the life & times of em

Movin on (again!)

2008-01-12T12:10:00.000-06:00

Wow, so it's been a while. I'm so glad I went to Albuquerque, we've had a lot of fun here. And I found a part time job, something I'm not sure I would have been able to do in NOLA. But now we're getting ready to move again, to Georgia. Finally!!! Should be just a couple weeks now.

A lot's happened since August--my oldest sister got married, my brother moved to Florida, my sister-in-law had her baby (I'm an aunt, yay!), a few friends had their babies... it's crazy. Now we're getting ready to take the next big step in life and buy a house. Talk about scary and stressful but exciting all at the same time. My life is just a little bonkers right now...

Movin on

2007-08-12T12:32:00.000-05:00

So I've decided I'm going to Albuquerque, yaaay! :) But first I'm traveling to Atlanta and Little Rock... maybe Corpus Christi, too, depending on when Robert starts class. Making a decision is a good thing... :)

:(

2007-08-07T15:27:00.000-05:00

Ok, so Robert left yesterday morning and just watching him go and not knowing when I'll see him again was a lot harder than I expected. Feels like I'm in high school again :P Now I don't know what to do. :( I'd love to go be with him, but I know I probably wouldn't find a job, and it would be hard with the night flying and everything. But I keep getting rejected from jobs here, and staying here even if I found a job would be really hard too. I'm completely torn. I figure I'll give it about a week or 2 and see how I feel then... hopefully I won't just be even more confused... :P

But on the bright side, football's starting!! yaaaay! :)

ok, so yeah, it's been a while...

2007-08-05T20:19:00.000-05:00

But anyway, we just took almost 30 days of leave to chill out at home and take a break... it was very nice. :) But now Robert has to go back to Corpus, then to Albuquerque who knows when, so I'm going to try to stay here in NOLA and get a job till he's finished training and we can head to Valdosta. Long distance relationships SUCK, especially when you're married, and it won't be fun. But I wouldn't really see him much in Albuquerque anyway... whatever, I'm just trying to make myself feel better. :P So here I am looking for a job AGAIN, after over a year of being out of work. I actually got hired at Lockheed Martin after we moved from Little Rock. I just love how my timing always works out... :( Oh well, at least I know it's still possible to get hired. For anyone who thinks having a job they moderately enjoy and going home every night to their spouse is boring, I would LOVE to have that kind of boring right now... :(

We're considering buying a house in Valdosta, which is exciting but pretty scary at the same time. We looked around at different neighborhoods when we went to visit a few weeks ago, and I guess once we get closer to being there we'll start really looking. Just another benefit of staying here and working--saving up some kinda down payment!

All this multiple TDY crap is really wearing me out as far as the military goes. I hope Robert really goes full force with his plans to do something other than active duty. I might become overly disgusted with the military if this goes on much more, not to mention we still have to go through deployments... :( And leaving really good friends totally sucks, too! I miss hanging out with Shelley... :(

Oh well, enough feeling sorry for myself. Better go spend time with my hubby before he has to leave tomorrow. :(

Kiss me, I'm Irish!

2007-03-17T13:12:00.000-05:00

In case anybody was wondering, we did find a home for poor little Pancake. Started out rough, but we hear she's getting better. We miss her plenty! :(

Happy St Paddy's Day everybody! :)

Little Rock

2007-03-13T10:57:00.000-05:00

We're pretty much settled in here in Little Rock... got a furnished house on base, which is nice. We get to have Guinness with us, too. I know some of you are having trouble keeping up with all our address changes! ;)

Carnival Time

2007-02-19T00:11:00.000-06:00

Livin it up in NOLA this week... if you're not here, you damn well should be! :) I'll be starting my new Little Rock life in a few days, should be interesting. I just know about a year from now I'm gonna find myself sitting in a corner swaying, chanting over and over "where am i? where am i?" but so be it.

Experienced Tucks, Endymion, Mid-City, and Bacchus so far... still gonna do more parading before it's all said and done on Wednesday. But I'm purty tired, so time for bed at the moment...

And the great ride ends...

