No Ordinary Family

We’re no ordinary family. Both my husband and I are hands-on parents to our little daughter, Georyl, since we can spend almost every minute of every day with her. Our schedule is not based on a fixed 8 to 5 routine. We have the luxury of waking up even at 10 o’clock in the morning (that’s the latest, of course!) and we can sleep late without the fear of being late for work the next day.

I was born in a middle class family. I had wanted to become a businesswoman with lots of time to spend with my family when I was way younger but I got caught up in the rat race soon after I graduated from college that I began to think that having a permanent job is the way to survive.

The first few months (and years) of being a stay at home wife and mother was a hard adjustment on my part especially since most people I’m close to were pushing me to find work. Considering that my last job prior to “retiring” was that of a chief financial officer of a German shipping company’s branch in Manila, I, too, was not used to having lots of free time in my hands, depending on someone for financial support and focusing on household chores instead of the usual white collar analytical, managerial and office job that I used doing.

Last year, my hubby retired from the workforce too – and he’s in his early forties! Unlike me who resented not working, he was enjoying the life of a young retiree.

As we spend quality time together as a family 24/7, I finally learned to see the beauty in all my husband’s plans. He thought about this, worked for this and prepared for this way of life for decades. Instead of being resentful with the fact that I don’t work, I realized how lucky and blessed I am to live this kind of life. We are probably one in a million here in the US (and even worldwide) that both husband and wife don’t need to work in order to survive but somehow, we’re breezing through it. Thanks to my husband who already thought of this kind of life few decades back and worked hard to achieve it. His vision and preparation made his dream of retiring in his early forties possible.

Of course, just because we have a great life doesn’t mean we have a big pocket as well. Donating a house to charity is way beyond our means (unlike those popular millionaires and wealthy people). We can live the life of early retirees because we are just living a simple life. My husband and I are both spendthrift so it’s so easy to do away with unnecessary and extravagant spending (although we still pamper ourselves once in a while).

My point is, retiring at a young age is achievable. You just have to prepare and work hard to attain it. Don’t work for money, let it work for you by learning to invest it (but make informed decisions always so that you won’t be scammed). If you need to “downgrade” a bit in your lifestyle, do so. Who needs a big house and a brand new top of the line car and gadgets anyway if you can barely use and enjoy them because you’re too busy with work work work!

Right?