What have we been up to over the past year? Our last post was in June 2019 and we dropped off the blogging world as we packed up our belongings, moved out of our apartment, and started a new season of our life.
We had planned to move straight from our apartment to our new home - The Little White Shack, but our house wasn’t ready. So we moved our stuff into the basement of the house, flew out to Alaska (our 49th state), lived with family and friends, Chris ended up in the ER, and we finally moved into our home on Memorial Day 2019.
Alaska was amazing. We hiked, walked on a glacier, and visited dogs who run the Iditarod. The highlight of the trip was hanging out with one of the kindest families ever - Northern Expenditure. We shared our life over dinner and our kids played. I couldn’t be more excited to have a friend in Alaska. I want friends in all 50 states. So if you want to be friends with someone in Wisconsin, email me!!
Have you ever lived with loved ones? I was worried about overextending our welcome or my introverted self going crazy, but our time with my family was great. My mom and I would chat over wine, the girls would play with their cousins, and we helped my parents get a much needed vacation since we were with their elderly dog.
Our builder had to rush Chris to the ER. While carrying our refrigerator into our home with our builder, Chris lost his grip. The refrigerator caught his lip and blood gushed from his face. I got a text from Chris: split lip, on way to ER. I was binge watching Netflix and hiding ice cream bar wrappers from my kids so I mindlessly responded: OK. Then the episode ended and I realized he said ER. Oops! I scooped clothes and toothbrushes off the counter into a bag, grabbed the girls, drove an hour to the ER, and found Chris sitting outside the hospital with 10 stitches in his lip.
We almost sold our home before we moved in! Two weeks before moving into our home, we moved in with our best friends. We all figured this would either destroy our friendship or bring us closer. After week one, I realized the joy of living in a commune. We were all in this life together. Our kids played, we sat around the dinner table together, Chris and I helped with cooking and laundry, and we shared how our days went every evening. Thinking about leaving made me sad. It sounded lonely! The day after we moved out, Gretchen and I went grocery shopping together! (Ok, confession, we didn’t almost sell our home, but it did cross my mind, lol)
The Little White Shack became a reality. I dreamed and drafted every detail of this home! The south side is mostly windows so we have great natural light. In the winter we cuddle on the couch with the coziness of the fireplace. In the Summer we enjoy bug-free days and nights on our screened-in-deck. We are coming up on a year in this home and we wouldn’t change a thing. Well, I could go a bit smaller, but there’s always my next dream home: The Mini White Shack.
We’ve missed the personal finance community and we are excited to be back. We plan on sharing our ongoing thrifty journey with you on a monthly basis. Now that I’ve caught you up, catch us up on your life in the comments! We can’t wait to hear what you’ve been up to!
Blessings,
Jaime + Chris