2007-01-22T23:41:00.000-06:00

I was quite depressed when the Saints lost yesterday, but I've come to realize that we had an awesome season (better than we've ever had before), and that's just cool. Bless you boys! Let's geaux all the way next year! ;)

Big news passed, and I didn't post it... Robert's now a captain! Woo, yeah, pay raise baby! :) That means he's been in the Air Force 4 years... that's just craziness.

Well just 2 weeks left in our current home, then it's put all the stuff in storage and move around and live in hotels for a year and a half. Yay. Oh well, at least I don't have to be by myself with no job, so it could be worse. By the time we get to Georgia we'll just be so happy to be in a house with OUR stuff and our own bed that we won't know what to do with ourselves. :P So anybody lookin for baby Fitzes--you can probably just forget about it for the next 15 months at least. Even though everywhere we look there's a new baby... feels like the fates are ganging up on us! :)

Gotta get some sleep so tomorrow we can feed our new addiction of board games. You pick up these interesting addictions when you're not doing much but sitting around waiting.....

Kitty up for adoption

2006-12-05T20:05:00.000-06:00

Here's our cat, Pancake. We've got to give her up and it sucks, but such is life as a military family. See my bulletin on myspace...

2006-11-25T21:18:00.000-06:00

Valdosta, GA, it is! We're pretty excited, although with all the freaking TDYs, we may not actually make it there till next winter. :P We're serioulsy considering buying a house and "settling down," or at least as much settling down as you're allowed to do in the military... ;)

And jeez, anybody else wanna have a baby? I mean really, anybody? There must be something in the water. And the case of baby fever all these new arrivals/pregnancies bring is just lovely. :) Congrats to all of ya, we know everyone just can't wait till a mini Fitz finds its way into this world! ;)

Mom and Chuck came to Corpus for Thanksgiving, it was a good time. I'm excited about going home for Christmas, especially since all my siblings will be there and we'll be back in mom's house. Just a few more weeks till LaughFest 2006! :)

And here's my pilot hubby with his shiny new wings... I'm so proud!

Waiting...

2006-10-31T21:55:00.000-06:00

We're back in Corpus after a great trip to Vegas this past week! We got to see Lou & Felicia tie the knot, and I'm so glad we could make it out there. It was a lot of fun, I'm sure we'll be posting pics on our website soon.

We finally find out on Thursday where we'll be moving next--maybe not when, but definitely where. We'll be sending out a mass email, so don't worry, if you have a right to know you will find out! ;)

Happy Birthaversary to ME!!!

2006-10-04T18:13:00.000-05:00

Yep, today I am 25 and married 3 years. I feel old. Thanks for all your cards, myspace comments, etc, I really appreciate them! Everyone have a piece of cake wherever you are to celebrate with me! ;)

Oh, in other news, I got contacted today about possibly freelancing for a public relations company! I really wanted to break into freelancing--it's perfect for us since we'll be moving around so much. I'll interview in a couple of weeks, wish me luck!

Vegas, baby!

2006-10-03T12:51:00.000-05:00

Woohoo, we're goin to the wedding in Vegas! That was a lot of money in plane tickets and stuff, but we'll figure it out. There's a promotion coming soon anyways... ;)

Robert had his last checkride today and he passed. :) Now there's only 7 flights left... he could be done by next week! I know getting through this flight today takes a huge weight off his shoulders, so that's awesome. But he'll be on a solo cross-country tomorrow for my birthday... oh well... :(

Just checkin in

2006-09-27T14:18:00.000-05:00

Went to Christy's baby shower in Lake Charles a couple weeks ago. It was great to see old friends again and catch up. Everyone we know is having or has had a baby recently, seems like... poor Robert, I think it's driving him crazy. I think he sent me off to the baby shower while he was flying a cross-country so maybe I'd get baby fever... ;)

Instead of driving back home to Corpus that Sunday, I decided to drive to New Orleans and surprise everybody, that was fun. Robert flew into NOLA Sunday night for dinner at the tail end of his cross-country, so mom, Chuck, Stacey, Dev, Robert, his IP, and I all went to Acme Oyster House for some good eatin! :) Fun times!

