Letter to Ocoee-33 weeks

Dear darling little Ocoee

I feel so connected to you as I writes since your moving and squirming inside my belly to some secret dance that only you know the steps to. Remember this love of movement and don't let your daddy tell you that like your mother you dance like a white girl or Elaine from Seinfield....it is a good way to get laughs around the house though. Last night I laid in bed sick and sniffling, not sleeping, with the first cold of my pregnancy. And I imagined you. I think it was the sock order I put in on babysteals because I was thinking to myself, I will have a baby, my baby to put these ridiculously small little socks on. I could see your feet in my head. The were pink and had the same freckle on the bottom that I have and my mom had as well. Genetically speaking your are doomed to huge feet, but this will give you as Bob Dylan says, "a sturdy foundation when the winds of changes shift".

Your pops is in a hurry to get you here. I on the other hand am content to let you bake as long as you need. Sure it can be uncomfortable with this big belly at times but you will be rushed your whole life to go here, do this, get dressed, and dang it reel that fish in! Why start now. Enjoy the peace you have inside doing whatever little, upside down floating Ocoee wants to do. We are pretty prepared for your arrival but take your time sweetheart. I reserve the right to change my mind about this in a few weeks :)

Speaking of being ready for your arrival, I have a baby shower coming up in a week! Very exciting. It is like the first party for you. You will get gifts, eat yummy food and be the center of attention...and you haven't even taken your first breathe yet. I can't wait!!

Pregnancy 4D!!!

Today during the new Harry Potter movie I had my first Braxton Hicks contractions. It was a 4D showing....which I was told is even better than 3D. It was my first movie experience in any extreme D and Ocoee was kicking and contractions happened. Quite an eventful movie...oh yea and Harry killed Voltamore, or whatever his name is :)

I am 31 weeks and feel great. My back aches have gone away and I even got a good nights sleep last night. Ocoee is still busy kicking up a storm in my belly and has even had hiccups several times. Last night as I laid down I could feel the constant beat of her hiccups and this left me feeling very connected to her. It seems amazing that I have been carrying her around for 7 1/2 months....so much of life has been about her and she doesn't even know it. I really do feel so much love already which is unexpected and wonderful.

I bought my first cloth diaper, just to see what they were like. I am hoping to receive more at my shower but I wanted to hold one and imagine all those diapers I would be changing. I offered a little minilesson to hubby as well, can't help that, it is the teacher in me. I actually watched videos from the fuzzibunz website to show me how to do it! I am such a nerd.

Here in Alaska we are in the heart of fishing season. My house smells of smoked salmon which to me, along with salt water, and the fresh clean breezes of Alaska has become the smell of summer. It is an important time since we eat the smoked salmon, frozen fillets and halibut all winter. Brodie alerted me of another activity that will fill my late summer months by spending a good amount of time hunting for raspberries. He loves them so much. I let him have all the ones in the yard that are at his level since we have so many bushes of them in the back part of the yard. We actually just finished our final jar of jam from last year. Soon my fingers will be stained from endless picking.

The nursery is done!

The biggest project of the summer is officially done. I am so excited to have it ready and waiting for little Ocoee. I put a lot of time, effort and precious energy into the nursery and I am estatic with the results.

The theme is Eco-friendly winged creatures. Eco-friendly and organic mean a lot to my husband and I and we wanted little Ocoee to have a green, safe and healthy space that didn't leave a huge footprint on the earth. The winged creatures are owls, birds and butterflies which all are found in nature. Of course we had to throw a few moose in their as a nod to our own Alaskan backyard.

The bedding is organic from pottery barn kids and looks hand made. The main colors are brown and green, the inspiration from the window outside. Then I layered on pinks, blues and creams. The wall color my husband, who worked at a paint store in high school, picked out. It is called "blonde beauty" and is really the perfect color. It looks yellow at times, soft green at others all while remaining a neutral backdrop to the other colors.

Plants are around the room to bring the outdoors in and clean the air Ocoee will breathe. The crib is made of sustainable wood and the picture frames are made from reclaimed wood. The dresser is a craigslist find that was repainted, revamped and re-purposed as a changing table. The baskets are ecofriendly rattan grass from PBK as well. The rug is actually 3 different rugs that I attached and am using as one area rug. It is 100% cotton and super soft...as you can see from the pictures the doggers love it. The moose nightlight is LED and rechargable, made from BPA free plastic. The mattress is organic from Amazon. In the corner we tucked a towel warmer for drying diapers and warming blankies. It is an old gift from hubby on Valentines day when we just started dating and I was a southern girl in a cold city and he felt the need to keep me warm...who knew we would be in Alaska years later!

The closet is organized using an old file cabinet and bins I had around the house. I think organization is sexy so this is a favorite spot in the room for me. The glider came from Babies R' US and was a mother's day gift from the hubby. It is so soft and cozy in a warm chocolate chenille fabric. The curtains are blackout lined to control light and temperature and we have a blackout window shade covered by sheer butterfly panels, all from PBK. The shade is a must here in the land of the midnight sun.

Another favorite is the cherry blossom tree. It is a decal because although I can build a fire, hike a mountain and make a mean martini I am not the crafting, painting mother, but the sweet folks at PBK are and they conviently made it into a sticker for the wall!

In Alaska in the summer our windows are always open letting in fresh, crisp air and the sounds of birds and airplanes since everyone is a pilot in Alaska it seems. If Ocoee would have been a boy the theme would have been airplanes for sure since small aircraft buzz by our house all day long.

Overall this was a blast. I love to decorate and making a special place for our little Ocoee brought me a lot of satisfaction. Now all we need is her arrival!!