Timeline of Abuse 2010 – 2014

At the beginning of 2011 we did move out of his parents’ house when my husband was offered a position in Cambridgeshire. The in-laws paid for the move. That position lasted around three months. It was fortunate that, during this period, we finally sold our house in Oregon. There was just enough money to cover the bills with a little left over. I thought we could use what was left over to start paying back what his parent had loaned us. My husband had other thoughts. The one thing that did prevent me from pushing the idea was that we moved again, when my husband was offered another position. The money from the house helped pay for the next move. The rest went on vanity products for my husband.

An afternoon walk near where we were living after our move from Cambridgeshire. What you don’t see in this picture is that as by now I had a mobile phone; I had to have it with me at all times. Not for emergencies, but so that my husband could phone me. He did so randomly and complained when I didn’t answer or said I was busy. This included if I was out walking or having to run errands.

A day out just the two us. The boys had gone to stay with my in-laws and my husband took the week off. It was a good day from my point of view; however the boys, although they were not with us, were pestered all day by their father. When they spoke to me about it they were angry and didn’t hide what they thought about their father’s constant texting. They felt they couldn’t escape him even for a few days.

Less than six months after this picture was taken I was a widow. This is simply one of those pictures that you look back at think how happy I looked. By now I was starting to see my husband for what he was, but I was still determined to make my marriage work. The awful truth was, was that I had nowhere to go or even anyone to ask for help. I was trapped.