The New: Mr. and Mrs. Fancher

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

2009-02-16T08:30:00.006-06:00

Mike and I celebrated our first Valentine's day together. Last year at this time we had just started talking on the phone and hadn't met in person yet. I had gotten a text at 3 or 4 in the morning from him wishing me happy Valentine's Day! He told me later he wanted to be the first to say "Happy Valentine's Day" and that's why it was sent that early!

Mike served me apple cinnamon muffins in bed with a sweet card! He then brought in a boquet of chocolate covered strawberries! Yum!!

I was nice and shared with him. I gave him a card filled with love coupons and gave him a Reeses in the shape of a heart. It's a little harder for a woman to shop for a man on Valentine's. I saw tons of stuffed animals, flowers, pamper sets, heart-shaped gift boxes filled with chocolate, balloons. All stuff I would love, but Mike wouldn't appreciate as much. Hence the love coupons and his favorite candy: Reeses. The other choice would have been to get him something non-traditional like a watch or a tie, but wouldn't have been as much fun. With the love coupons, however, he can redeem a romantic picnic for two, or a week filled with romantic surprises, or a rainy day filled with cuddling (only redeemable on a rainy day).

We had such a great day on Feb. 14th that we decided to extend the celebration into Feb. 15th. I think it had something to with the fact that we had really yummy cookies and chocolate to eat and when the celebration was over we would have to go back on the diet.

I hope you had a romantic, sugar-filled Valentine's Day this year just as we did!

Soooooo Long!

2009-01-30T09:33:00.007-06:00

It has been soooooo long since I last blogged! How did that happen?! I promise they will be more consistent from now on!

Mike and I have been settling into a more normal routine after the wedding and holidays! We started up on our workout routine again only twice as intense to get rid of the extra pounds from the festivities of the last few months. We are working out about 6 times a week both cardio and weight training. We are trying to eat 6 smaller meals a day with a portion each of carbs, proteins, and vegetables. Mike is doing better at this than I am as he works in his office all day and can eat any time he wants. I'm either completely unstructured in my day, or working and get a chance to only eat once during the work period. We are also trying to drink about 10 cups of water a day, which I have completely failed at. We get one free day a week with no exercise and can eat whatever we want. Our goal is to do this for 12 weeks. The inspiration came from a plan called Body for Life.

"Steph is working?" YES! I finally received my substitute teaching card, which allows me to sub in the mobile county schools. I also finally received my Teaching Certificate from the Department of Education! I started the application process for my certificate last May and my subbing last August. It has taken soooooo long to get this far! Subbing has not kept me as busy as I thought it would. I've gotten calls to sub in only 2 schools, while there are 7 on my list of schools I will accept jobs from. I've worked a total of 7 days in the last 4 weeks. I do have 3 jobs lined up at my favorite school next week though. It is nice to be in the classroom!

Mike has been keeping busy with his canoe project. He has been building a canoe for quite awhile now. The one difficulty he keeps running into is when he applies the epoxy. If the climate is not right, it turns white instead of remaining clear. The weather has not been very cooperative and, in absence of a garage, the canoe has been sitting in the kitchen. It is turning out very nice though and we are getting excited about its maiden voyage! My vote is that it should take place at Big Lagoon State Park in Pensacola, FL. I really loved it there and, to be completely honest, I don't know many other places to launch a canoe. Besides, they have a nice campground there and we can combine both adventures into one great experience!

A few people have told me that the videos on this blog are not working. That is probably because I set them to private on Youtube. I will be changing them to public so that will hopefully make a difference.

White Christmas

2008-12-31T13:20:00.005-06:00

Mike and I spent a wonderful Christmas in Michigan with my family. It was so good to spend time with them. I had been missing them! Mike got a crash course in driving in snow and ice once we got past Indianapolis. The weather steadily got worse as we drove toward Muskegon. Worst of all was the visibility because the wind was blowing so hard. Mike did amazingly well though and I am so proud of him! He just took it slow.

We left for Michigan Saturday morning of the 20th and got in on Sunday at around 3pm. Monday we went to Cannonsburg where I learned to ski for the first time and Mike learned to snowboard for the first time. It was a blast, but we were both sore the next day! We shovelled the driveway several times. I was sick of it after the first time, but Mike remained quite cheery about it. It warmed up enough for snowman building and snowball fights, both of which Mike had never done before.

