feel neglected?

It just means that life has gotten in the way of blogging BIG TIME. I think mostly now that things are really starting to wrap up here in WV I'm spending more time with my mother, grandmother and aunt. Saying goodbye will be so bittersweet. It will be hard for us definitely, but also such a fresh new start for our little family.

Joe has been back and forth a lot the last month, visiting us for mini vacations and taking stuff we've packed to our bursting storage unit (note to self, on July 1 I need to cancel the storage unit). Last weekend Joe and I left Eleana here with my 3 female role-models and roommates (mom, grandma, and Barb) so we could go celebrate my birthday in Virginia (and put one last load of things in storage, and go look at our future house one more time before signing the lease). It was totally fun. Joe took me to the mall to look for something for my birthday but I really didn't find anything except for a couple books from Borders. Then we shared a wonderful dinner at The Melting Pot which included cheese, dinner, chocolate, martinis and a lovely bottle of our new favorite wine.

The house is looking great. The owner was gracious enough to let us intrude again to take a look and she's got the wood flooring finished in the living room and hall. When she gets back in July she's changing the doors and painting walls. Then we sign the lease, get a key and security alarm passcode, and move in! July 18th couldn't get here fast enough.

I'm very excited. I think about the house day and night, and have already got enough new things to revamp my decor once we move in. I ordered new curtain panels from JC Penny's on sale. They were buy one get one for 99 cents! So really it was like buy one get one free! Mostly we aren't changing anything as far as style. The living room will be updated big time because we got rid of our old sofa set, and the office won't have a bed in it anymore so there will be a little more room there. The biggest change will happen in the bedroom.

The house has small rooms, and the master room is really sorta shaped funny. We will be lucky to fit the bed, dresser/mirror combo, and one chest of drawers in there. Our second chest of drawers will go in the office, and if the other chest doesn't fit in the master bedroom we'll have to find a place for it somewhere else. Our bedfroom furniture is all handed down from my grandma's generation, so it's all very outdated. I'm planning on painting the dresser/mirror glossy white and replacing the handles with glass/crystal or silver knobs. The color scheme in that room used to be violet/green/gold but I really want a more airy/spa-like feel in there. We're changing it up to be blue/white/gray, with wiggle room to allow some violet, and silver and/or gold accents. I've got all new bedding to be the main focal point of the room. Plus the new curtains which are a shimmery sort of ocean blue. But they look lighter in a window which is perfect. The dresser will be white, and have mainly white/silver accents. I've got two frosted glass table lamps left over from before which will continue to be used as beside lamps. We don't have beside tables anymore (we sold them, remember the ones you helped Joe put together, Krista?) so I'm doing a little DIY work, mounting some cut and white painted wood to the walls on either side of the bed for some simple and smooth side table ledge shelves.

So anyway...yeah. I'm very excited about making the house a home for the next year. I'm very very into decorating and fashion...and can't wait to get all this stuff together and take pictures to show everyone! And I still have 2 months to wait! I'm going to go crazy! I mean I literally think about how I'm going to decorate on a daily if not hourly basis. I drew floor plans in a little notebook and drew out where I think I'd want to place furniture. I grabbed paint colors from the local Lowe's to put in the book so I have a more visual spread to look at. Isn't that crazy?! Yes. Yes is the correct answer.

I'm also very excited for Eleana to have her own room again...and for me to have mine back as well. She has so many things in storage that she's already outgrown this year. We will probably have a yard sale after we move in. The crib will have to remain in storage (duh) and we won't need her high chair anymore. I can't wait to see the look on her face when she's reunited with all her old friends again...stuffed animals, her rocking horse, her Little People, etc. She won't need a new toy for the next year, I'm sure.

The next two months better go by quickly. I am going to become a hermit again, saving my money like a squirrel saves nuts so we have the cash to get a moving truck and get ourselves established and start paying real bills. I can't wait to have a life again.