Five Month Check In (yeah that's what I'll call it)

The reason for my post title is because I have done a very poor job of writing about our life here.... because I haven't done so at all! But I hope to do better. In my defense, moving to a new place has been an adjustment. So as a result...this post will inevitably be a long one...but if you read my blog you know they're always long, so no worries!

Beauty
I can't believe we've already been in Austin for 5 months! Time really does fly. In short, we are enjoying our life here! As I've said before, Louisiana will always have our heart, but Austin is being good to us. For me, my favorite part of Austin is the physical beauty -- I have the pleasure of riding through gorgeous rolling hills with houses stuck amongst the trees on my way to and from work. I love that there are bodies of water all throughout the city, with sailboats, kayaks and paddle boats gracing the surfaces. I love that there are greenbelts everywhere to explore and hike, yet we have all the conveniences of a cool, quirky city.

Hill Country in Austin

Town Lake

Getting some action in the water ourselves!

Barton Creek in February (before the drought!!)

And quirky, it is. There's a reason there is the saying, "Keep Austin Weird"...it can be totally just that! People march to the beat of their own drums around here, and it's the perfect place to do so because Austin embraces that way of life. We're finding that most people are not native Austinites, but come from all over. We've also found that just about everyone is super friendly and eager to make us feel at home. There are a lot of strong churches to choose from, and we are still trying to decide which one is the best fit for us.

Snobs
We decided to rent for at least the first year, to make sure first of all that we want to live in Austin for awhile, and also to see which area of Austin is right for us, as it's a big place with lots of different communities within. We had at first wanted to live in the center of downtown, as many people do when they move here, but found that it's just as expensive as my sister's rent in Manhattan. Ridiculous. So we found a nice place about 5 minutes or so from downtown in the hill country. We LOVE this area, but I just have to laugh because the area is considered to be where the "affluent" or upwardly mobile if you will, live....in other words: snobs....or at least this is the way they're percieved by everyone else in Austin. We of course had no idea....and it doesn't really matter, although it's true we probably won't be able to buy here as a result...it's ridiculously expensive to own a home in our neighborhood, which is a bummer. But I now understand why we get the looks we do when we say what neighborhood we live in....apparently, we're already Austin snobs! Oh well. My coworkers like to tease me about it -- it's all in good fun of course. It makes me laugh because it was complete chance for us to end up where we did, and we landed smack in snooty-snoot ville. And what's more, we really love it here... we are in walking distances from shops, we're close to downtown, and we're in the beautiful hill country. I guess that's why it's so expensive. We don't want to swallowed up in a home we can't afford, so we will most likely vacate when it's time to buy....luckily there are plenty of nice places to live in Austin.

Celebrating 5 Years of Marriage in March

Livelihood
It took me about 2 months to find the position I was looking for, and those were the stuff of dark days for Fleurby. Job searching is hard enough, but it can be really hard when you enter a new city where you don't know anyone to plug you in. And, there's seemingly no light at the end of the tunnel...you don't know if it will take weeks, months, years...especially in the current economic climate. I am lucky to have such a supportive husband, friends and family. It just goes to show what a lack of faith I often have -- I was just getting so down on myself even though it hadn't been that long -- it's so easy to feel hopeless in that situation. But as always, God was faithful (even though I was not) and I landed a really amazing job which began in May. I've joined the marketing communications team of an international tech company. The North American headquarters are here in Austin, although we do business all over the world. One great bonus about this company is that it has French roots -- the corporate headquarters are in Paris! Some of you may know that in addition to a communications degree, I also have a degree in the French language. And my goal has always been to do something in communications with an international flair. I feel like I've finally found that. So as Joey said to me recently, we never have cause to worry -- God always takes care of us. Why then, do I spend most of my time worrying so much?? I'm working on it.

So, as you may know if you read regularly, I wanted to do something different from non-profit (where I have spent my career thus far -- nothing against non-profit, just ready for a change), and I certainly got what I asked for in working for a huge tech company! I get to do such interesting things in my job. And what's even more amazing is that it's an international company, and I have the opportunity to speak and write French all throughout the day. Not to mention, my co-workers are really great; I am really enjoying forming these new relationships. I am blessed beyond measure.

Joey, bless his heart, went to work as soon as we got here...a cath lab nurse is a hot commodity, luckily for us. He has been working with a large hospital here in Austin. But I'm very happy to say that he will be undergoing a change soon, now that I am well-rooted in my position. He will go back to school full-time beginning in the fall! We're very excited for what is to come for him and us! As you can see, we're always changing things up around here.

Home

We've had some visitors already since we've been here and are looking forward to more in the coming months! Joey's parents spent a few days with us in March, while my sister Maya stayed for a week in April. My friend Leslie stopped over in May for a few nights. It's so great to have people come see us, as we greatly miss home and our friends and family. And we really enjoy showing our new city, although we are still very much newbies and probably aren't the best tour guides ever...we'll get there. My best friend and her husband (also a dear friend of ours) are coming in August, and we have more friends coming in for Austin City Limits, in September -- as well as my mom coming in either August or September, and my sister passing through as she makes her move to L.A. So we have a jam packed upcoming months and lots of visitors to look forward to! 

Leslie!

Maya at The Grove....a wine bar we love

                

Last but not least...Polly Browne
Our little girl is doing well. She turned 3 in June. We don't have much of a yard at our condo, which is unfortunate, but there are tons of parks here, and we try to bring her to romp and play as much as we can. She brings us so much joy! We always remark as to what she's going to do when we have children because she is our baby. I guess a better question is, what are WE going to do with her when kids come along! It makes me almost sad for her because of course a child will be our priority. But I can't see myself ever not loving her the way we do no matter what. Things will change, but then, things are always changing in some shape or form. She'll always be my first little girl! :)

So that about wraps up about the big picture for us! So much more has happened in 5 months, but that's what I get for not posting more often! I hope to do a better job of blogging more frequently and not being so lame :)

Oh, one more thing, to the rain gods: I'm sorry I cursed your name for all those years I've lived in Louisiana as I walked with wet jeans to class or drove through a monsoon in standstill traffic trying to get home. I have never missed rain more -- we are in a serious drought, my friends!! I like to joke and say we live in a desert, but I'm not sure if I'm joking anymore. It's nice to not have the humidity, but I would love to get a few drops every now and then!!

love and light to you all,

fleur