(CNN) — It was August 2011 and Natasha Fisher was 17 and touring from her residence in England to america for the primary time, determined to spend a summer season in New York dwelling out a fantasy she’d solely ever seen in TV and movie.
Solely NYC wasn’t on the playing cards. As a substitute she ended up a pair hundred miles west.
“My grandma provided to take me to Pennsylvania, as a result of my aunt lived there,” Natasha tells CNN Journey as we speak. “I used to be like, ‘it’s not New York Metropolis,’ however I’ve obtained nothing else to do, it was the summer season. I’m considering: ‘It’s Philadelphia, that’s cool; it’s Pittsburgh, that’s cool.’
“Then we went to this tiny little city in rural Pennsylvania, the place there was nothing.”
Natasha’s aunt, realizing this countryside expertise wasn’t fairly what her bored teenage niece hoped for, advised Natasha tag alongside to her accomplice’s daughter’s band camp for the day.
Highschool bands aren’t actually a factor within the UK, and Natasha didn’t play devices, however she agreed, intrigued to see a slice of American highschool life.
When Natasha arrived on the Pennsylvania band camp, her American friends handled her like a celeb. The campers flocked round her, asking her questions on England, intrigued to fulfill somebody new and completely different.
Among the many crowd of Philadelphia band youngsters was Kyrie Huf. Additionally 17, she was a senior in highschool, juggling her research with working two jobs, training trumpet and spending time together with her then girlfriend.
And though Kyrie was in a relationship, Natasha piqued her curiosity straight away.
“I may level her out from a mile away, I used to be like ‘She’s positively not at this college,’” Kyrie tells CNN Journey as we speak. “I went as much as her, and I’m a talker, so I simply launched myself.”
When Kyrie realized Natasha was British, she was much more . She harbored goals of touring the world when she was older — and within the meantime, figured making associates who lived overseas appeared key to creating this a actuality.
“However I additionally simply thought she was tremendous cute,” Kyrie admits.
Kyrie requested Natasha if she may add her as a buddy on Fb. Natasha hesitated, explaining she was laborious to search out there.
Kyrie obtained out her cellphone and seemed up Natasha’s account there after which. She discovered the web page fairly simply, and despatched via a buddy request.
“I received’t be capable to add you till I get again to England, I don’t have service,” mentioned Natasha.
Natasha was barely overwhelmed on the quantity of consideration she was getting from these American youngsters.
“They had been all obsessive about me, as a result of it was highschool. Folks had been bringing me ice pops, foods and drinks,” she remembers, laughing. “So by the point that Kyrie was speaking to me, I’d already spoken to so many individuals.”
Plus, Natasha had by no means been massive on social media. Including folks she’d simply met so as to proceed a dialog on-line was a brand new idea for her.
However later that day, after camp concluded, Kyrie went to work. When she arrived, digging her cellphone out of her pocket, she noticed she had a notification.
Natasha had accepted her buddy request.
“I used to be like, ‘Boy, she obtained again to England fast…’” says Kyrie as we speak, laughing.
Natasha says she’d sifted via the 50-odd messages she’d obtained from the band camp attendees, noticed Kyrie’s profile and clicked settle for.
She’d been intrigued by Kyrie too.
“It’s humorous, as a result of that day, really, after I’d simply seen her, barely talked to her, simply launched myself, that was it,” says Kyrie. “I instructed all my associates I used to be going to marry her sooner or later. My associates had been like, ‘You’ll be able to’t simply marry some lady from England!’”
However for Kyrie, it was a type of intestine intuition.
“I simply noticed her and knew she was it,” she says. “I knew it wasn’t going to be simple, as a result of she lived in England and I lived in America. I didn’t understand how troublesome it was.”
She sends seashells
Natasha (left) and Kyrie visited Berlin in June 2017 as their relationship blossomed.
Courtesy Kyrie Fisher & Natasha Fisher
Per week or so after the band camp assembly, Kyrie was on trip on the seashore.
She discovered herself considering of Natasha, who’d talked about she was from the British seaside city of Brighton. She snapped a photograph of a shell that caught her eye, and despatched it to her.
Natasha responded, and a dialogue began up.
