Our Story
Well I guess you could say it all started back when we were young: 15 to be exact. We were just two kids trying to keep it real as sophomores in high school. It just makes sense to start there; it's where we met. Now I realize most of you want to go all gooey and say, "oooooh, you were high school sweethearts?" but don't. Cause we weren't. And typically people exchange awkward glances with each other and us at this part since they can't seem to figure out what to say next.
The next thing we knew, we were graduating high school and off to start new lives in new states while getting an "education". Marcia ran off to Augsburg College in Minneapolis, MN and Jeff headed out to Michigan Technological University in Houghton, MI; a mere 6 hour car drive apart. We did stay in touch, as most friends do, through the modern marvels of technology over the years.
Marcia graduated and moved back to Neenah, working for Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Fox Cities in Appleton while studying up to go back to School later. Jeff graduated and drove his way through the Appalachian foothills on his way to start a job in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Even further apart, we stayed in touch here and there.
In October 2007, our high school friend Ryan married Laura in Madison, WI. Jeff was invited and invited Marcia down to go with him. We had a great time driving a Z3 around Madison deciding on a present to get the newly weds and grabbing lunch at a McDonalds. It was the first time we'd seen each other since May of 2006. The sparks pretty much flew in every direction.
Soon we began planning mini trips to either Myrtle Beach or Minneapolis and racked up some fairly impressive frequent flier miles. Marcia enjoyed the sunny, warm beaches in South Carolina and Jeff enjoyed the cool, drier evenings in Minnesota.
In 2009, Jeff started looking for a new job back in the midwest. After a few months of applications, he was able to get interviews at University of Minnesota, Moraine Park Technical College, and Mayo Clinic. Turns out that Moraine Park in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin was the best fit.
Marcia jumped a plane and flew to Myrtle Beach one more time. We spent the week packing, playing volleyball, and planning our drive back to Wisconsin. The drive back was pretty uneventful; only once did we almost blow up the truck. Apparently going 45 miles per hour up a mountain in North Carolina with a 16 foot truck packed full while pulling a car trailer with a full car with three bikes on the roof will make an engine over heat in the beginning of September. It was definitely a learning experience. We stopped the first night just west of Indianapolis. Finding a hotel was pretty difficult, since there was some sort of car race going on in Indianapolis that weekend. But we managed OK and ended up staying in a very swanky hotel. The following day we stopped at Jeff's sister's family outside of Peoria, IL to pick up a couch, say, "Hi," and tour the new house! Unfortunately we had to take the tour ourselves as Jodi and Joe were still at church. We made exceptionally good time on the road. From Peoria, we drove north to Madison to visit the Meagher household, pick up a table and four chairs, and spend the night. Jeff's new place wasn't going to be ready until the following day, anyway.
Continuing her education in Minneapolis, we often made the trip to see each other twice a month on weekends. Sure a five-hour drive by yourself isn't much fun, but at least it's cheaper and more frequent than a plane ride half way across the country.
In May of 2010, Marcia moved back to Neenah to finish her clinical rotations in the Fox Valley. Her family met her two weeks before moving back for a birthday celebration and to steal most of her stuff. When she finally did need to leave the apartment, she'd packed her mom's van and her car so full that there was barely room for the cat. However, we learned she is an excellent master of bungee cords for attaching things to the roof.
When June got here, Marcia had to return to Augsburg for a day of testing and presentations. Since Moraine Park is closed on Friday's in the summer, Jeff got to tag along. The first night, we stayed in a super-sketchy motel; it even used the old school credit card imprint machine! With a little urging, Marcia decided that a different hotel might be a good idea for the next night, especially since she didn't need to be at campus the next day. We headed out to a suburb after she passed her tests and smoked her presentations, grabbed some dinner at Don Pablo's (Marcia's favorite mexican restaurant), and bought some swim suits at Old Navy since the new hotel had a pool and hot tub. We headed off to St. Peter's downtown Minneapolis then to check out the stone bridge and walk around. Turns out there was a crafting fair there the next day, so much of it was filled with tents and vendors setting up shop. We walked around anyway, taking in the sights.
Back at the hotel, before going down to sit in the hot tub, the big moment came. Jeff gave a tiny, heart-felt speech about how great Marcia is and how happy she makes him, got down on one knee, and asked her to marry him. She said, "Of course."