was always intended to be - your room.

Because I couldn't resisit (and they have been sitting in the back of my truck for a week) I got out some of the baskets we bought for the table and filled them with the diapers from Auntie Lindsay's diaper cake.  It was so sad to take the cake apart but we will need the diapers and there is no where for me to keep it set up until you arrive.  Then I got out the changing pad and its cover and we connected that as well.  There are still two larger baskets for the bottom shelf and I need to figure out if I am going to get an organizer for the top but right now I think it looks pretty good (stil not sure I am keeping the changing pad cover in that color - I will have to wait till everything is put together to make that decision).

Here's a sneak peak!

That's all the sneak peaks you get - I'm not going to post pictures again until the room is 100% done!

xoxo
Mom

Week 32 & Updates

Dear Conor,

Lots of things to report :

(1) I developed some kind of weird itching thing last week that was a tad bit annoying.  I didn't itch on my stomach but on my legs, arms, and behind my ears - and only at night.  A cool shower helped but we still were unable to sleep Wednesday night (it wasn't just the itching - for some reason I just couldn't get comfortable).

(2) Friday (10/07/2011) I had a doctor's appointment.  I mentioned the itching to the midwife and she was a little concerned so she wanted me to report after the weekend if I was still itching because they would want to draw blood and test for certain things (thankfully I haven't itched since Friday so no worries).  At this appointment I weighed 154 which means that I have gained a total of 27ish pounds as I was between 125 and 127 at my first appointment.  The midwife is very happy about this weight gain and says that I "look great."  My blood pressue continues to be perfect and your heartbeat is also strong and "sounds good."  This was the last monthly appointment - we now have to go to the doctor's every two weeks until some point in November when we start going weekly.  I can't believe that you will arrive in 8 weeks!!!

(3) Saturday (10/08/2011) I primed all the woodwork in your room.  It took a LONG time because there is not only a lot of woodwork but I also had to take a lot of breaks.  But I got both coats of prime on by the end of the night which meant that the room would be ready for paint on Monday.

(4) Sunday (10/09/2011) we drove down to Auntie Ana and Uncle Gordon's house to meet Little Gordon.  He was just adorable and oh so very tiny.  I doubt you will be that small but I can't wait to hold you like I held him.  He fell alseep on my chest with his little legs resting on my belly - right near where your little feet are so it was almost as if you were touching.  After he fell alseep I put him in his little swing and we visited for a while longer before heading to the mall to purchase some items for you.

Yesterday (Columbus Holiday) I spent the day once more in your nursery crawling around painting all the woodwork. But the task is done and it is my hope that we can wash and wax the floors tonight and start moving your furniture in tomorrow!!!  As we start birth classes this week we have one less night each week for the next four weeks in which to get things done.  And, with you coming in only 8 short weeks I feel the need to restore my house to what it used to look like (before all your boxes of things arrived) as soon as I can!!!

xoxo
Mom

Week 30 & Nursery

Dear Conor,

It's been a busy few days.  I have been working hard (at my real job) to get ready for October as I am likely to have a trial and I need to make sure that I'm caught up on all my other cases.  When I am sick of work (which means dealing with other people's problems) I take a few minutes to do something for you.

On Tuesday I worked on Thank-You cards.  I believe I have about 15 more to go.  I have completed about 20 which is more than 1/2 so I am happy.  It's my goal to have the rest in the mail by Monday.  I can't post a picture of the cards yet because not everyone has received theirs.  But, Amanda has gotten hers and texted that she thought it was "adorable".

On Wednesday I put together your swing from Grandpa Tom and your Pack and Play (or play yard as they are now called).  They are currently set up in the livingroom and they fit there pretty well - we just have to figure out what to do with our Queen Anne chair as I don't believe it will fit up the staircase so that it could be put in our room.  I am thinking perhaps the dinningroom once we clear out the rest of your stuff there could be space.

Dempsey by Graco Collection

Today I stopped at Grandpa Tom's house and picked up all of the clothes from your Maine Shower.  When I wasn't busy working I spent some time organizing the clothes in your closet and trying to put as much in the closet as possible to keep it out of the dinningroom and the hallway.  While the closet is not set up as it will be once your room is done and the containers but in it - I think that it alone reminds me of your impending arrival.

