Wrapping Up 2012 and Looking Into 2013~

WOW, it's just hard to believe the year is almost over.  I feel like we were just hanging out at the pool soaking up the summer sun...and then.....BAM...it's December...and now we're off to a NEW YEAR!

As with the rest of the world, the Fitzner Fam has been moving faster then the Energizer bunny!  Doing what you might ask?  Wellllllll it's been a year full of adventure!  Let's take a journey through our year.

Jan~  We start the year off with our beautiful deer friends keeping us company from the back yard, building a snowman in PJ's before school, enjoying fun family time baking cookies, and working on our art skills.

Feb~  Full of love...we venture down to Georgetown cupcakes for Valentines Day, a building project for school, and celebrating Scott's birthday-the kids even made Daddy his cake from scratch, and we round of the month with a date weekend for Scott and I in historic Williamsburg. :)

March~  "I...don't want to play, I just want to bang on these drums all day...", Of course it's St. Patrick's Day, building an explosive experiment for school, saying goodbye to our sweet baby boy bunny Boozie, and welcoming a new baby bunny Piper into our family.

April~  Brought Mom and Dad for a visit and we played "tourist" in DC, Megan competed in All County Choir, we built our bunny the mecca palace of a "bunny condo", Riley and I went on a school field trip to Mt. Vernon to see George Washington's house, and Megan performed on stage in her first theatre production.

May~  Science fair project, Miss Megan graduated from 6th grade and has moved on to middle school, Momma's day with a surprise picnic in the park, visited the zoo with Riley on another exciting field trip, and ventured to Harper's Ferry to check out the "old town" sites.

June~  "Schoooools out for the summer!"....It's official we have a pre teenager that is now in middle school and a big boy that is in 4th grade, followed by celebrating Daddy's Day, and it must be "5 o'clock somewhere..."

July~ Pentagon Memorial Fireworks, Krispy kreme doughnuts, house project repairs, fun at Six Flags, church camp for Megan, ceramics and creative projects with Riley.

Aug~ Beautiful summer days, Destin getway for Scott and I, a week of 4-H camp for the kids, Megan's first experience with a locker in middle school, and not to mention many days hanging out at the pool and making a splash!

Sept~ Apple Pickin’, welcoming Daddy home from his Air Force travels, celebrating Scott’s promotion in the Air Force with all of our family, along with touring around D.C., first days of school, and Alaina celebrated one year in business as the owner of Dwelling Moments Photography.

Oct~ Riley turns 10, Hurricane Sandy which took out a 50 foot tree in our backyard, trick-or-treating,sweet little brother and sister moments, and Momma adds one more thing to her creative plate of photography and takes on a part time position as a graphic media specialist at our church.

Nov~ We give thanks for our many blessings and celebrate with our dear family friends…, Megan turns the big 1-3 and is an OFFICIAL teenager, and Riley rounds out his first football championship season of i9 with Dad as assistant coach and much father-son bonding time!

Dec~ Whew, and we round off the year with celebrating CHRISTmas and prepare our hearts and minds for what God has in store for our family for 2013.

Wishing you all the greatest of months ahead and for the road to be paved clear for all your hopes and dreams to come true!

We love you all bunches and hope you have enjoyed journeying through The Fitzner Fam’s 2012…

Thanksgiving Brunch Casserole

For all of you that know me I like to "create"...measuring in the kitchen is NOT something I do well....here is something I threw together this morning that was a TOTAL hit for the Fitzner fam..

Thanksgiving Brunch Casserole~

13 eggs ( I know most people would use 12)
2 cups cheese
1 lb cottage cheese
about 1/2 tsp pepper
1 bunch of green onions chopped
1 package of bacon (I used Hickory Smoked Apple Bacon Gluten Free)-Delicious~

Cook the bacon in the microwave until crispy, drain the fat and cut into pieces....

Beat the eggs, add the cheese, cottage cheese, and the rest of the ingredients in a bowl and stir together.

Pour into whatever dish you want to cook in, I used 2 round Wilton Cake pans and it worked out perfectly.

