on the year we lived in Arizona

Soon after we got married in 2007, the husband moved to Arizona for a career opportunity. I followed a few months later after I wrapped up my job in Tampa. The way it came about is that he had previously been working for a hedge fund, which he absolutely loved. But it was a small firm, and the guys that founded it were much older. When they were ready to retire, they were ready to retire. They didn't want anyone else running the business they built, and so in late 2006, a mere 5 months before our wedding, we found out that the husband would be in the market for a new position. The good news was that they gave him 2 months notice and a decent severance package, but it was still incredibly stressful nonetheless. I was consumed with wedding details and preparations and we were young and looking for a new adventure. I basically told him that the country was his job hunting playground.

A friend connected him with an opportunity in Phoenix, and I agreed to relocate without ever stepping foot in the state of Arizona. Like I said, we were young. This sounded like a fun adventure to me, and I was just relieved he found something that he was excited about. That spring, before we got married, we went out to Arizona to apartment hunt. At which point I almost freaked out because I had no idea how big Phoenix was and I am a small city girl!

I often forget that we even lived in Arizona - it's like the lost episode of our lives. But when I think about the year we spent there, we really had a blast and made the most of it.

Soon after I moved out there, the husband surprised me with a weekend getaway to Sedona (famous for the red rocks) for my 26th birthday. We took a pink jeep tour, hiked and ate and drank the trip away.

In August, my family came to visit. My parents actually left my brother with us for a few days while they met friends in Utah. We basically sat by the pool, drank and took my brother to a Diamondbacks game for his birthday.

For Labor Day we got the grand idea to drive to Las Vegas. The husband had never been, and we figured why not? It was a quick 4-5 hour drive, and we decided to go for it.

Sometime around this point my sadness set in. I really missed Tampa and all the friends we had made. I was excited for the new adventure, but I just missed our old life. The husband actually did probably the most romantic / thoughtful thing he's done over the course of our 5 year marriage and flew my best friend Lauren out to visit. We had such a blast that weekend, and it was just the thing I needed to get me through the fall.

Because it was so expensive to fly back to New Orleans for the holidays and the husband was traveling weekly for this job (a main reason we left), we actually spent our first Thanksgiving alone. It was really nice, and you bet I insisted that the husband unpack the china for the occasion. We may have lived in an apartment, but we were celebrating with a formal affair! I made everything my mom serves, and it was entirely too much food. That weekend we also went to the USC / Arizona State football game.

For New Year's Eve, we treated ourselves to a night at a resort in town and enjoyed a fun dinner together. One of the hardest parts of the year in Arizona was that the husband was literally gone all week every week, so we took advantage of any down time we got.

We also celebrated our 1 year anniversary in Arizona with a weekend getaway to the Grand Canyon and Flagstaff. In hindsight, it is like God knew we'd only be there for a year because I think we hit every major attraction in Arizona while we were out there!

When we weren't traveling within Arizona, we were flying all over the country for weddings. We had weddings in Louisville, Dallas, Tampa and Amelia Island that year, two of which I stood in. And a trip to Fort Worth for my brother in law's graduation. Basically we lived out of suitcases. I remember vividly at my brother in law's college graduation that I was hoping he'd marry his girlfriend, and now she's my sister in law. Yeah!

And when we weren't jet setting around the country, we could be found trying restaurants and hotel bars across Phoenix and Scottsdale with our friends. We actually did manage to make some great friends in the little time we had there.

I don't know why I got the urge to document 2007-2008, but looking back, it really was a fun time in our lives. I am thankful we had the opportunity to live somewhere totally new, on our own and just enjoy life soon after we were married. In late spring 2008, the husband was accepted to business school and we relocated back home to New Orleans. Where, by the way, we never intended to stay. But here we are!

 

Thank you, Arizona, for a memorable and fun year!