I stayed in NOLA till Tuesday, and mom decided to drive back to Corpus with me so I wouldn't have to drive 9 hours by myself. Yay! :) She stayed here till Sunday... we went out to eat way too much and bonded with Guinness, it was fun. :)

So now it's back to reality. Robert has 4 review rides and a checkride the next couple weeks... he's flying #2 out of 4 right now. He's pretty nervous and stressed out... I hope he can finish this hard stuff by next Wednesday so we can actually enjoy our anniversary (my birthaversary!). Then apparently it's all downhill from there. Six weeks and counting!! Got all the hotel rooms reserved for the family and everything. We are ready to par-TAY. :) Looks like next we could end up in either Germany, Japan, Arkansas, Texas (AGAIN!), or Arizona. We should find that out in about a month, so we'll be sure to keep everybody posted!

Happy Labor Day!

2006-09-04T16:38:00.000-05:00

Happy Labor Day, everybody! It's always nice to have a holiday...

Not a whole lot going on here... Robert's been flying every day, which is great for him. Maybe he'll even finish early. I'm still not working, but what are ya gonna do... We've been hanging out at the beach a lot. Some of the Del Rio guys came to visit this weekend and they decided to play a little beach football... :)

We're gonna do our damndest (is that even a word?) to make it to the 07-01 drop in Del Rio next month. We want to see everybody again, and find out what planes they're going to fly and where. It'll be fun. Unfortunately it looks like we won't be able to make Lou & Felicia's wedding in Vegas... damn money. Money sucks. I'm really disappointed, I really wanted to be there to see them get married. Robert said if he can get a cross-country over there that weekend then he'll try to go. Won't cost much, so I can't fault him for that, I just wish I could make it, too. :(

We're excited to see everyone that's going to be coming here for Robert's winging. Only 2 months to go!!! :)

Oh say it ain't so...

2006-08-26T13:14:00.000-05:00

ugh...

Back to the beach

2006-08-17T20:26:00.000-05:00

I'm home, woohoo! I had a good time in the big N.O. with family and friends, but it's good to be home.

Went to White Linen Night the first weekend with Moni... it's an annual thing thru most of Julia St where there's gallery openings and museums and stuff. Saw a lot of great art, even some things I would have liked to buy. But with my budget, well, ya know... Anyways, we even witnessed a fight, that was crazy! This picture's from Julia & Magazine... the city can really be pretty, even after all the Katrina crap.

There was a lot of hanging around the house, especially with my (not so) little nephew, Baldur. Yes, folks, that is ALL belly!

Went to the aquarium a few days ago. It just reopened not too long ago from the hurricane. Some of the exhibits were closed, but I forgot what a great aquarium we had. Sure kicks the Corpus aquarium's boo-tay... Corpus may have dolphins, but I really enjoyed the penguins. :)

So now I'm excited to be back with Robert again. I think I'm going to look for a part time job, maybe at a bookstore or something. At this point it's not so much about money or the gap in the resumé as it is about having something to do. :P Cuz it's just scary how addicted I am to myspace! :) Can't wait to make it back to the beach... if y'all wanna visit you better come on down, cuz Robert and I won't be stationed here forever!

Blah

2006-08-08T21:02:00.000-05:00

Don't get me wrong, it's nice to come back to NOLA, but I miss my hubby and I want to go home. :( It's weird, because every time you come back you feel like you belong in this city less and less. Guess it's just changed and is changing too much. Looks like it will never be the same, but I don't know why I ever expected it to be after Katrina. Would be a lot better if Robert were here, but we're just keeping our fingers crossed for that to happen at Christmas.

