Kentucky Girl Moves Back East!

So I have been slacking on writing my blog (thank you Rachel, ha). There have been alot of changes since I last posted. Michael is now out of the military and he took a job near Louisville, so we have moved back East! It's so nice being close to home and being able to drive back when I want. I am still looking for a job, but I know I will find something soon. We also have been doing a lot of house hunting. We are actually looking to live in Floyds Knobs, Indiana. I was hesitant to leave Kentucky, but the prices are much better across the river. Plus we would only be 15 minutes from downtown Louisville.

Another major change is I have a new nephew!! Lindsay gave birth to Liam Philip Melching on October 22nd. He weighed 8 lbs 2 ounces and was born at 12:41pm. He is adorable and both mom and baby are doing wonderful.



It's amazing to think we have two little babies in our family now. My mom is planning a family vacation to Hilton Head next summer and it will be so much fun with the new additions.

That about sums up what has gone since I last posted. I'm excited to finally be settled in one place with my family near me. God has definitely answered my prayers.

MEET AVERY NICOLE

So, for the past 3 1/2 weeks I've been in Kentucky visiting with family and friends, but most importantly awaiting the arrival of my new niece Avery Nicole Schrand. She was born February 23rd at 6:24pm and weighed 6lbs 14 ounces. So far from an aunt's perspective, she has been the best baby ever (and also the prettiest). I'm not prejudice at all, ha. Erica and Joe have taken to parenthood like it's nothing. They are so calm about everything and it's been amazing to watch.



It's been great being home and I'm definitely sad to be going back. It's been so nice to spend time with my friends and family. I finally got to see Teresa's new house and I was able to be here for my cousin Liz's wedding shower. I'm very thankful for the three weeks I was able to visit. I know I will be back soon. I can't stay away from my new niece for that long! She's going to look so different when I come back.

I don't know about everyone else, but I'm definitely ready for summer and have some exciting things to look forward too. Michael will get "less busy" with work and we are finally going on our honeymoon in June. We haven't been on a real vacation together yet, so I can't wait. Hawaii here we come!

Ringing in a New Year

I can't believe it's going to be 2010 tomorrow. 2009 was a great year filled with a lot of new experiences and challenges. I moved to a new city, learned to be okay on my own, and got engaged and married to the best man I could have ever dreamed of. I'm excited to see what 2010 brings.

Our wedding was November 21st and it was a beautiful day. We could not have asked for better weather. Everything went off perfectly and it was so nice being surrounded by all my friends and family. I also got to meet some new additons like Rachel Revilla's daughter, Sydney. She didn't feel good when she was here, but it was great seeing her. She is adorable! Rachel's mom even made her a matching bridesmaid dress. Here are a few more pictures from the wedding.








Michael's gotten busy with work again, so the beginning of 2010 is going to be a little tough, but we have some exciting things in store. We plan on taking a honeymoon to Hawaii this summer and in October we will be leaving Washington and on to a new adventure. I'm not sure where we will end up next, but I'm hoping it's within driving distance of Kentucky! That's our plan.

I've been bad about blogging, but I just wanted to wish all my family and friends a happy and healthy New Year.

ERICA'S GOING TO BE A MOMMY..AND I'M GOING TO BE AN AUNT!

Erica's pregnent! I'm sure everyone knows, but I'm so excited for her! She's due Feb. 24th and I'm convinced it's a girl! Although a nephew would be perfect as well. She finds out next month what the gender is and I know she is anxious to find out. I can't wait to buy little baby clothes!

I'm also excited because the wedding is fast approaching! I'm ready to come home and see everyone. The planning has been going smoothly due to my mother. I think she can be labeled a professional wedding planner at this point! Michael and I are going to be home until the Friday after Thanksgiving, so we can't wait.

On a side note, my kitten Bella is no longer a kitten. She has quickly doubled in size...I'm not sure what's happening to her. It could be that I feed her more than double the recommended amount...the bag says she should only get a 1/3rd cup a day, but that seems so little. I think I need to invest in weight loss food. Below is a picture of her after Michael made us watch hours of football. I felt like doing the same.....

First Summer in Washington

So, I've been pretty bad about updating my blog recently, so I thought I would do a recap of our summer so far. Here it goes!

June: Was a pretty great month. Michael and I were able to fly home to visit our family and friends. We took a red eye flight to Kentucky which was pretty terrible, but I was so excited to come home that it didn't matter too much to me. While we were home things were pretty crazy, but in a good way. We had a couple's shower hosted by my aunts and it was so much fun. I felt spoiled with all the great gifts that we got! It was nice just to have all of our family and friends in one place! Laura Lewin also hosted a girls shower for me at her parent's house. That one was so much fun too because I got to spend more time with just the girls. My favorite moment from that shower was definitely the toilet paper brides. It was pretty hilarious.

