Megan Petta and Spencer Owens have been together three years.Supplied
Who: Megan Petta, 31, works for an online marketing company; Spencer Owens, 32, automotive welder who is currently at home with Avery, 17 months.
Location: Shediac, N.B.
Relationship status: Together three years.
Childhood sweethearts
Megan: We’ve known each other since we were about 15. We lived on the same road in Binbrook [Ont.]. We had a little thing going on but … we were kids. I went to university and moved to Ottawa for 12 years.
Spencer: Megan posted a picture on Facebook saying she was visiting family in Hamilton so I said the next time you come down we should grab a coffee and catch up.
Megan: We had a late-night coffee and chatted as if 12 years had not passed.
Spencer: Soon after, she messaged me on Instagram and said, “Do you want to check out my place in Ottawa?” I like driving so I went for the weekend.
Taking it to the next level
Megan: We dated remotely for about six months, going back and forth most weekends. I decided this was a good relationship, so I quit my job in Ottawa, moved to Hamilton, and moved in with Spencer.
Spencer: She just kind of said, “I’m moving in.” My reaction was, “Oh, are you?” And then I thought, she’s normal so that’s fine.
Megan: I had a crush on this guy from when I was 15. Something was finally clicking and I didn’t want to be apart any more. I got a job at this marketing company where I could work remotely so it didn’t really matter where I lived.
The couple has known each other since they were about 15.Supplied
Taking it to a whole different … province
Spencer: We took a couple of trips out east. My grandfather lived in PEI so our family had gone there when I was young.
Megan: We did a 10-day camping trip in his car, this big black Cadillac. Not exactly an east coast kind of car.
Spencer: We found my grandpa’s house. The people invited us in, and even offered us a room. That was our first taste of Maritime hospitality.
Megan: Avery was born in June of 2019 and we started looking at houses [in New Brunswick] every single day for a year. Then, in June, this house in Shediac popped up. We did a virtual tour and bought it with a 30-day close.
Spencer: We moved to a town we’d never been to, and into a house we’d never seen. The people were amazing. Through a Facebook group in town, people offered to buy our groceries.
Megan: We are thrilled with the house. It has two acres. The level of stress seems completely gone. It really is a slower pace out here.
Spencer: The biggest change is that even though I’m not working at the moment, we can still get by. We can go down to a one-income family and still afford our life.
Megan: It works well for us. It makes us feel healthier and happier.
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