Bake at 350 degrees for approx 30 min

YUmmmmmm....Enjoy! ;)

2011 Edition of Living Life with the Fitzners...Greetings from....Baghdad, Iraq, Niceville, Florida, and Fairfax Station, VA

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all~

Well, this is the first year we have lived in 3 different zip codes! Scott started out his year finishing his year deployment to Baghdad, Iraq while the kids and I wrapped up our year in Niceville, Florida.

April was by far the happiest month of 2011 for our family as Scott came home for mid tour and we headed to the "Happiest Place on Earth" for a week. Truly, getting away from our routines and life in general was the greatest idea. We had a blast touring around Disney and just spending uninterrupted quality time as a family!

FINALLY, the deployment had come to and end and we were set to move from Florida to Virginia and Scott was set to leave Iraq and meet us in Virginia if all went smoothly on both ends. THANK goodness for my parents....I hope you all appreciate your parents as mine bent over backwards to make sure that our move went smoothly and as stress free as possible. From the moment they arrived before we moved to helping us pack, driving a vehicle with us, and helping us unload on the other end. That my friends is unconditional love that was sooooo much appreciated~ Thanks Mom and Dad for making that journey with us and driving until 1:00AM so that Scott and I could reunite!

Truly we should have spent the night and finished out the drive, but when you've been separated from the love of your life and the most fantastic Daddy in the whole wide world you will do WHATEVER it takes to make it. We were all soooo excited that we just couldn't bare to wait any longer then we had to for that great big bear hug!

The kids woke up to their Daddy and I finally for the first time in a year slept in his arms and felt as if the weight of the world had been lifted off my shoulders...I was at total peace!

No time for the weary, we were up and moving the next day-we had our new house to go see. We always schedule moves "door to door" so unloading the house was next on the agenda. Thankfully we had a phenomenal moving crew and that whole event went better than expected.

Ahhhhhh getting settled....I can finally say that we are....but, it truly took a while. From getting the kids readjusted to the area, finding their way at a new school, and our family readjusting to a "new routine" it has been far from dull.

Megan is actively involved in the Advanced Academic Programs at school and that truly takes a ton of her time. We don't have to ask where Megan is because usually she is doing homework or talking to her friends, or helping her brother with homework. She truly has sprung up in size this year. She has officially hit the "pre teen" era and I hope that her Dad and I can at least stay on her "cool" side! :) She is in gymnastics and her favorite activities are hanging out with friends and she is following her Mommy's footsteps and starting to find a niche in photography.

Riley played soccer this fall as well as he is in gymnastics. That is the perfect fit for him as he has always been our "monkey"....He has really taken a liking to art and creating all sorts of things. His favorite love is legos. If you wonder where Riley is you can almost guarantee he's outside riding something around or playing with friends on the block.

Scott is the Branch Chief for Air to Air Missiles at the Pentagon. He is very busy and does a great job as a leader in his organization. We are awaiting the next great Air Force celebration for our family in honor of his promotion next summer. In his spare time you will find him on the golf course with Riley or at Starbucks taking a deep breath and relaxing from our "full" lives.

I have found a new love...photography! In September I launched my own photography business Dwelling Moments Photography. I just LOVE to capturing the "moments!" While Scott was deployed I took college photography courses in Florida. It has been such a rewarding journey thus far. I have been featured in a juried art auction, had a photo published in a journal for art, as well as just won placement in the 2011 National Army Photography contest. I love to photograph everything. My focus this fall has been on families, portraits, and outdoor landscapes. If you would like to see my work feel free to stop by my website at: http://www.dwellingmomentsphotography.com

Well, that about wraps up 2011 for our family! We wish you the greatest blessings for 2012 and thank you for taking the time to catch up with our family! You can always catch us via email, Facebook, or phone. We love visitors so please let us know if you are in the DC area.

Please take a moment and reach out to those around you and say a prayer for the deployed families. Our family is a huge advocate for military families and we know first hand how hard the holidays and living a life apart can be.

Much love always,

Scott, Alaina, Megan, Riley and of course our Baby Bunny Boo Boo :)

Technology VICTORY!!!

So, we've switched to Netflix and have been trying to figure out how to "stream" the movies from the laptop to the TV without running HDMI cords and having the laptop out every time and wanting surround sound instead of just TV sound. Not a simple task!

