Life's Not A Beach

One of our major struggles in life was trying to buy a house.  When our first child was born, we wanted  a place that was slightly larger, preferably with an open floor plan.  We had been living in a 1920s farmhouse, that belonged to my family,  which did not even have a subfloor.  The house was freezing cold during the winter, to the point that the heater really could not even keep it warm. We had been living there trying to save money for infertility treatments, which were costly even though I was double covered by my insurance and my husband's insurance.

Unfortunately, the housing market was in such a state that the prices of houses were going up much faster than the rate of wage increases.  With a traditional loan, nothing worth buying was affordable.  It's depressing to be in your mid-30s and not be able to afford a house.  

Finally, my in-laws helped us to purchase a lot in a new subdivision.  My brother-in-law had gotten a contractor's license and was wanting to build a house.  This was finally our chance to get a house that we had a chance of affording.  Well, at least we could afford it with the $3,000 raise I was due to get in two years.

That raise never came.  Six years later I still haven't gotten a raise, and my husband earns significantly less money now.  However, house insurance has increased dramatically in my area, along with everything else.  Seriously, although we live in a county that is adjacent to the beach, the beach is nearly an hour away.  

Our house is actually smaller than the average sized house; it's only about 1900 sq. ft.   So, we are by no means living extravagantly.  Additionally, neither of us drives new or fancy vehicles.  Considering the fact that my husband has a degree and I have two degrees, I never expected life to turn out like this.

I named this blog years ago, but haven't posted.  Perhaps that is a good thing, due to the fact that the character of this blog is likely to be very different now than it was when I first had this idea pop into my head.

Apparently some people take issue with me because I don't have a reputation for being an incredibly positive person.  Believe me, I have my reasons.

My husband and I have been married for sixteen years.  If there is a theme for our marriage, it's that we have some of the worst timing.  As a result, things that appear to come easily for other couples have been filled with frustration and struggle for us.  But hey, that's what this blog is supposed to be about.

I have two degrees:  a B.A. in Psychology and a M.Ed. in Elementary Education, and my husband has a Bachelor's degree in an Allied Health field.  We've made so many of the right choices in life, even waiting to have a family when we should have been considered financially stable.  Well, once again, that doesn't happen for a couple with consistently bad timing.

On a positive note, we've achieved many of our major goals in our lives.  However, in this economy we are now live in constant fear that things are going to fall apart.  The "Great Recession" supposedly ended years ago, but for us things just seem to be getting worse.

The details are to come.  It's a story that just can't be summarized in a few paragraphs.  After all, whose can?