Closet 9.29.2011 - a work in progress

You already have a lot of clothes in a variety of sizes - you currently have more clothes to wear when you come home from the hospital than I do!  Something about that just doesn't seem quite right :)

We had to rearrange the work on your room because my work schedule changed this week but I still intend on having your room ready for furniture by bedtime on Sunday so wish us luck :)

xoxo
Mom

Ten Weeks to Go & To Do List

Dear Conor,

Today is the ten week mark.  In ten weeks you should be here.  It is time to get our bottoms in gear and get things moving.

I was supposed to have a trial tomorrow but things have changed so I am going to work hard today to get a lot of my work done and then spend tomorrow sanding and priming your bedroom woodwork.

My hope is that if I can get that done then Saturday I can paint and if not on Saturday then Sunday I can wash the floors.  Once the floors are washed and waxed and the ceiling fan dusted we can move the furniture into your room and I can start putting things in order.

Your crib is still at Grandma Janet's and I am 100% certain that she wants it out of her spare room so she can have that space back :)

So, here is my Mommy-Do List
(1) sand trim
(2) prime trim
(3) paint trim and beadboard
(4) clean ceiling fan
(5) wash and wax floors
(6) move into bedroom (including assembling crib)
(7) wash and iron bedding
(8) organize clothes, diapers, and all other baby stuff

Then it's on to the bathroom where I need to prime and paint and get some shelves up so we can store all your bathroom stuff (plus ours and Hunters) in a more orderly fashion.

This is a big list but I feel it I break it down into tasks per day and give myself deadlines then we will be ready to go for November 1, 2011.

What?  Why November 1st you ask when you are not due to be here until December 6th?  Well, your arrival doesn't stop the world from turning and I have Christmas shopping to do!!!  Plus, I will feel better if I have a few weeks to "tweek" things as I see fit and am not spending that time running around trying to actually get organized.

I'll update you after the weekend with our progress :)

xoxo
Mom

PS.  I also have to finish the Thank-You cards from your showers.  The first batch of 12 went out today and I hope to have another batch out byThursday! 

Closet Make-Over

Dear Conor,

I have been working on your bedroom for what seems like a very long time.  First I had to strip the old moose wallpaper off and then I had to paint your lower ceilings and the walls.  Then we had someone come in and put up the wainscotting and fix some of the trim.  Once that was complete I began working on your closet because I knew that once I got the closet finished I would feel like we were actually making progress on your room.  Late last night I finished your closet (well, its about 90% complete - there is still trim to be painted and the doors to be sanded and printed but MY work on it is done!).

Your closet started out as a bright baby blue nightmare.  The first step was to take down the existing rack system and that meant filling all the holes and sanding them.  The next step was to turn the closet from blue to white.  I used a semi-gloss because the ceiling is really tall and there is only one light in there.  The walls required many coats of paint but I love how brighter it looks.  The next step was to re-configure the shelving and try to use everything that we had - then purchase what we need.

I ended up needing to purchase shelving for your side shelves but we were able to reuse everything from the middle of the closet.  We also have left over shelving that I am going to store in the basement so that if/when we need to reconfigure your closet as you grow we will have what we need (hopefully)!

The newly purchased 12" shelves installed on the right side of the closet.

The re-purposed 16" shelves with space in the back of the closet to store items not being used.

A shot of the closet from across the room (doors have been removed).

Looking towards the top of the ceiling.  I installed a high shelf to store momentos safely out of the way.

Of course, once I got this far I had to start putting some of your things in the closet so that I could reclaim parts of my dinning room.  The goal is to find cloth bins to put on the shelves to store socks (0-3 & 3-6), onsies (0-3 & 3-6), and other clothing items that don't get hung up because you will not have a dresser.  Here is what it looks like with some things in it!

Your clothes hanging up and some toys set up.

Looking at the closet from across the room.

A few things waiting for bins to be purchased.

