Elaine (Archuleta) Armstrong
Wow! What a great class I graduated with! I’ve been meaning to write this since I was first contacted…better late than never. Some things never change.
After graduating, I was looking forward to college, and happy to be moving on. Initially, I thought I would go somewhere in Colorado, but I decided to stay in New Mexico and attended good ‘ol NMSU. College was good for me; I maintained decent grades and really broke out of my shell. During my junior year, I spent a year on exchange at USC in South Carolina. I really liked USC, and thought I would move all together and finish up my degree in the South, but in the end I went back to NMSU. I really missed the southwest and my family. When I returned to Las Cruces to complete my bachelor degree, I befriended a girl named Marty. We became quick friends who both liked to party and hang out at Cowboys (it’s a bar for those of you non-NMSU’s); yes, I did the whole “country” thing. It was through Marty that I met my future husband, Jim Armstrong. Jim had been in the Air Force, and on the 10-year plan for a bachelor degree in Criminal Justice. He eventually decided to get out of the service and complete his degree. During my last semester of school we would occasionally run into each other, and eventually went out on a date. From this point on it was history…we were together all the time. I graduated in 1992 with a degree in Hospitality and Tourism Services, and stayed in Las Cruces to be with Jim. At this time I worked as a Sales Manager for one of the Best Westerns in Las Cruces.
In 1994 Jim and I married in Las Cruces, and had the most joyous celebration ever! Jim always wanted to be a police officer; so, I knew that when he graduated, we would be moving to one of the places he had been applying to. We started off in Casa Grande, Arizona where Jim completed his training for the Arizona Department of Public Safety (state police). I worked once again in the hospitality industry, this time for the local chamber of commerce. I already had the notion that this industry was not for me! It didn’t take me long to realize that I wanted to be the one traveling and on vacation, rather than the one “behind the counter” so to speak. So, I soon found myself working as an Office Specialist and Academic Advisor for Northern Arizona University at one of their statewide academic sites. It was great and I loved being back in a college setting. About a year later, Jim and I had our first child. Samuel Jamison Armstrong was born in Chandler, Arizona and turned our lives upside down (for the better of course). My heart now also belonged to my baby Sam; so, I did not return to work. Jim and I always knew that Casa Grande was not for us. Neither one of us is a desert rat, and we longed to return to a mountainous area where we could open our windows and doors without dirt and 100+ degree heat invading our home. So, the first chance we got, we moved to beautiful Flagstaff, Arizona. When Sam turned 3 I sent him off to preschool and re-entered the workforce. I eventually found my way back to Northern Arizona University (main campus), worked for a while, and decided that it was now or never to give Sam a sibling. Madelyn Glori Armstrong was born in 2003 and it was the best thing we could have done for our family! I thought the happiest day of my life was when I married Jim, but then I had Sam, and later Maddie; now I have 3 happiest days! Life is great with two children. I guess Sam prepared us for Madelyn, and life just rolled on. Samuel is the sweetest boy with a sensitive soul. He’s definitely my boy. Madelyn is a crack-up. She almost has too much personality for her little body! Between the two of them they balance Jim’s and my life! Both of them are outstanding kids, and I can say that because I’m the mom. I have a funny saying that explains just how I feel about my kids: “My son is going to break my heart and my daughter is going to give me a heart attack!”
I was fortunate enough to once again stay home while Madelyn was a baby. When I was ready to go back to work, we decided to try our luck in Los Alamos. We had always thought that we would return to Northern New Mexico one day (Jim is from Eagle Nest) and I guess we just got impatient and wanted to do it sooner rather than later. I was the one to get a job first with LANB, truly a great place to work. So, Samuel, Madelyn and I moved to Los Alamos. Jim stayed behind to sell the house and continue job hunting. The kids and I stayed for a total of about 4 months when Jim and I realized that it was just not meant to happen; we all missed each other terribly. We had/have so much to be thankful for here in Flagstaff. So, while it would have been great to be closer to my family, it just wouldn’t have been a good move economically for us. We returned to Flagstaff, and felt as if we had never left. Life is funny because this really was a blessing in disguise. My brother, David, and his daughter, Rhiannon, have relocated to Flagstaff since we moved back. With us being here it made their transition smoother and we ended up being near some family after all. Things always work out and this reminds me of another favorite expression, “there’s a reason for everything.”
Our last addition to our family is our loving and very playful dog Ally. Ally is a little black and white pompoo dog. I tell everyone that she is my 3rd baby. Now I can finally say my family is complete. I am currently working for NAU as a Credentials Evaluator, but I’m anxious to move on to something new, as I’ve done this type of work before. This brings me to my latest quest: balancing home life with work life. I miss spending quality time with my kids and husband. All of you working wives and mothers out there, I tip my hat to you! I would really like to cut back on my hours in order to spend more time with my kids, but we shall see what life has in store. I hope it includes some traveling??
Thanks to all of you for submitting your bios. It has been a pleasure reading them and finding out just what everyone has been doing for the past 20 years. Take care!