“We talked slightly bit, and slightly bit — after which it was like we had been speaking every single day, all day — each free second we had,” says Natasha.
In some methods, their lives had been fairly comparable — they had been each ending up college, each nonetheless dwelling at residence.
However they realized Natasha had a bit extra independence within the UK, the place you possibly can go to pubs and bars from the age of 18.
She entertained Kyrie with tales of evenings out together with her associates, whereas Kyrie instructed Natasha about American highschool.
As they swapped experiences, they migrated from messaging to Skype. Earlier than lengthy, they had been sending each other letters and tidbits within the put up.
It was thrilling, but it surely wasn’t simple. If Kyrie’s dad and mom realized she was speaking to Natasha late at night time, they’d typically change off the Wi-Fi.
On the time, Kyrie says, her dad and mom weren’t very accepting of the actual fact she was homosexual.
On Skype, Natasha was speaking to Kyrie about her dream of sooner or later proudly owning a one-bedroom condominium.
She mentioned she wished them to reside within the flat collectively.
It was the dialog that sealed it. They had been decided to be collectively, one way or the other, someplace.
They modified their relationship statuses on Fb. It was September 23, simply over a month for the reason that two had met at band camp.
However Kyrie and Natasha didn’t meet once more in particular person for an additional two years.
Throughout the pond
Natasha and Kyrie wrote letters throughout their time aside.
Courtesy Kyrie Fisher & Natasha Fisher
Over that interval, Kyrie and Natasha turned 18, then 19, moved out of their dad and mom’ houses and began their grownup lives.
An enormous a part of their imagined future was being collectively, but it surely wasn’t simple to envisage how they’d get there.
“We began wanting into how we will make this actual,” remembers Natasha.
They realized they’d have to avoid wasting up for a aircraft ticket, and that was going to take a while.
Kyrie made barely more cash in her job, in order that they determined she’d go to Natasha within the UK when she had the funds.
In August 2013, Kyrie booked a aircraft ticket for that Thanksgiving. For the subsequent three months, every single day was a countdown, after which lastly she was on the flight.
As she was crossing the Atlantic, Kyrie felt occasional pangs of fear — what if Natasha wasn’t going to be on the airport ready for her? What if the connection wasn’t what she thought it was?
When she arrived at London’s Heathrow airport, she glanced round nervously and couldn’t see Natasha anyplace.
“I used to be like, ‘Oh my God, I’m going to be stranded on this nation, and I don’t know anybody,’” remembers Kyrie.
Then amid the crowds, she noticed a man who seemed acquainted. Kyrie had met Natasha’s dad and mom on Skype, and she or he thought this man is likely to be Natasha’s father.
“However I wasn’t actually positive. I imply, you possibly can solely see a lot over Skype in 2013 when all the things was pixelated.”
Kyrie checked out him, and he checked out her. I can’t go over there, she thought, what if I’ve obtained it improper?
Then abruptly Natasha appeared, pushing via the crowds, waving, explaining she’d picked the improper second to duck into the lavatory.
After this inauspicious begin, the journey was an excellent success. Natasha and Kyrie had booked a trip rental within the countryside, in addition they hung out collectively in London. Kyrie match proper in with Natasha’s family and friends. They are saying it simply felt proper.
When the journey got here to an finish and Kyrie was on the brink of depart, the 2 vowed to not depart it so lengthy till their subsequent reunion.
“From then onwards, we did go backwards and forwards,” says Natasha.
Romance on ice
A frozen Niagara Falls within the winter of early 2014 supplied a romantic backdrop for the couple.
GEOFF ROBINS/AFP/AFP by way of Getty Photos
The next yr, on Valentine’s Day 2014, she met Kyrie at Niagara Falls, the place the cascading waters had been unexpectedly frozen, rendered much more spectacular.
After they traveled from Canada again to the US, the border patrol officer requested how they met. When the couple defined it was at band camp, he requested them what devices they performed.
“I mentioned ‘trumpet’ and she or he mentioned ‘I don’t play something,’ and for a second I didn’t suppose they had been going to let her again in with me as a result of it positively didn’t appear real,” says Kyrie.
It wasn’t the primary time somebody had raised an eyebrow in regards to the unlikeliness of an American and an English lady assembly at band camp.