Still trying to decide if I should keep pursuing the whole job thing once I get back home or if I should just let it go. I know if I pursue it enough I'll find *something*, but will that something be good enough for me? Probably not at this point. Haven't heard a peep from the places I actually want to work, so I wouldn't be expecting much. And we could use the extra cash, and not having such a huge gap in my resume would be nice, but I'm starting to think maybe Robert's right and I'm just obsessing about it too much and should just let it go. I do want to travel some more this summer, like for Christy's baby shower (yay!) and maybe Atlanta to visit Steph if we can, and I definitely want to be able to come back here for Christmas, so... I know all that stuff's not possible if I have a job. Of course, I can't really afford the plane tickets to Lou & Felicia's wedding unless I *do* get a job. Ah, the irony of life. I just get bored easily. Maybe I should find some more hobbies. Or work on my website, like I've been meaning to do for a couple years now... yeah, that might actually be a good idea... :P Hey, if anyone needs any design or calligraphy work done, drop me a line! :)

Crescent City vacation

2006-08-04T18:03:00.000-05:00

Here I am in N'awlins! Planning on chilling with the family and friends and having a good time the next couple of weeks. I really wish Robert could be here, too, but... c'est la vie. I miss him already, though. I've gotten so used to having him around all the time with this crazy training schedule.

Watching tropical depression Chris pretty closely... they're saying it will hit Corpus in a few days. That would not be good. It'd be awesome if Robert could finish training early, but that would never happen if we had tropical storms hitting us. :P

Well if any friends want to get together in the next couple weeks while I'm in town, shoot me an email or a message on myspace. I'm just winging my schedule. Right now I'm listening to Baldur cry because Chuck left for work. :) Fun stuff!

My hunter/gatherer hubby

2006-07-27T20:41:00.000-05:00

Check out these fish, baby, yeah! :)

He cooked them up last night and they were pretty good, I must say. And I'm not a big fish person. Check out "The Fitzes' website" in my links to read his shark story! Big Guy would be proud...

No-fly day tomorrow, which means--3 day weekend! woohoo! Should be fun, then I'll be home next week. Can't wait! :)

And a good weekend was had by all

2006-07-24T18:26:00.000-05:00

Well Moni came to visit this weekend and we had a lot of fun. Went to the beach, the aquarium, ate good food, hung out with people... 'twas good. :) Of course like the dork I am, I brought my camera everywhere but didn't take any pictures. :P Oh well.

Yesterday was Robert's birthday, the big 26! Went to the beach in the morning, he went fishing, we had Chinese for dinner, and I baked him a cake. Man's got the good life, doesn't he? ;) He caught 3 huge fish... I'll post pictures of them once we take a few. I was pretty impressed.

Time to plan a trip home now in a few weeks! Have no job, will travel! :) Why the heck not...

If you comment...

2006-07-20T16:40:00.000-05:00

1. I'll respond with something random I like about you.
2. I'll tell you what song/movie/recipe reminds me of you.
3. I'll name something we should do together.
4. I'll say something that only makes sense to you and me (or just me).
5. I'll tell you my first/clearest memory of you - that I remember.
6. I'll leave you a quote that is somehow appropriate to you.
7. I'll ask you something that I've always wondered about you.
8. If I do this for you, you must post this on your journal so you can do the same for other people.

Gotta do it cuz the bro did it... :)

Piddling the day away

2006-07-20T12:18:00.000-05:00

Just got back last night from going to Del Rio with Shelley for a few days. We had fun, never thought we'd miss that place but we do. It was great to see the girls again and meet the new baby. :) I think I needed to get away, so it was nice. Maybe more travel shortly, who knows? :)

Got a lot of cleaning to do today and tomorrow (Moni's coming to visit tomorrow!), but curiously... I haven't started yet. :\ Although I did get a whole bunch of pilot stuff off my desk, including... a piddle pak!! Being a pilot's wife is soooo glamorous, isn't it?

Pester-er extraordinaire

2006-07-14T21:47:00.000-05:00

If you owned a business and put a job opening out there, would you be extremely annoyed if one of the applicants kept bugging you until she heard a "yes" or a "no?" Me either. :) That's the plan right now, I guess. Maybe I should really try to market my calligraphy... I really enjoy doing it. If anyone needs wedding invitations or party invitations or anything done, just let me know! ;)

Robert's really enjoying flying... he really likes this plane. I love his schedule, too, because it's not 12-hour days every day like it was before. He goes to work, he flies, he comes home. It's quite nice. :) Except this morning he had to be there at 4:45!! Ouch...

