Love stories: Couple share love, determination
“Moose loves me for me and he always tells me how lucky he is to have a lady like me,” Amanda Dugger wrote in her e-mail about her husband. “But I feel I’m the lucky one.”
Perseverance defines Amanda’s life. While a senior at East Valley High School in 1996 she was in a car accident and suffered severe brain trauma that left her with daily seizures.
“That was supposed to be my year, and the accident happened in January,” she said. Determination won out when graduation day arrived and Amanda was in the emergency room because of a seizure. “It was two hours before graduation. I looked at the doctor and said, ‘I’m leaving. It’s my graduation day.’ I made it.”
“I had my whole life all planned out,” 29-year-old Amanda said, chewing her lip. “I had a scholarship. I was accepted to University of Oregon and I was going to study journalism. I had it all set out and then with the seizures and everything, I just couldn’t do it.” Her dark brown eyes and hair shimmered in the light overhead.
“A year later I tried to go to Spokane Falls Community College, and I had two seizures. They said I had to get my seizures under control … so I switched to Spokane Community College and culinary arts. Unfortunately, I had a seizure while cooking. I thought it was too dangerous.” She flashed a brilliant smile dispelling the memories.
“I’ve always loved animals. So that’s where I decided I should go.”
Dugger attends Apollo College, studying to become a veterinarian assistant. “My dream is to become a vet tech,” she said. Helping her to reach this goal are 28-year-old Moose, and their 5-year-old daughter, Christine.
When Moose and Amanda met in 1999, she kept her seizure disorder a secret. “I was worried he wouldn’t want to stay with me,” she said. “I was previously married and my seizures were too much for him.”
Then one evening Amanda had a seizure while cooking dinner. Although Moose was no stranger to medical problems – his mother had a long medical history – he never dealt with seizure disorders. “I had to figure it out real quick,” he said. Moose took her to the hospital. “I told her it was fine. It was OK.”
“I was relieved,” Amanda said. “I explained to him my seizures and what I go through every day. It was amazing how he handled it.”
With the first major hurdle of their relationship crossed, the Duggers settled into being a couple. Amanda worked to get the stress – a major contributor to seizures – under control, and Moose worked in construction and concrete. “I’ve done hard work all my life,” he said with pride. “I dropped out from high school to work. I had to take care of my mom.”
In 2001, Amanda faced another challenge. “I kept wondering why I was having a different type of seizure then the ones I had before. I found out I was pregnant.
“It was hard to tell him, but I came home one day and handed him the test.” Amanda wasn’t the only one with a strange set of baggage brought to the relationship. Moose faced false paternity accusations in the past, and the anxiety lingered.
When asked what made the difference, Moose said, “I knew this was mine.” Christine Expression Dugger was born in 2001. “She’s beautiful,” Moose said digging out a picture of their daughter.
Still, Amanda and Moose had yet to tie the knot. “I was holding back,” Amanda said. “He asked me three different times, but then last year I thought about it. He’s the only one who stayed around. The only guy I’ve known that would stick with me this long.”
Once again, Amanda’s perseverance pushed through. “It was Christmas Eve. I waited for our daughter to go to bed and I said, ‘Do you remember you asked me to marry you?’ and he said, ‘Yeah.’ I gave him a box, and I said, ‘How about you marrying me?’ “
“I said, ‘Of course!’ ” Moose exclaimed.
Pragmatic Amanda had already selected the day. “I told him we’re getting married on March 22 – my birthday.”
The couple decided to quietly marry and then tell their families afterward. Once again, fate stepped in. Moose’s father died, and the news of their marriage slipped out. On March 22, 2006, Moose and Amanda had a backyard wedding. “It was a real small wedding, the way we wanted it,” Moose said.
While Amanda finishes her vet-assistant training, Moose stays home and takes care of Christine, which lowers Amanda’s stress level. “I’ve been doing a lot better since last year,” Amanda said.
After she’s employed as a vet assistant and Christine begins school all day, Moose plans to return to concrete work. “The only thing I would go back to school for is mechanical training – motorcycles and cars. That would keep me interested. I like the hands-on type of work.”
It’s obvious the Duggers are lucky to have found each other. “You know you’re in love because you can feel it. I always tell people he’s not only the love of my life, he is my life,” Amanda said.
“This is the person for me,” Moose said. “She’s given me everything I’ve ever wanted – a daughter, a beautiful wife. Made my life happy. We kind of clicked together.”
“It’s kind of weird how it happened but that’s pretty much the way it went,” Amanda said. “My parents have been married for 35 years, and I always wondered how in the world did they stay together for so long. I realized it’s the love you have for each other that keeps you together.”