That summer season, Kyrie visited the UK for a month.
“By this time, I’d purchased a home — I’d purchased that flat I used to be speaking about,” says Natasha.
The 2 stayed there collectively. One weekend they went on a visit to Paris, wandering across the Louvre, spending afternoons on the museum and absorbing the town’s ambiance.
In entrance of the Eiffel Tower, they sat on the grass, gazing on the view.
That’s when Natasha produced two rings, and requested Kyrie to marry her.
It was three years since they’d met at band camp, and 1000’s of messages later. Kyrie mentioned sure, they usually had been each delighted.
However again residence, when the 2 began wanting into how visas may work, the truth of the scenario sunk in.
The objective was that Kyrie would transfer to the UK after they had been married, however they hadn’t realized simply how expensive the visa course of was.
“It was so miserable,” says Kyrie.
The couple began saving. Two years handed, throughout which era they kept away from shopping for expensive aircraft tickets and didn’t see each other in particular person.
As a substitute, their relationship reverted again to continuous messaging and video calls. They’d eat collectively on video name, or sync up their screens and watch TV and movie collectively.
By the top of 2016, that they had the funds. Kyrie traveled to the UK that Christmas.
They made their wedding ceremony preparations, deciding they wished to get married within the US, at Niagara Falls, which held a particular place of their hearts.
Then they’d journey again to the UK and settle there completely.
The couple’s wedding ceremony rings.
Courtesy Kyrie Fisher & Natasha Fisher
On August 17, 2017, Kyrie and Natasha obtained married in Niagara Falls, with Kyrie’s dad and mom there as witnesses. The couple had an enormous celebratory get together a pair days later, with Natasha’s household in attendance too. Kyrie took Natasha’s final identify, additionally changing into a Fisher.
They’d determined prematurely they weren’t going to get new wedding ceremony rings, however would use their engagement rings to save cash.
However Kyrie had one thing up her sleeve.
“I assumed ‘you solely get married as soon as, so I’m going to purchase the marriage bands as a shock,’” says Kyrie.
They had been in a bag that had belonged to Kyrie’s mother, which served because the “one thing borrowed” for the event.
Natasha solely realized what Kyrie had finished when the rings had been pulled out of the bag through the ceremony.
“It was such an ideal second,” says Kyrie.
Transferring in
Kyrie and Natasha on their wedding ceremony day in August 2017 at Niagara Falls.
Courtesy Kyrie Fisher & Natasha Fisher
Kyrie and Natasha had been thrilled to start out the subsequent chapter of their life collectively, and the subsequent step could be Natasha heading again to the UK for a bit, earlier than Kyrie joined her.
However within the afterglow of the marriage, the considered separating once more, even for a short time, felt not possible.
“We determined, ‘Really, I don’t suppose we may be aside for a month, that’s going to be too laborious,’” says Kyrie. “Then we’re like, ‘Can we keep in America, is that life like?’”
All their plans up to now had been about settling within the UK. They needed to change tack fully, get a special lawyer, work out if this was doable, and one thing they wished.
It was. Natasha stayed within the US. She’d solely packed for the marriage, however she left all the things else behind within the UK. Kyrie had additionally moved a bunch of stuff to England in preparation for dwelling there full time. She left that behind too.
“I feel my mum shipped over some sentimental stuff, however not likely something,” says Natasha.
The 2 didn’t care — they had been simply so relieved to be collectively and settle into this new stage.
They’d additionally adopted a canine, Max.
It was a whirlwind, they admit now, and it was powerful for Natasha, who could be very near her dad and mom.
“My dad and mom have at all times been super-supportive, however I don’t suppose they ever thought that it will be one thing that might really work out,” she says, referring to the sooner years of long-distance messaging with Kyrie.
Her associates too, had been supportive, however in addition they weren’t positive how this on-line relationship would pan out.
“I feel everybody did suppose it was only a pipe dream,” she says. “Nobody ever thought I’d transfer right here, as a result of I at all times mentioned she’d moved to England with me.”
Kyrie’s dad and mom, in the meantime, had come spherical to the connection. Kyrie thinks it was the potential of their daughter doubtlessly transferring to England that modified their thoughts. They had been so glad when she determined to remain within the US, they usually welcomed Natasha too.
