New and improving
NewlyTexan
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Home again Home again, Jiggitty Jig.
The short story is that we have postponed buying a home.
It is very deflating to have such high hopes, only to have them dashed. But, there are multiple reasons that renting an apartment for the first year or two will be the wisest choice.
1. Savings. It is important to have downpayment money, emergency fund, fun savings, and not to spread yourself too thin. We are changing from two incomes down to one. The husband won't find out about his pay raise until one month before we are moving. The wife was the one carrying the family healthcare coverage and retirement, and so finances are about to undergo a huge overhaul. We have accrued some debt (who in American hasn't?) and are still trying to get our bailout. Fortunately, we can bail ourselves out. But, we have to eliminate our debt and accrue a savings so that we no longer feel that we are underwater. Having to short sale or possibly foreclose on the wife's former home isn't helping matters, but that debt should at least be forgiven. So, for now, the plan is to unload the debt wagon, and load up on savings.
2. Decluttering. United States families have too much "stuff". We have too much stuff. Don't get us wrong, we love our stuff. But, we have come to the point in our lives where we don't want stuff just to have stuff. We want to weigh in what is important and only have the quality stuff that we actually need. Having children makes this difficult, as they seem to come with a laundry list of stuff. But, the liberation that comes with ordering two ABF relocubes and having to sacrifice something to make it all fit is an incredible feeling. Half of our things have gone, and there is more to follow. Freecycle is our friend. Unfortunately, mom may have to go through some of the older packed boxes to reevaluate... But, we will see during moving week (ie. spring break).
3. Getting to know you. We THINK we know which neighborhood in which we want to buy our forever home. We think. While mom has researched the dickens out of the local schools, and gotten some useful information out of school report cards, we have decided that the best of these schools also appears to be the whitest. You can't always win with diversity, hopefully we'll add some color to the neighborhood. We want to be close to the church, the best school, and the grocery store so that the bicycle or feet will be feasible. Stay0at-home mom doesn't want to have to drive anywhere, and so this is going to be a test run of whether or not this neighborhood is a possibility for that. With gas prices keeping up, and us moving to an area that promotes an outdoor lifestyle, we are looking to drastically change this as well. Hopefully dad can still ride his bicycle to work.
4. Starting over and beng carefree. We are making the choice to go from being chained to a home which has a million and one expenses, to letting go and putting the owness on somebody else. Starting over is a mixed bag. We are still fumbling through the emotion mixture of having neighbors in the room next door, but having a pool ten feet away. Of worrying about what others think when the baby cries, but having a 24 hour workout facility. Not having to pay for things when they break, but having your front door on the second floor. You know what? We are thrilled. This sacrifice is feeling less like a sacrifice. To hell with the Joneses. We are going to make our next big purchase in cash, and our children will learn that early sacrifices reap bigger rewards later. Yeah! for shaking off the bondage of how we "should" be, and not feeling guilty for taking a vacation or worrying about working and letting someone else raise the kids. Yeah! for priorities.
It is very deflating to have such high hopes, only to have them dashed. But, there are multiple reasons that renting an apartment for the first year or two will be the wisest choice.
1. Savings. It is important to have downpayment money, emergency fund, fun savings, and not to spread yourself too thin. We are changing from two incomes down to one. The husband won't find out about his pay raise until one month before we are moving. The wife was the one carrying the family healthcare coverage and retirement, and so finances are about to undergo a huge overhaul. We have accrued some debt (who in American hasn't?) and are still trying to get our bailout. Fortunately, we can bail ourselves out. But, we have to eliminate our debt and accrue a savings so that we no longer feel that we are underwater. Having to short sale or possibly foreclose on the wife's former home isn't helping matters, but that debt should at least be forgiven. So, for now, the plan is to unload the debt wagon, and load up on savings.
2. Decluttering. United States families have too much "stuff". We have too much stuff. Don't get us wrong, we love our stuff. But, we have come to the point in our lives where we don't want stuff just to have stuff. We want to weigh in what is important and only have the quality stuff that we actually need. Having children makes this difficult, as they seem to come with a laundry list of stuff. But, the liberation that comes with ordering two ABF relocubes and having to sacrifice something to make it all fit is an incredible feeling. Half of our things have gone, and there is more to follow. Freecycle is our friend. Unfortunately, mom may have to go through some of the older packed boxes to reevaluate... But, we will see during moving week (ie. spring break).
3. Getting to know you. We THINK we know which neighborhood in which we want to buy our forever home. We think. While mom has researched the dickens out of the local schools, and gotten some useful information out of school report cards, we have decided that the best of these schools also appears to be the whitest. You can't always win with diversity, hopefully we'll add some color to the neighborhood. We want to be close to the church, the best school, and the grocery store so that the bicycle or feet will be feasible. Stay0at-home mom doesn't want to have to drive anywhere, and so this is going to be a test run of whether or not this neighborhood is a possibility for that. With gas prices keeping up, and us moving to an area that promotes an outdoor lifestyle, we are looking to drastically change this as well. Hopefully dad can still ride his bicycle to work.
