steveandkelly,
welcome aboard and good luck in your search.
My advice would be to go slow. These are expensive toys that can sometimes be either hard to sell or costly to sell (difference between what you paid and price you get) if you make a big mistake! You will want to get it as "right for you two" as you can on the first go round.
Read lots..... Here, on other forums, magazines, books.
Walk the docks. Look at boats, talk to owners and ask questions. Often they will show you around and give both pros and cons to their model/make.
Go to boat shows, trawlerfest, etc. And ask questions.
Before you get real serious, actually do what many here have suggested. Really take the time to "figure out" what you want a boat for and will expect from it. Eg. Short coastal day or weekend trips, or basically living aboard (at least for several months in a row). Marina or anchor out, etc. Etc. Etc.
Once you have that "agreed upon", then you can write down your lists of features. What are absolutely must haves, nice to have, absolutely don't wants, and can live withs (for features and equipment, etc.). For example, for us, we did not want screwed down teak decks. Too much potential for leaks (in our opinion).
Then you can narrow down what makes, models, and added equipment you would consider. If and when you do narrow it down (after all of that), you can use your lists to determine which exact boats you want to actually go see and or offer on. Remembering that you will probably have to compromise on some things as there is not likely a "perfect boat" with everything that you want in your price range.
Imho, failure to take the time to do "all of that" could lead to a mistake that you may regret (especially since you start out your post saying you are newbies to trawlers and larger boats in general).
You may have already done some or all of this (as you seem to like the mainship), but i would be very hesitant to "pick a boat make" simply from photos and suggestions. You have to spend time on board one, and really "poking around" to better determine if it will meet your needs (after first defining what those needs are)
good luck,
tom