I know it's just a closet but to me it's one thing off the checklist of things that we need to do to get ready for your arrival!  Today I am taking the day off but starting tomorrow I am again going back to work on your room.  My goal by Friday is to get 1/2 the room finished so we can move your changing table up to your bedroom and start on the second 1/2 of the room as my overall goal is to have everything painted (other than your doors) by the end of September!  Here's to hoping I can accomplish this task!

xoxo
Mom

Nesting Has Begun

Dear Avacado,

It's official - we are nesting in preparation for your arrival.  This past weekend I painted and painted till I couldn't paint anymore (mostly because my legs were so tired - I think I went up and down the ladder more than 500 times!).  But, the end result is that your room is no longer forest green and beige but two shades of blue-ish gray.

The contractor arrived this morning and the bead board is going up and the repairs on the window trim were made today.  Taking off the old trim did cause some issues with the new paint (old paint was stuck to the trim) so I have a little bit of fixing to do but that can wait until he's all done.  He is coming back tomorrow to keep working on things - I can't wait for the finished product as your room is going to be the best one in the house!

Pictures to follow once things are all done :)

xoxo
Erin

Wiggle Worm & Construction

Dear Avacado,

You have become quite the wiggle worm!  I feel you moving around quite a bit during the mornings and later at night.  Yesterday we were at Court (such a serious place) and while the Judge was talking you decided to start moving all around.  You were moving so much that it was almost like a tickle and I wanted to laugh out loud so you and I should probably work on your Court Room Etiquette. :)

At night you start to move a lot when its bedtime and I am laying in bed trying to get to sleep!  I think you may have your days and nights mixed up at the moment OR you are trying to get me used to being awake later at night.

This week is also a big week because work is being done on your room.  I stripped your closet on Sunday and patched all the holes in the walls.  Tonight I intend on sanding it and seeing if it needs another coat of putty.  If it doesn't - then the plan is to paint it tonight and apply the second coat tomorrow before I head to Boston.  We are also removing trim and painting your room this weekend in preparation for the contractor to come and add the bead board next week.  Your room will be painted a nice shade of gray/blue on the two tall walls and we are not certain just yet if we will do the short walls in the same color or go up the color card one shade to make it a little lighter.  Either way - the bead board will be white as will your nursery furniture so I think your room will look fantastic!

I finally picked the bedding for your crib and it has a whale motif.  It's from Pottery Barn Kids and I love how it has so many shades of blue in it but also uses different patterns and textures for the little fish and the whale fins.  I picked up the lamp shade last week and everyone who has seen it agrees that it is adorable.

This is a picture of the bedding - its not the best picture but you can see the quilt and the skirt and the little pillow well enough.  The little pillow will be going on the guest bed to help tie everything in together as your room will still be the guest room for a little while (or until I  move my office to a new location or we get a new house!).

That's it for this week -

xoxo
Erin

First Purchase

Dear Avacado,

Today I checked the mail and the new Pottery Barn Kids catalogue was waiting for me.  I love Pottery Barn and use it as inspiration for a lot of my decorating.  The items sold by this vendor are often very expensive but you can find similar items in other stores for less.  Hence, the Pottery Barn catalogue is my shopping/decorating Bible.

Anyways, as I was looking through the catalogue I came across this:

A whale shaped wicker basket.  I had tried to order this basket last year for our living room to keep magazines and Hunter's toys in but PBK had sold out and it was not avaliable second hand (and I did a LOT of searching).  So, when I saw it today I had to snatch it up.

I purchased it in white and it will either be kept in your room and stuffed with toys or we will use it in the livingroom to keep diapering supplies and/or toys as you grow.  If you are a girl I will likely add a bow to it.  When I mentioned this your Dad laughed and called me the "ribbon queen".  It's true - I have a lot of ribbon and I like to add it to many things to give them that "extra touch".

This was a very expensive purchase but we will be able to use this basket for many many years to come and its uses are not limited to baby/kid items.

So little avacado - when you ask me many years from now what was the first baby thing we bought I will be able to tell you it was this adorable white wicker whale basket.

xoxo
Erin