Christmas day was wonderful. The whole family got together at about 4pm. Mike got me a 3 hr spa treatment! For my birthday, he got me a facial treatment at the same place. He got major points for his gifts to me! I was not expecting that. I got him a spotlight, binoculars, "Sahara", and Reeses.

We headed back to the warmth of South Alabama the 28th. Yeah, it's around the mid 60's and not nearly winter-like. Oh well, I do enjoy the warmth and sun!

Before I sign off, I'll share with you some of our fun in the snow:

Happy Thanksgiving!

2008-12-03T14:56:00.021-06:00

We made it through our first Thanksgiving as Mr. and Mrs. Fancher! We spent 3 days in Pensacola, FL celebrating with Mike's family. We spent most of Thanksgiving cooking and watching football. Everyone had their own contribution toward the dinner. I made a cheesecake and brought crescent rolls. Mike and I made mashed potatoes that morning, Matthew made the green bean casserole, and Stephen made the sweet potato casserole (which was amazing!) Of course Mom Fancher roasted the turkey. The day after Thanksgiving Mom taught me how to make Greek cookies.

They were delicious!

The day after Thanksgiving is also the official "Christmas Decoration" day. Lights were put up on the outside of the house. We women had the very important job of critiquing the men's work. L-R is Yiayia Nestor and Mom Fancher.

Mike used his brawn AND brain to put up most of the lights.

Unfortunately, he had a little too much brawn because a few of the lights got broken as he laid them out!

Matthew, when he wasn't rapping gangsta' style, was a great help to the expedition.

How many brawny, brainy men does it take to put up light bulbs?

I hope your Thanksgivig was as wonderful and relaxing as ours was!

Newlyweds!

2008-11-13T07:34:00.004-06:00

After almost 3 weeks of being married, the dust is finally settling! We spent a couple of cold, but relaxed days at the Weathervane Inn in Montague after the wedding before loading up a U-Haul with all the rest of my worldly possessions. We took the 17 hour drive in two stages, doing 6 hours the first day and 10 the next. We stayed in a really lousy Days Inn on the way down whose "extensive" breakfast consisted of bad fruit and a few pastries. Mike gave them a bad review online!

I spent all of last week madly unpacking and organizing the house. The living room and kitchen are "together", but the back guest room is atrocious! It is piled high with boxes. The study is functional, but by no means is it organized. Those two rooms will be my project for the next couple weeks!

My parents came down last weekend for the Pensacola reception for Mike's family and friends to attend. I wore my dress again (hurray for a second use out of a super expensive gown!) and Mike wore a nice suit. The Fanchers served some wonderful food and the guests watched the picture slide show and DVD of the wedding. Everyone got a huge laugh out of how LONG it took me to come down the isle! (NO, I did not get cold feet at the last minute. I was told to wait before going down and waited a little too long and then the organist played the wedding march a second time, so that by the time I did reach the front, the song wasn't anywhere near being finished. )

It was wonderful having my parents here for awhile. I had a great time showing them around my new town and showing off my new house. It was sad to see them go. I can't wait to see them when we head up to MI for the Christmas holiday! I've always wanted snow just for Christmas and then not have to deal with it for months afterward. Well, I'll get my wish this year! Mike is totally stoked about having lots of snow for Christmas and is really looking forward to shovelling my parent's driveway!

Mike has been away for the past few days on a business trip. He was sent to Washington D.C. to discuss details of the ship he is building right now. The meeting yesterday went very well and today he will be doing some sight-seeing. We were both very sad I couldn't go with him, but the trip came up unexpectedly. I woke up in the middle of the night and was convinced Mike was lying next to me. I kept thinking, "Why isn't he moving? What's wrong with him?". Then I finally realized it was because he wasn't there! It was a weird, surreal, groggy, confusion. I'm glad he's coming back tonight. I will pick him up in Pensacola and we will stay the night over there. Tomorrow the whole Fancher family will be attending the Pensacola Greek Festival! As Mike's Grandmother and mom are full Greek, and Mike and his brothers are half Greek, this is a big deal. I've already been completely drawn in by the explanations of delectable food.

I'm loving married life!

Our Story

2008-09-04T10:33:00.030-05:00

How We Met
Many years ago our story would have seemed unorthodox even strange to some, but the way Mike and I were introduced is becoming much more common. We were introduced through eharmony! I have personally known people who have done internet dating, who now have successful marriages, and are very happy. After many disappointing dates with men I met in my everyday life, I decided last January to do something totally different and try eharmony. It was actually my 2nd time doing it. I had done it for fun a year or so before and met many interesting people, but I wasn't ready for anything serious. This time I decided to give it a year!