Also when we were home we had our engagement pictures taken by Neysa Ruhl at Devou Park. It was definitely a little awkward at first, but in the end I think they turned out great. I can't wait to see the wedding pictures she gets! During our time home we did a lot of errands for the wedding, but at the end of the week we got to go to Lake Cumberland. It was nice to be able to relax and Michael had never been, so it was fun to share that with him. Our trip home was perfect and I can't wait to come home again soon!!

July: Michael's 27th birthday was July 4th! We celebrated by getting a hotel in Seattle and just going out to dinner and exploring more of Seattle. Our hotel was the Edgewater, which is the only hotel in Seattle actually on the waterfront. We opened our window and we could literally fish from our room. While we were there we explored more of Pike Place Market and took a ferry ride to Bainbridge Island. They had a lot of cute little shops and we just walked around. It turned out to be a good weekend.

Also, in July we had the Ranger Ball. It's always fun to get all dressed up! It was held at the Tacoma Convention Center and it was a nice night. I always think it's neat to experience different aspects of army tradition. And of course, Michael looked very handsome in his dress blues. Sorry, I didn't take any pictures, so you will have to take my word on it, ha. It was also fun seeing some of the different outfits that the women were wearing. There were a shocking number of tiaras worn. I shoudln't have left mine at home, ha.

Finally, July ended with a bang in that we experienced record breaking temperatures! One day it got to 104 which was pretty unbearable in a third floor apartment with NO AIR CONDITION! I no longer think air conditioning is a luxury...you need it! People were fighting up here for fans and you couldn't find a portable air condition anywhere. It was craziness! Michael and I actually stayed in a hotel a couple of nights. I was worried that Bella was going to die of heat exhaustion! Needless to say, we made it through. I purchased a portable air condition online from Target and of course it's going to get here next week...when it's back in the 70s. You never know though, the heat wave might come back and next time I will be ready!

August: Well, august is starting off pretty good. Michael will be traveling a lot for work, but it will be good because I need to get my wedding work out regime under way, ha. I picked up my dress in June when we got back and it was TIGHT! They said they could let it out if need be, but I told them it wouldn't be necessary. I AM going to fit into that dress!! We will see what happens. I will write again soon!

Exploring Washington with Michael

Now that Michael is not as busy (and I'm much happier), we've gotten some time to explore. Over Memorial Day weekend we went to the Mariner's Game and Mount Rainier. Both were a lot of fun.

We went to the Mariner's Game with Michael's friend from work Kyle and his wife Brittany. We had really good seats and the weather was perfect. We couldn't ask for much more. Before the game, Kyle and Brittany were making a huge deal out of Ken Griffey Jr. playing for their team. Michael and I just laughed and said we went through this when he came to the Reds. It figured that right up to bat he would hit a home run. The rest of the day was spent drinking way over priced beers and eating not so good hot dogs, ha. It was perfect. The Mariners ended up winning and the game went by very fast. Even better.

The next day Michael and went to Mt. Rainier. Although I didn't enjoy the ride (I drove and was still nauseous), the experience was definitely worth it. The views were beautiful in Mt. Rainier National Park. Michael and I went on a hike to a waterfall which was definitely interesting. I didn't anticipate snow drifts when I chose to wear capris. It was in the 70s when we left the house. The view from the top of the falls was pretty amazing though. Michael kept on telling me it would be worth it as I struggled to breath on the way up a very steep and snow covered hill, ha. After the hike we ate at the Mt. Rainier Inn and I encountered a Neuman and Grayson look alike (see the below picture). I think their owners thought I was a psycho because I kept on staring. Overall it was a great day. The weather was actually nice and Michael and I got to do something together for a change.


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Sisters in Seattle

This post is a little over due, but a week ago Lindsay and Erica came out and visited me! Bella and I were so excited. Erica with the help of dramamine survived the flight and Lindsay (with the help of a beer) did as well. I picked them up around 2 on April 5th and they stayed with me until Easter. We had a lot fun exploring Seattle. The weather ended up being gorgeous for the first part of their trip as well. We went to the Pike Place Market in downtown Seattle and also found a wildlife refuge only minutes from my house! Erica and Linds went and walked a 5 mile loop where they encountered a very irate goose. I don't think I will be walking that path on my own. While they were here we also visited the Seattle Zoo. Lindsay was very excited about that. It was a nice zoo, but we felt that the Cincinnati zoo was much better. After the zoo I dragged them to the shop where I got my wedding dress, so they could see it. It was nice having my sister's input....even though the dress is already purchased and there really is no going back, ha.

I was sad to see them go, but I'm soo excited about coming home in June. I know it's just around the corner! Bella got use to having more people around as well. I think she's bored now that it's back to me and her. My sister's thought she was evil at first, but they all bonded by the end of the trip. Everything is going good here though. It's suppose to be nice the next couple of days despite all the rain we have been getting. I'm so ready for some sunshine and warm weather! I miss everyone and can't wait to see you soon. Here are some pictures from Lindsay and Erica's visit.....