2000- At the start of the year I am in living with Bobby in Mesa in the rental house while I attend ASU. I’m working for FedEx Ground in the call center. We buy our first new car, a 2000 Jeep Wrangler. Bobby graduates from DeVry with his bachelors, and gets offered the job in Portland OR. Ten weeks before our wedding, Bobby packs up and moves to Tigard, OR. I remain in AZ and plan our wedding while also working on an internship with Motorola. Bobby returns to AZ for our wedding, and we head to Hawaii for our honeymoon. Upon our return to AZ, we pack up the house. Bobby flies back to Oregon, but I drive up with our stuff. My Dad and I pack up the cats in the jeep and drive up, following behind Bobby’s parents, who drive a truck with all of our stuff in it. Dad and I have a good time together on this drive. I start attending Portland State University, and we go house hunting. We buy our first house, a cute little three bedroom in Portland, OR. I get a part time seasonal gig at Mervyn’s and use the discount to furnish our house.
2001- I continue to attend school, but switch to part time due to the cost. If I attend part time I can pay in state tuition. Since I’m only going to school part time, I get a full time job. I’m working third party customer service for GM. I meet my good friend Mike at this terrible job, which was the best thing about the job. We start gaming with Mike and his wife, along with Fyr and Nick. The six of us hang out pretty much all the time from 2001-2005. In August of 2001, my father is driving from AZ to TX, and goes missing. He’s found almost dead three days later. Turned out he had a stroke in his car at a gas station in New Mexico. He dies in route to the hospital. We come home for the funereal. In October, I start working as a manager on the docks at night for FedEx Ground. I have to be at work by 2:30AM and get off work around 8:30AM, give or take about 90 minutes. Sabrena, our German Sheppard, gets out of our yard and attacks someone. No one was hurt, but we end up having to put her down as a result.
2002- Not a very eventful year for us. We play lots of role-playing games, see lots of movies, hang out a lot and eat out a lot with our group of friends. We added Russia to our family, a pure bred Basenji. Unfortunately, she gets very ill in late November, we spend a ton of money on her, but end up losing her to a mystery illness. Bobby goes back to school to get his Masters. We adopt Columbia. Bobby and I spend our second wedding anniversary in Seattle at a swank hotel.
2003- I start blogging for the first time. I finally complete my bachelor’s degree from Portland State. I get promoted at FedEx to full time, but I discover that working from 9pm to 9am 5 days a week is not conducive to being married, having friends, or even being a nice person. Bobby and I have a rough time due to this, and in the end, I jump on the first job I am offered that will take me off nights. Unfortunately, this job turns out to be more sales than managerial, and I hate it with a burning passion. Mike and his wife drive up to Settle with Bobby and I to see Wrestlemania live. Bobby got contacts. I trade in the Jeep for a Hyundai Elantra. We go to our first LARP. The six of us enjoyed a joint birthday dinner on “The Portland Spirit” which is a boat that tours one of the rivers in Portland. This is one of my favorite birthdays ever. We adopt our second Basenji, (and our last) India.
2004- I quit the job I hate and get a job I love at Mercer Delta. I fly to Illnois to visit my mother (she moved there at some point) My Maternal Grandpa dies. Bobby gets his Masters. I get “baby fever,” but Bobby isn’t ready yet. We start talking about moving back to AZ. We have an awesome 4th of July by driving out to Bay City on the coast and taking a train to Rockway Beach to watch fireworks with the same group we always hang out with. I decide I’m getting fat (I’m over 200lbs) and I start working out and eating right.
2005- a big year for us. Bobby gets a promotion at work to project management. We decide to leave Portland and move back home to AZ. We put our house on the market and I quit my job. We move to AZ, and move in with Bobby’s parents. I get my job with my current company! It’s the height of the housing boom, so after much discussion, we buy some land and decide to move into an apartment in Chandler while we build our own house in Apache Junction. I lose a total of 45 lbs before finally deciding to start trying to get pregnant. We get pregnant with Landon. I show up on Laura’s doorstep and discover that Dirk had a really bad accident. Bobby and I start attending Thursday night dinner with the hench, and our reunited with old friends, while also making some new, wonderful, and lasting friendships. I have my last Thanksgiving with my paternal Grandma.
2006- Bobby spends a lot of time out of state working on projects while I worry about growing our son. Bobby also works very hard on getting the house built. At the start of the year, Grandma Eve dies, which was rough on me, but was expected. Bobby participates in his first half marathon. Landon is born, and we move into the house in Apache Junction. We meet Jamie, Gyan, and Emily.
2007- My mom comes out for a visit and meets Landon. We take Landon to Portland, in order to attend the wedding of some of our friends. We spend a lot of time watching Landon grow and hanging out with the Hench. We sell my car, and buy Bobby his minivan and me my current car.
2008- We take Landon to see the snow for the first time, and I take Landon to Illinois so he can meet his Great Grandma and spend time with his grandma. Landon also takes swim lessons. We return to Portland for the fourth of July and have some fun. We get pregnant for the second time, (with Meeple) but I miscarry at the end of the first trimester. Bobby takes me to a Tom Petty concert. My mom gets engaged.
2009- We get pregnant for the third time, this time with Oliver. We end up moving from the house we love in AJ to a nice house in Mesa. Landon starts preschool, attending with his friend Emily. Oliver is born, beautiful and healthy, but at one week old gets very ill and spends time in ICU.
The Chronicles of a Henchwoman 