VICTORY has been won. After numerous trips to good ole' Best Buy....the solution has been found.

I want to share this with you because I am sure there are other people out there wondering how to effectively get it all connected.

Very simply put:

1. We bought a Sony Blu-Ray DVD player with wireless built in: Sony BDP-S580 (bonus it's 3D)

http://reviews.cnet.com/blu-ray-players/sony-bdp-s580/4505-9991_7-34468653.html

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Sony+-+3D+Wi-Fi+Built-In+Blu-ray+Player/1666042.p?id=1218321300042&skuId=1666042&st=sony%20blu%20ray%20s580&cp=1&lp=1

2. A good quality HDMI cable-we got the Forest HDMI with Ethernet from Best Buy because we found out that all HDMI cables will not work as quickly in transmitting the data from the internet. When you're working with streaming video this is very important.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/AudioQuest+-+Forest+4.9'+HDMI+Cable+-+Black/Green/9892885.p?id=1218202122680&skuId=9892885&st=forest%20hdmi&cp=1&lp=3

3. OptiLinkA so we can get surround sound because our receiver only has a digital optical outlet.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/AudioQuest+-+Optilink-G+3.3'+Toslink+Fiber-Optic+Cable/6628303.p?id=1218261484905&skuId=6628303&st=optilink&cp=1&lp=1

Final product: We can watch Netflix from our TV through the Blu-Ray with surround sound!

SUCCESS and I even set it up all by myself! :)))

A few side notes: The Logitech Revue looked like a good option until we found out that a lot of sites like ABC/NBC/CBS/HULU that block their content. We bought that set up first and returned it for this. Plus it was 1/2 the cost. ;)

I hope this helps someone if they are looking for a set up like this.

Now, I'm off to watch a movie with my kids while Scott watches football! Happy Sunday~

"Hopes and Dreams according to an 8 year old"

So, it's the first week of school and Riley comes home with this homework sheet to write about his "hopes and dreams".....You would think that this would be an easy task and he would say things like "have more ice cream....play with friends, not have to go to bed, play outside all day and night, and all the normal things a little boy would want.." Well, not for this little peanut. He shoved this assignment in his folder behind papers so I wouldn't see it. When I asked him about it he said "I am not doing it"...to the point that he REFUSED! I was shocked-week one of school and already not doing his work..just GREAT!! Not sure what to do Scott and I started talking to him at the dinner table and asked him "why"?????? To our surprise we found out he didn't want to talk about the big D...Daddy being deployed and ran from the dinner table to his room....*insert heart breaking moment* :(

My point to all this is this....we lived through it, we've moved on, but experience and "moments" are still in our hearts. For those of you that are going through, have been through, or will go through a deployment THANK YOU for all that you do as I know how challenging it can be and how touching and truly amazing the other side is!

Today is a new day. We sat on the couch and talked about how hard it was, but also how much he helped out and was such a rock star "MAN OF THE HOUSE!" After MUCH conversation and dilemma over what to write for his assignment, I am happy to say the worksheet is done. I thought you all might like to see it in the "eyes of an 8 year old"...

Here's what it says:

Last year in school my favorite subject was math.

The hardest thing for me about last school year was my Dad was deployed for a year.

If I could change anything about what I did last year, I would want my Dad home last year so school would not be so hard.

This year I am really looking forward to making new friends.

I am a little worried about the school year, but happy about school.

This really hit me hard when he didn't want to do this. It made me realize what a HUGE sacrifice families make for our country. I know we say that alllll the time, but it's these little "life experiences" we run into when least expected that solidify how incredible ALLLLLLLLLL the families are that deal with deployments. My heart and hat go off to each of you.

I have much love and admiration for those that serve on the front lines and stay to keep the home front running like a "well oiled machine" as we military spouses do so well. As we honor all the lives lost on 9/11 I hope we don't lose sight of all the lives that are lost at war. I am not looking to start comparing the two, but I am thinking that a widowed spouse of 9/11 is just as painful as a widowed spouse of deployed member. We shall never forget ALLLLLL the many sacrifices people make for others and I hope that even on those crazy, busy, life just moves at the speed of light days and seasons in our life, we take time to look at our family and count them as a blessing and cherish the time we do have with them. Afterall, our days are not eternal......and who knows when it will be the last kiss or hug or cuddle with the one you love!