Airborne

2006-07-10T18:13:00.000-05:00

Yay, Robert actually got to fly today! He said it was fun, of course. One flight closer to graduation... ;)

I'm starting to get pretty depressed about this whole job thing. Each day that goes by, the less motivated I get. I'd enjoy the "time off," except for the fact that we really need the money right now. There's a couple of jobs that have been open since we moved here SIX weeks ago, and they're still open! That doesn't do much to help your self esteem, let me tell ya. I just keep telling myself it's only been 6 weeks, and it took me 4 months to get a job where we were before. Very different town, yes, but that's not the point! :( Just keep your fingers crossed for me and my sanity, it's hanging on by a very thin thread...

Surveys, surveys galore (can you tell I'm bored today?)

2006-07-09T17:49:00.000-05:00

Well, Chucklehead posted this survey in his blog, so I figured I'd jump on the bandwagon and give it a shot. Prepare to be bored... (like me!)...

CHILDHOOD
My earliest memory is…
I really have no idea. I had a wonderful childhood, but specific memories are hard to come by for some reason. I guess I really remember watching my dad do his hobbies--cross-stitching, building planes, etc., taking naps with mom when she had long hair, and my doll Suzie

When I was a kid, I used to love to…
Ride my bike, roller skate, pretend I had a horse, etc...

When I was little, I wanted to grow up to be…
I really had no idea at the time

When I was a kid, one of my playmates was…
Erin

I remember this playmate in particular because…
Her grandpa lived right next door

My lunchbox was…
My little pony? I'm sure that was one of them. I remember mom's notes, too :)

When I was little, I was scared of…
Sleeping in my own room, as sad as that is

I believed in Santa until I was…
Whatever age Chuck ruined the Easter Bunny for me ;)

I thought the Easter Bunny was…
Hyper... lots of candy

When I was little, some of the things that made me happy were…
Drawing, coloring books (!), reading, and whenever Stacey didn't call me ugly ;)

ADOLESCENCE
As a teenager, I really struggled with…
Change. Haven't totally gotten rid of that to this day.

I think my classmates thought I was…
A band geek, but smart.

I saw myself as…
A band geek, but smart.

As a teenager, I was really good at…
Art and the flute/piccolo

When I was a teenager, I wanted to change ________ (something about yourself).
My weight, duh. If only I'd known how huge I wasn't...

The first time I drank a beer I was…
I don't remember, since I don't really drink beer much at all

My parents just didn’t get that I was…
Unhappy at Loyola, for real. But they got it :)

I had a big ol’ crush on…
I had a big ol' crush on Robert. But I totally ignored it until he asked me out... a wrestler and a band nerd? puh-lease...

I was nervous about…
Missing band practice for whatever reason. We had the fear of God instilled in us, it was ridiculous.

I would have died if anyone ever found out that…
um... no, I got nothin.

I worried that…
I wouldn't know what I wanted to do once I finished high school

The worst thing that happened to me was…
Probably all the people I knew that died while I was in my teens. Made me realize I wasn't immortal, though...

The best thing that happened to me was…
Transferring to LA Tech

My first job was…
Working at LSU filing stuff. That job pretty much sucked

The thing I disliked the most about it was…
The pay, not much to do, the filing... pretty much everything

The part I liked the most about it was…
I worked in the same place as Dad and Chuck, so we got to have lunch sometimes, that was cool

What I learned about myself as a result of that job was…
I wasn't cut out for that kind of torture... I knew I needed something that would challenge my brain every day

ADULTHOOD
I’m interested in…
Learning more about everything

I believe that…
Everything happens for a reason. Trite, but I believe it's true

I struggle with…
Employment. Knowing what I REALLY want to do. Constant change.

I have come to terms with…
Being a military wife. I'm really surprised at that, but very proud of me. I've really embraced it as an adventure and an opportunity to see places and meet people I never would have otherwise.