Settling into their new life collectively, the couple ended up shopping for Kyrie’s grandmother’s home. It was a fixer-upper, they usually hung out renovating it collectively.
Regardless of taking these massive steps, it nonetheless took some time for it to sink in that this was their actual life.
“I feel initially it was identical to I used to be on trip. Every part was so thrilling, all the things was so new,” mentioned Natasha. “And we lived in that middle-of-nowhere space in Pennsylvania the place I’d initially gone, and it appeared nice as a result of we had been collectively.”
As they adjusted to dwelling collectively full time, they realized, with shock, how completely different some parts of US and UK tradition are — whether or not it was meals selections, or how American cities are constructed for vehicles, not pedestrians.
However none of it actually mattered to them. They’d lastly achieved their long-fought-for objective — they had been collectively ultimately.
Beginning their household
The couple and their son Jackson visited Florida in 2019.
Courtesy Kyrie Fisher & Natasha Fisher
A couple of month or so after the marriage, Kyrie and Natasha had been consuming dinner collectively when Natasha mentioned she thought they need to have a child.
Having youngsters had lengthy been Kyrie’s objective, however Natasha had been much less positive, however now she knew she wished this too.
On the finish of 2018, Kyrie and Natasha’s son Jackson was born. It was a celebratory time, but in addition a tricky interval.
Jackson was initially a twin, and his twin handed away.
The couple supported each other via this devastating loss. They obtained right into a routine of Kyrie going to work and Natasha staying residence with the infant.
And as time went on, they determined they wished to maneuver out of Pennsylvania.
It simply so occurred that they went on a household journey to Disney World in Florida in February 2019, when Jackson was 4 months previous.
It was a particular, therapeutic journey and the household fell in love with Florida’s sunshine.
Inside a couple of months, they’d packed up two vehicles and relocated south.
After the difficulties of the yr earlier than, 2019 was a yr of renewal, stuffed with particular recollections for the rising household.
“We had been doing a great deal of issues, and that was nice,” says Natasha. “My dad and mom came visiting they usually cherished being right here on the pool. We went over there twice. We went to all of the Fall Festivals over right here, all of the Christmas issues, that was wonderful.
“After which Covid occurred.”
Dealing with the pandemic
The couple hope to introduce their son to his British grandparents quickly.
Courtesy Kyrie Fisher & Natasha Fisher
Natasha says she nonetheless remembers watching the information announcement in March 2020, her coronary heart sinking as she heard in regards to the journey ban on flights from Europe and the UK.
She couldn’t imagine it. Her mum had visited solely a few weeks earlier than.
Months handed, nations locked down and borders remained closed.
In summer season 2020, Kyrie and Natasha determined that since flying anyplace was out of the query, this is likely to be the correct time to have one other little one.
Their son Alfie was born earlier in 2021, and Natasha’s household nonetheless haven’t met him in particular person, as British folks nonetheless can’t journey to the US.
Whereas People can now go to the UK, Natasha is presently ready for her Inexperienced Card to be renewed, to allow them to’t go anyplace for some time. Plus, touring with younger youngsters through the pandemic is a fear.
It’s been a tricky time, however Kyrie and Natasha are additionally relieved they’d began their life collectively earlier than Covid hit.
“I’m a part of the Love is Not Tourism web page on Fb, and there’s so many individuals on there who’re {couples} who can’t see one another as a result of they’re not married,” says Natasha.
“We’ve needed to assist one another, speak to my dad and mom and assist them and vice versa, as a result of they’re determined to fulfill their new grandson.”
The household are hoping to go to the UK in October if circumstances enable.
Spontaneity and dedication
Natasha and Kyrie have navigated their relationship via a decade of ups and downs, from being youngsters messaging throughout the Atlantic from their household houses, to being dad and mom dealing with loss and elevating youngsters collectively.
They suppose their connection works as a result of they’re each passionate and spontaneous, and assist each other via their wildest goals and ambitions.
“We each purpose for the not possible after which try to work out how we will get there,” says Natasha.
“There’s no person else who I’ve ever met the place I may simply transfer nations with two suitcases and simply be like, ‘OK, we will do that.’”