Life changes at a moments notice

Dear Grandpa,

I wish I could have called to say goodbye, but you couldn't hear me...I wish you could have read my letters and cards and looked at the pictures I sent, but you couldn't see real well.....and I wish I would have been there to hold your hand as you drifted off to heaven......

So, I want you to know...

There really WAS a red fox on the bike trail that caused that little teeny issue with us on our bike trail adventure even though you and L.P. will forever think I made that up...really there was a RED fox!! ;)

It's best to roll UP the window when you and Grandma take you two grandchildren on a road trip to Banff Canada and pass by the street sprayers.

Ummm I think going to the grocery store goes better when you don't take BOTH your grand kids at the same time. ;) I was never the issue...it was always L.P. causing the problems-ha ha!

Scott is almost home and he will be safe soon. ♥

Stopping at Dairy Queen just makes for a better day!

Even though I always ask for a drink of your gin and tonic I will always spit it out and say YUCK!

Playing cribbage on the deck with you and making homemade ice cream was the perfect afternoon. ♥

You always had the best tomato plants in your back yard and Mom really loved that you would ship her tomatoes boxes of tomatoes every year.

Uncle Steve will miss you at the Issac Walton League and Aunt JoAnne will miss you coming over for dinner.

L.P. will miss having someone to make stilts and go carts with.

Dad will miss grilling on the patio and drinking a beer with you.

How about the REAL home made ice cream....that is something I wish our kids could have experienced...it just doesn't get any better than using the ice cream maker from the olden days. :)

Well, I could go on forever.....I will always be your "Dolly" and I will cherish the times you turned on the record player and we danced around the dining room and I stood on your feet to "our song."

Grandpa, thank you for your love, patience, and the way you filled our lives with joy.

You will be missed.

"Ring ring...Hello...Mrs. Fitzner I have your son Riley"

Meet Mr. Al~

So, those are words you DO NOT expect to hear on your cell phone from a total stranger named "Al",but today I got the call that "Al" had Riley at his house. My first thought was "who is this man" and oh my gosh what should I do and holy heck WHY do you have my son?

Well, then the story unfolds...."My name is Al and you have the most incredible son in the world. I am just amazed at how hard he is working"..I am thinking "working"???? So he continues..."you see your son rode his bike over to the construction site and has been helping the "guys" dig on the side of the road." About that time my heart sank and I thought where on earth did that boy run off too while Megan and I were inside working on a project. At this point I had heard enough-it was time to take action QUICK and go get our little CURIOUS GEORGE....

This man Al was the nicest older gentleman I have ever spoke too. He gave me a hug as soon as I got to his house and he was waiting outside for me watching Riley with his wife. They said that he was so entertaining they wanted to watch him and thought they should call Mom to see if she knew where he was. Yes, he did say he was going down the street, but this was a few more than a street or two.

I didn't know if I should be upset with him or proud of him because as I got there the guys gave him money. They said he was such a hard worker he needed to be paid. He was THRILLED because now he has golfing money to go on the driving range tomorrow and will not have to do chores to earn money.

It's funny how things work out sometimes. Here we are in the last few weeks before moving and Riley has met a wonderful couple that wants to get to know him. I told them we were moving and they were very sad. They said that "Riley is a one of a kind"...now that I knew! :)

So, I thought you all would like to see some pictures from his adventure today....a character he is....and that is probably an understatement. I am just grateful that he was okay....

Not only did he "dig" with the guys, but he rode the equipment and they gave him a Gatorade....he was ONE COOL KID today! Can't wait to see what is on the "Riley Files" for tomorrow's agenda! I better get to bed so I am rested for the next "adventure!"

Love~A :)

Working hard for the money~$$

Okay Mommy this is REALLY SUPER COOL....the pool will have to wait this is too fun!

Nice outfit-love the "winter boots" for foot protection and notice the helmet-good job Buddy!