Our early years together

Early Years · Engagement · Wedding Planning · Wedding · Reception · Honeymoon

Our early years together were a mix of important beginnings and a growing sense of an inevitable and lasting relationship. As struggling college students, our day-to-day relationship was as focused on making rent and getting that next paper done as it was about building a life together. Nonetheless, it was a time that foreshadowed much of our current relationship and established, especially during the rough times, the stability our relationship would come to have.

It all started at Staples

We met in January 1997 when Kim was hired at the Staples in East Mesa where Scott was working. Over the next five months or so they became friends while Scott was in another relationship. In May, Kim’s family moved out to west Buckeye and Kim transferred to the Staples near ASU. Scott soon arranged a transfer to the same store. Before he started work there, however, we both ended up transferring to a third store under construction in North Scottsdale.

Meanwhile, they were spending more time together outside of work. Scott made several treks out to Buckeye to see Kim, and it wasn’t long until they started taking short daytrips. In one memorable trip, Scott brought her up to Prescott, only to have his car battery die, threatening the day’s plans. And in a now-infamous outing, Scott brought Kim on a grueling off-trail hike up to the summit of Flatiron in the Superstition Mountains…on her inaugural hike, no less. After she passed that test, the relationship blossomed quickly.

It was after a return visit to Prescott on July 15, 2007 that they officially started going out. Just a few weeks later in August, Kim moved into Scott’s room in the apartment he shared with a former co-worker. When the rental lease expired later that fall, we moved into our own place in Tempe.

Inseparable

For the next, well, several years, we spent most waking hours together. We worked the same shifts at Staples, took lunch together, and of course, spent our free time together. The only times we weren’t in shouting distance was during class time. Many of our co-workers and friends couldn’t understand why – or rather, how – we could spend so much time together. For us, it just seemed natural.

For much of this time, we shared a single car, which made careful scheduling important, especially as we both went to school, had internships, and worked.  Over these early years together, we also established what have become our most treasured traditions. We took daytrips exploring the state, eventually graduating to longer and longer out-of-state National Park roadtrips. We enjoyed a love for ASU football and evolved into committed devotees of the program. In this important period, we developed a strong footing for the next phases in our relationship.

Early Years · Engagement · Wedding Planning · Wedding · Reception · Honeymoon