4. Starting over and beng carefree. We are making the choice to go from being chained to a home which has a million and one expenses, to letting go and putting the owness on somebody else. Starting over is a mixed bag. We are still fumbling through the emotion mixture of having neighbors in the room next door, but having a pool ten feet away. Of worrying about what others think when the baby cries, but having a 24 hour workout facility. Not having to pay for things when they break, but having your front door on the second floor. You know what? We are thrilled. This sacrifice is feeling less like a sacrifice. To hell with the Joneses. We are going to make our next big purchase in cash, and our children will learn that early sacrifices reap bigger rewards later. Yeah! for shaking off the bondage of how we "should" be, and not feeling guilty for taking a vacation or worrying about working and letting someone else raise the kids. Yeah! for priorities.
Friday, December 31, 2010
To Market, To Market to buy a Fat Pig
Frugality is so trendy right now, but it is definitely a way of life for us. We coupon, we recycle reduce and reuse, we garden. This is at least true for the Yin part of our household, the Yang tends to splurge. Balance to the force is crucial, so we are grateful we find joy in our duality.
Regardless, we must now learn these concepts anew. There are old friends here such as Walmart, Target, KMart, Walgreens, and CVS pharmacy. But our old and faithful grocery friends will be left far behind. We are left to learn of the foreign HEB, Randalls, Albertsons, Safeway, Whole Foods, and all of the farmers markets we can find. Feel free to follow us as we learn all that we can about these new and strange locations. We will be experts on what to do and NOT to do before long.
I now shed a tear, and pause for a moment of silence for those who will be left behind. We remember them (and their stellar savings) fondly:
Rite Aid
Harris Teeter
Farm Fresh
Kroger
Five Points
Regardless, we must now learn these concepts anew. There are old friends here such as Walmart, Target, KMart, Walgreens, and CVS pharmacy. But our old and faithful grocery friends will be left far behind. We are left to learn of the foreign HEB, Randalls, Albertsons, Safeway, Whole Foods, and all of the farmers markets we can find. Feel free to follow us as we learn all that we can about these new and strange locations. We will be experts on what to do and NOT to do before long.
I now shed a tear, and pause for a moment of silence for those who will be left behind. We remember them (and their stellar savings) fondly:
Rite Aid
Harris Teeter
Farm Fresh
Kroger
Five Points
The Hunt
We (I) began house hunting the moment we found out that we were moving. While upside down in our home in Virginia, thankfully only one of us is on that mortgage (me). Keeping our fingers crossed that we can earn a good wage while allowing one of us to stay home, we began the hunt.
Purely happenstance, daddy began his journey by renting a room in Northwest Austin, and immediately fell in love. The main draw for mama is the school system available for the kids. Daddy just likes the location (and cycling trails to nowhere). Sadly, there is no guarantee for mama to find work due to hiring freezes for teachers everywhere. This leaves our hopes high for a just out of reach promotion, and playing the waiting game until that time.
We have narrowed down the list to a top 11:
Each has it's own draw, and we aren't getting our hopes up on any of them yet. Hopefully an offer will be made by this time in February.
Purely happenstance, daddy began his journey by renting a room in Northwest Austin, and immediately fell in love. The main draw for mama is the school system available for the kids. Daddy just likes the location (and cycling trails to nowhere). Sadly, there is no guarantee for mama to find work due to hiring freezes for teachers everywhere. This leaves our hopes high for a just out of reach promotion, and playing the waiting game until that time.
We have narrowed down the list to a top 11:
The Beginning
Our journey to Texas began unexpectedly. My husband, dissatisfied with his employment, was looking for that greener pasture that is always on the other side of the fence. This begat a whirlwind which has turned our lives upside down.
We had begun to feel as though we were going to live beside the beach forever. I had accepted that this was life as we knew it. I couldn't have been more wrong. If nothing else, the last few years have taught me that the best laid plans of mice and men... are merely plans.
So, here we are. Myself and my children are counting down the days until we are reunited with daddy while daddy is getting a head start on discovering the beautiful city of Austin, Texas. I feel better that I have never heard a negative word against Austin, Texas. It's a shame that it is so far from the ocean.
We had begun to feel as though we were going to live beside the beach forever. I had accepted that this was life as we knew it. I couldn't have been more wrong. If nothing else, the last few years have taught me that the best laid plans of mice and men... are merely plans.
So, here we are. Myself and my children are counting down the days until we are reunited with daddy while daddy is getting a head start on discovering the beautiful city of Austin, Texas. I feel better that I have never heard a negative word against Austin, Texas. It's a shame that it is so far from the ocean.
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