In the Beginning...

Like all good stories, ours began with a chance meeting.  In the case of me and Rodney, it was second grade.  Yes, we were those people who met in elementary school.  I'd love to say it was love at first sight and we've been together since, but honestly I didn't even remember him being in that class until we talked about it much later.  I do, however, remember this awesome time in our lives

Prom. 1992.  We were madly in love (or maybe not; that seemed to change from week to week) and we were confident we were both going to do amazing things.  A year later, I went off to Lyon College, Rodney headed to BRTC (and later UCA), and we began laying the ground work for our awesome, well-planned lives.

Fast forward to 1997.  After a few more break ups and make ups, we finally said 'I do."  Three weeks later, we had settled in Conway and I started physical therapy school with no idea (but grand plans) about what the next few years would hold.

After PT school, I got the job of my dreams doing pediatric physical therapy in Russellville for a company called Friendship Community Care.  Rodney was working in real estate by this time and we had decided that Conway would be our home for years to come.  We had great friends, a great church, and were making great plans to raise our kids in this wonderful town.

To this day, I don't know what made him flip the switch.  But I remember exactly where I was when it happened.  Christmas, 2000 we spent our break in Pocahontas with our families.  And I had never been so glad to be headed "home" to Conway.  As I recall, I think we spent almost two weeks away and I was ready to get back to my job and our friends there.  And then he dropped the bombshell, "I think we should move back to Pocahontas."  Say what?  "We've always said we might move back someday.  And our families are there.  And we can raise our kids there. And build businesses there. And....(sorry, I think I had blacked out by this point and didn't hear any of his other fabulous reasons.)"

And, so, despite my protestations, we made the decision to move.  After all, I didn't really have a choice after he called a pediatric physical therapy clinic, asked them if they were hiring, arranged for me to have a phone interview with them, and THEN told me about it.  So, with a job, more grand plans for the future, and our families cheering us on, we headed back home to live those lives we started planning back in 1992.

(to be continued)
Click here for Part 2