I am much better at ____________ than I was as an adolescent.
Seeing what's really important, being more patient

I still need to work on…
My body, my attitude sometimes, my introverted nature

I see myself as…
A competent, talented, hard-working person. I like to think I'm fun most of the time :) But also as someone who's not perfect and needs work

I am really good at…
I like to think I'm really good at design. I'm also really good at spelling, editing, stuff like that. Weird

The last time I drank a beer was…
Last weekend

My parents still don’t get that I…
Like to do things my own way

I worry about…
Money's the big one right now... That I won't find something I love doing that I can take with me anywhere... Robert deploying and me being alone

One thing that others might find interesting about me is that…
I want to get like 3 more bachelor's degrees

I am often interested in people who…
Accept me for who I am, are funny, and aren't superficial

I can talk a lot about …
Books, marriage, my friends and family

I just can’t figure out…
Why I have to understand everything about web design in order to be a good designer. Lots of great designers did their thing when there was no Internet... :P

I’m most afraid of…
Losing any more people close to me

I love to…
Read, do calligraphy, hang out with friends who don't need to get stupid drunk to have a good time, laugh (a lot)

If I had no fear, I would…
...be Robert :)

If I could change anything about myself, I would change…
My bad habits that will lead to bad health sooner or later...

I get anxious every time I have to …
Meet new people, which is pretty often

If I learned I had only 1 year to live, I would want to…
Anything I want? Go back home and take Robert with me... eat good food, drink good wine (or champagne!), have parties with close friends and family, complete my "list"... parasailing, going to Italy, etc.

One of my favorite memories as an adult is…
My wedding... the whole night was awesome

One of the best things that has ever happened to me is…
Marrying Robert. He's my best friend, and I know the stuff we're going through is making me a better person. Also, being able to be at home the whole summer with my Dad and having him walk me down the aisle before he died.

FUTURE
Within the next year, I hope to…
Be in a house I like for at least a few years, have a good job or at least some good contacts to work at home, have more close friends

Within the next 6 months, I hope to…
Get Robert through to graduation and see everyone he loves be there for him

Within the next 3 months, I hope to…
Be working

Within the next month, I hope to…
Have the house totally done and BE WORKING!

One of my ultimate goals in life is to…
Be a great, respected designer/artist and an even better mom

Another goal I have is to…
Retire with Robert on the water somewhere, be able to send our kids to college

A potential obstacle in reaching my goal could be…
uh, spending too much money :) Having enough drive and motivation to really prove I'm the best at what I do

We may be old, but our alma mater still loves us.

2006-07-08T13:45:00.000-05:00

Yeah, our college really needs to update their website. Or at least the ROTC page does. Look what I found on their pictures page. That's my hubby, on the right. Yeah, the short one. ;) He graduated in 2002. Time to update, people! He does look sharp, though. ;) Maybe I'll search the band page for pictures of me... nah, I'm just not that bored.

If the shoe fits...

2006-07-07T21:36:00.000-05:00

Yes, welcome to the life and times of me... the psycho woman. I swear I am losing my freaking mind. We just got here in Corpus about a month ago, so I'm still looking for a job. I make these cool portfolio books to bring to different design firms and leave with them so they can see my work. Today I take one to a firm where I've already applied for a full-time position but haven't heard anything back. I am rocking it, right? They keep my book, tell me to give them a call--I am a fully competent career woman. Yes. So great, Robert takes me to a movie after. We're walking to the box office, I look down, and I see this...

That's right, two different shoes. Who's an idiot? Yes, me, right here. Don't get me wrong, I can definitely be a spaz and quite discombobulated at times, but mixing up SHOES??? That is just NOT me. (I was trying to wear the pewter ones, in case you were wondering...) All I can say to that design firm is: "I really can dress myself. Pleeeeeease hire me!" I'm so pathetic...
_____________________________________________________

In better news, there was a package waiting for me when I got home. It was from Noodlehead! She thought I could use a puppy that doesn't poop everywhere. Check out my new i-dog! He's a cutie. :) Thanks, Noodle! ;)