Saturday Musings

Happy Saturday! I've had a very nice day today. Mom and Dave took the kids this afternoon so I've had a whole afternoon to myself to run errands, do some laundry, put together a couple of pages and I even snuck in a little nap! Love those days. They are few and far between these days. Paul and I were chatting after dropping them off and we are amazed by how much free time we had before having kids. And we never really appreciated it! It's amazing just how much your life changes when you have children. They become your everything and all of the things that seemed to matter before just fade into the background. I just can't imagine my life without them but I have to admit that I relish the occasional free afternoon where I get to do what I want to do without have Noggin on in the background all day!

We're trying to get ready for the big move which will be happening the week of June 23rd. We'll be having a moving company come in to pack us up, load us up and then we'll be in a hotel until we close and hit the road for St. Louis. Our corporate housing will be ready for us on the following Monday. We'll be in corporate housing for up to 60 days while we find a place to live. I can't seem to think about the whole move in very real terms or I start to freak out. I know this is the right thing for us but I also have to admit that I'm scared silly at the idea of moving so far from Virginia! But, I know that this is the right decision which makes it a little easier to accept. Because I'm also thrilled at the idea of a fresh start and what this could mean for me at work. I'm choosing to see the adventure and ignore the sadness! It's an adventure, right??? LOL

I only have one page that I can share using some MandaBean goodies. I love how playful her designs are and how they stretch me each time I use them to create bright, fun pages! I also have a couple that I've done for Bella Scraps Magazine's June issue but I can't share those until after the issue is released (come on June 15th!)

More Tuesday Musings

I thought I'd share some recent pictures since blogger seems to have fixed the issue I was having with posting pictures - YAY! I'm sorry that these are out of order but I'm too lazy to go in and fix them! Sorry!!!

First, here we are at the cottage in Reedville on Sunday. The girls were warming up after getting in the freezing water. Seeing them at the cottage makes me remember back to when they first met 10 years ago and made friends immediately. Here they are now - still friends!

Our Megs - isn't she adorable in that bathing suit!

My three girls - I can't believe that Sami and Elizabeth are both 12 yet they are so different in terms of size. Elizabeth is almost taller than me now (which I know isn't hard since I'm a shorty!)

Yikes - look at her! She's a beauty which totally scares me since she's just 12 and looks like THIS already! :)
Fishing with her Daddy! She was having a blast until she realized how much waiting is involved in fishing. Patience is not her strong suit!

He was having a blast watching Dad and Nina's puppy run through the water - he ran back and forth giggling for most of the time we were there!

Alex getting his turn at fishing. Again, he was not a fan of the patience requirement. He wanted to reel and reel and reel!
While we were visiting Dad, Nina and Elizabeth in Kilmarnock, we stopped by Elizabeth's horse show in hopes of seeing her ride. Unfortunately, the twins were not patient enough and needed a nap! But, we'll try to catch her at another show before we move! Isn't she a cutie!?!? She's so talented and sweet! I'm so proud of my little sister. Hey, when did she grow up on me?? Seems like yesterday when I held her in my arms for the first time!

Alex loves his Nina! The twins just adore their Pop Pop and Nina! It's so great to see them get to spend time together! We love having them so close by now! It's one of the things we'll miss most when we move - getting to see them more often!

This is the face that greets me when I come home from work or come back from an errand. This face is what makes my world turn! I love my little guy!

This is from when we were in VA Beach last weekend. We met up with Mom and Dave who were in town for the Beach Music Festival and ran down to the ocean to get our feet wet.

Playing in the yard, having a popscicle!

More pictures from VA Beach -

Grandpa helping Meighan build sandcastles!

And a couple more layouts to share ...

Have you seen this kit by MandaBean, Robin Carlton and Kay Miller? It's called Raggedy Annie and it is incredible. I can't say enough about how wonderful it is! You can grab it at Sweet Shoppe Designs!

And I am so excited to get to play with Audrey Neal's newest kits (can be found over at Scrap In Style TV) - she has such a unique style and I love everything she does. She's magic & makes putting pages together a cinch!

Tuesday Musings

Yikes. I need to be better about updating this darn thing!!! Things have been so chaotic that I just haven't had time to come on and give a good update. Let's see ... lots has been happening in the land of Melniczenko. We are officially moving to St. Louis at the end of June. We've sold our house. We're going to stay in corporate housing for awhile until we find something there that we like. Lots of traveling for me lately. Although the next 2 weeks will be nice since I'll actually be home with no trips until June 11. Then, we'll be in PA for a long weekend to visit with Mimi, MomMom, Paula and her family! We can't wait to see everyone! Then, we'll be in our final weeks of getting ready for the big move. I'm so overwhelmed with the idea of moving but I'm also very sure that it is the right thing for our family right now. The twins are doing wonderfully! Growing up so fast and getting to be so smart! They are hilarious and argue with each other like a little old married couple! It's so funny. Meighan's new thing is to tell me that I'm her best friend which just warms my heart. And Alex is still all about SpiderMan. He's obsessed I tell you. They are such great kids and we are so lucky to have them in our lives!

My birthday was yesterday and we had a great weekend celebrating it with everyone! On Saturday we went to Kilmarnock to see my dad, Nina and Elizabeth. We had a great time with them and we went over to the cottage for some sun and beach time on Sunday. Then, we headed back to Richmond and the twins and Sami spent the night with my mom and Dave. And we all met up yesterday at the pool over at Pocahontas State Park for a day of pooltime. It was a lot of fun to see the kids playing in the water! Then, we wrapped things up with caramel cake (homemade by my very talented mom!) at Mom and Dave's house. It was such a nice way to spend a long holiday weekend!

I promise to try to be better about updating the blog, particularly since once we move this will be a great way to show everyone what we're up to. So, I'll work on doing a better job keeping this updated!

I have a lot of pages to share so here we go ...