I had always heard about the gray German skies. How sometimes the sun doesn't shine for weeks. How sometimes depression is a bit catchy because of the yucky, dreary weather. Hmmm. Perhaps this post is a bit metaphorical. Our life has been a bit dreary for the past two months, but you know what??--sometimes the sunshine does come out. Things finally start like they are picking up again. We are moving closer to our home buying purchase. We met with a bank last night that finally made us feel like we were getting a good deal vs. handing over our lives. If all continues to go well, we will own a home before the ball drops for 2013. A house, which I might add, will be paid in full within 10 years. Crazy! The kicker is that it cost more than our house in Massachusetts cost and that sucker was no bargain. So exciting! Our big plan is to purchase, pay like crazy for the 3 years we live in it, then depending on how it all plays out, rent it out. The next few years are critical in Chris' career. He'll be up for his first big board, which will determine how much longer he stays in the military. He could retire after our next duty station. That seems so hard to believe, but it's true. Anyway, I have the option to stay in Germany as long as I'd like, so we have a lot to think about.
We've been working so hard on getting rid of any excess debt. It feels so good. We were out of credit card debt before moving to Germany, but tacked on some when we were getting settled. We had to pay a lot out of pocket--oil for our house, a house hunter fee $2500, one month deposit for our house which was another $2500, not to mention that I got a major upgrade on my ring over the summer ;). That pretty much cleared out alot of our savings, but we new we were solid. Oh yeah, there was also a major fiasco about who was going to pay for my trip and the kids' trip from Seattle to ND then back to Baltimore. In the end, WE ended up footing that bill. Long story, but it was a good thing we did. If I had fought the government from my end, they would have paid, but I would have lost my benefits when I was rehired. Thanking the Lord above for looking out for us on that one. Those benefits are now footing the bill for our house--the very one that will paid in 10 years ;) Anyway, we're now tackling that remaining credit card balance and trying to follow the Dave Ramsey philosophy of life. In preparation for our move, I've done a bit of liquidating. Love that!
Emotionally, I feel like I am finally coming full circle. I feel stable and ready to move on. I really haven't felt this good for 2 months. It was 2 months and 2 days ago that we hopped on the rollercoaster ride and finally, I feel like it is slowing down enough to jump off. So with that, I will!
Next week we are heading to Switzerland for a ski trip in the Alps. It is going to be awesome. Supposedly we can ski the Swiss side or Italian side--talk about options! The view is going to be incredible. I can't wait to see my kids on skis. I am looking forward to the cool wind blowing on my face as I fumble my way down that mountain. Can. Not. Wait.
Sunshine--keep on shining.
We've been working so hard on getting rid of any excess debt. It feels so good. We were out of credit card debt before moving to Germany, but tacked on some when we were getting settled. We had to pay a lot out of pocket--oil for our house, a house hunter fee $2500, one month deposit for our house which was another $2500, not to mention that I got a major upgrade on my ring over the summer ;). That pretty much cleared out alot of our savings, but we new we were solid. Oh yeah, there was also a major fiasco about who was going to pay for my trip and the kids' trip from Seattle to ND then back to Baltimore. In the end, WE ended up footing that bill. Long story, but it was a good thing we did. If I had fought the government from my end, they would have paid, but I would have lost my benefits when I was rehired. Thanking the Lord above for looking out for us on that one. Those benefits are now footing the bill for our house--the very one that will paid in 10 years ;) Anyway, we're now tackling that remaining credit card balance and trying to follow the Dave Ramsey philosophy of life. In preparation for our move, I've done a bit of liquidating. Love that!
Emotionally, I feel like I am finally coming full circle. I feel stable and ready to move on. I really haven't felt this good for 2 months. It was 2 months and 2 days ago that we hopped on the rollercoaster ride and finally, I feel like it is slowing down enough to jump off. So with that, I will!
Next week we are heading to Switzerland for a ski trip in the Alps. It is going to be awesome. Supposedly we can ski the Swiss side or Italian side--talk about options! The view is going to be incredible. I can't wait to see my kids on skis. I am looking forward to the cool wind blowing on my face as I fumble my way down that mountain. Can. Not. Wait.
Sunshine--keep on shining.
Comments
Love ya, J