Getting To Know Each Other
Mike and I were introduced on January 3, 2008 and began the communication process. We were also communicating with several other people we had interest in. After making it through preliminary questions and sharing the 10 things we must have in a partner and the 10 things we can't stand in a partner, we began emailing through the website. I loved Mike's personallity and was amazed at how much I found myself laughing at the humor in his emails. After about a month of emailing, we decided to have our first phone conversation.

"Talking"
Our first phone conversation was two hours long and felt very natural. Since he had his home state listed as Alabama, I had braced myself for a horrible, annoying southern accent! I was so surprised when I heard his voice and he sounded just like me!! I remember thinking what a nice voice he had. I learned that he grew up in Florida and had moved to Alabama 3 years earlier for his job engineering ships in Mississippi. Thus began about a month and a half of talking twice a week for two, sometimes three, hours at a time. It came very naturally that we should meet in person to see if we had the same chemistry in person that we had in our phone conversations. I say it came naturally, but I think Mike was very nervous to approach the subject of flying up from Alabama to meet me! If I remember right, it took him a couple of weeks to finally ask if I would be open to meeting in person.

In Person for the First Time...
Mike arrived in Michigan on Friday, April 11th. We went out to eat at Tony's Bistro, which is a Greek restaurant, which I thought Mike would enjoy since he is half Greek! We then played three games of bowling and three games of pool, all of which Mike beat me despite nearly sleepwallking from his long, long day of travel (flying to Chicaco, then driving to MI). On Saturday I took him to Hoffmaster, my favorite place in the world, to walk the trails and see our beach. He also met my parents and family. Sadly, he had to leave on Sunday morning. We had such an amazing time together that we decided to make our relationship official. With some difficulty we went back to our phone conversations while I planned a visit to Alabama so I could see him in his environment and meet his family in Pensacola, FL.

Mike's World
I flew down to visit Mike on June 7th and stayed for four days. We had an absolute blast! He took me joyriding in his boat, I met his family, I visited his church, we went out to eat, and shopped at interesting shops downtown. We even talked a little bit about marriage! (gasp!) I went home missing him terribly, but with a plan: I would move near him for the rest of the summer so we could get to know each other in everyday life, and I could search for a teaching job.

Pretty Serious!
At this point we were both sure we wanted to spend the rest of our lives together and talked in our ensuing phone conversations quite openly about marriage. Mike was coming up for the 4th, this time driving his truck up so we could pull my car back down and bring some of my things. I had an idea that he would be asking me to marry him and knew for sure that his intention was to talk to my dad and ask his permission to marry me. There was slight pandemonium as my mom and I scurried around to find a church, cake, dress, and photographer because if Mike did propose, I would be long distance trying to make all these plans. A fair amount of stress came with making "tentative" plans without an actual proposal. I also talked with my dad and made him aware of Mike's intentions and that I love Mike and was very interested in marrying him. I didn't want my dad to be caught off guard and give Mike a harder time than necessary!

The Interrogation:
Mike arrived on the July 3, 2008 after a long two days of driving. That evening my dad asked to go out and "look at Mike's truck" and they looked at Mike's truck for nearly two hours! I was a nervous wreck during that time. I kept looking out the window to see how things were going. Later, we ate dinner, but before I could pull Mike aside and ask how the interrogation, I mean, conversation went, my dad asked Mike to go play pool with him. I was told later by Mike that more hard questions were asked of him and his pool game suffered because of it. My dad did give his consent though!

The Proposal!
On July 4th we visited some of my family and then went to the fireworks on Muskegon Lake. Just before the fireworks began, Mike got down on one knee and said, "I love you and want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?". Of course, I said yes!

Moving
We packed up my things, which was a nightmare with all the junk I have, and drove down to Alabama, where I have been living with a roommate since the beginning of July.

I'm loving getting to know Mike better every day and I'm pretty sure he is loving having me here! We've started pre-marital counseling with the pastor from his church and have done some painting in his house (which looks great!). I will begin substitute teaching in the next few weeks, which will hopefully, somehow launch my teaching career in the South! I feel very lucky to have Mike in my life. He is a wonderful man. I can't wait to begin spending the rest of my life with him on October 25th 2008!