Last weekend both of my boys celebrated birthdays. This year, those celebrations looked a little different than this time last year. Last year, I decided to do a homemade birthday party extravaganza. Unlike Mrs. BITA’s homemade party, which seemed to be lovely and fairly easy to put together, or Mrs. Frugalwood’s family gathering, the ThreeYears’ homemade Minecraft party was a lesson in what not to do when creating a homemade birthday party.
Don’t get me wrong. The party was a straight-out hit. I had no less than four small people tell me “this is the best party ever!” with zero trace of sarcasm in their tiny voices. They were having major fun, which may have had something to do with the Brewing Station, with six bottles of sugared soda that they got to “mix” into different potions.
But the party planner almost did herself in. In my efforts to do it myself, and reproduce Pinterest, I drove myself nuts. I made a homemade Minecraft piñata, for the love of all things holy. I created the aforementioned Brewing Station, and affixed handmade labels to each of the two-liter bottles of soda in six phosphorescent artificial colors. I made recipes for the potions they could create, and had my boys weigh in on how realistic the colors were for each potion (“No, Mom, that’s a Potion of Healing, which is red, not green”). Continue reading “Breaking “the Rules””
Hello! Welcome to “Location Independent, International Jobs,” the Wednesday series where I showcase stories from people who have become location independent, work internationally, and/or continuously travel. They’ll be sharing how they became location independent or how they got jobs abroad, but most importantly, they’ll share how their lifestyle has positively or negatively affected their finances and how they got to the life they’re living now.
The reason for this series is to showcase people who have already achieved what the ThreeYear family is working towards: location independence and/or securing international jobs. Since we’re not sure which route we’ll take, we thought we’d hear from people who’ve already achieved one or the other, so we can learn more.
Today, I’d like to introduce you to Adriana, who blogs at Money Journey. Adriana and her boyfriend have lived in Italy for the past nine years. When Adriana first arrived in Italy, she had no job, spoke very little Italian, and hadn’t even finished college! Now, nine years later, she has a freelance career, has traveled all over the continent, and even occasionally gets mistaken for an Italian! I think you’ll find her story very interesting, especially if you’ve ever considered living abroad.
Background
My name is Adriana and I’ve been living in Italy with my boyfriend for the past nine years.
Adriana of Money Journey, with Switzerland behind her
Summer’s here! At least it is for the Junior ThreeYears and me. All three of us are out of school for the next nine weeks. So, what better time to whet our appetites for location independence than a summer road trip?
Last year, the three of us hopped in the trusty Prius and drove all the way from Northern New England more than 14 hours to North Carolina, to stay with my sister and her family, and then South Carolina, to stay with my parents. We spent four glorious weeks with no agenda and no plans except to spend time with our family and enjoy the summer.
This year, we’re going to repeat the experience. We’re currently busy preparing for our departure. How did we decide to spend a month “down South” and how did we make it happen? Continue reading “Our Summer Road Trip”
Hi folks! Welcome to the second post in my Wednesday series. These are real stories from people who have become location independent, work internationally, and/or continuously travel. They’ll be sharing how they became location independent or how they got jobs abroad, but most importantly, they’ll share how their lifestyle has positively or negatively affected their finances and how they got to the life they’re living now.
The reason for this series is to showcase people who have already achieved what the ThreeYear family is working towards: location independence and/or securing international jobs. Since we’re not sure which route we’ll take, we thought we’d hear from people who’ve already achieved the life, so we can learn more.
Today, I’d like to introduce you to Steve, from the blog Think, Save, Retire. Steve very kindly agreed to share his story when I reached out to bloggers on the Rockstar Finance Forums (check them out! Tons of financial nerd types like myself discussing all aspects of financial independence!).
Steve retired at age 35 and he and his wife Courtney currently travel the United States in their Airstream (a.k.a. my dad’s dream mode of transportation). Steve has given up traditional employment and now blogs about how he and his wife created a life that freed them up to do more of what they really value the most–namely, travel.
Without further ado, take it away, Steve!!
Can you tell us a little bit about your background? Where you’re from, how long married, degrees, pets, etc.
I’m 35 and recently retired from full-time work. I worked in the information technology industry for my entire career doing things from computer programming and database administration to being the Director of Information Technology at a not-for-profit organization. I was born on the East Coast, but I’m definitely more of a West Coast kind of person, so I moved out here in 2007 after starting my first real job in Virginia. I’ve been married for almost three years, and my wife and I live in our 30′ Airstream Classic with our two rescued dogs, Patti and Penny.
Steve and Courtney enjoying the good life!
I don’t consider myself to be a “smart cookie.” No prestigious degree (I have a degree in Information Technology from a no-name school in Colorado). I’m not published in journals. My ideas haven’t been studied by industry experts. I’m a normal person just like anyone else. The main difference is I chose a very different life for myself. Continue reading “Location Independent, International Jobs: Steve of Think, Save, Retire”
Do you love to garden? Is Spring your favorite time of year, when the flowers start blooming and there’s color bursting out of every bed?
I absolutely love to create flower gardens. I also know I could spend a small fortune buying plants and shrubs to create the perfect landscape around our house.
Since our family is on a three year journey to double our net worth and become location independent, it’s not a priority to spend a lot of money on landscaping when we’ll be selling our home soon. But I love to constantly improve our gardens and so, have learned to save lots of money but still create beautiful flower beds.
Hi folks! Today I am absolutely delighted to share a new series with you. I’ll be featuring people who are either location independent, have gotten international jobs, and/or who continuously travel. They’ll be sharing how they became location independent or how they got jobs abroad, but most importantly, they’ll share how their lifestyle has positively or negatively affected their finances.
The reason for this series is to showcase people who have already achieved what the ThreeYear family is working towards: location independence and/or securing international jobs. Since we’re not sure which route we’ll take, we thought we’d hear from people who’ve already achieved the life, so we can learn more.
Today, I’d like to introduce you to the first person featured in this new series. Mavis is a reader who reached out to me because, as she said, “You guys are on the same path that we are, but opposite! I’m an international teacher, and have worked in Bolivia, Honduras and now Saudi Arabia with my husband and two boys. We have taught overseas for several years and are hoping to achieve FI in the near future so that we can have location permanence for a while.” Mavis and her husband are both teachers, and have taught at international schools all over the world. She’s already been a great resources to me, pointing me in the right direction of the best recruiters and asking any questions I have about teaching internationally.
I asked if she would share her fascinating story, and I know you’ll be as inspired as I was. So, without further ado, Mavis’s story!
How International Teaching Has Provided My Family a Strong Foundation for FI
My husband and I turned to international teaching when we were fresh out of graduate school. We were young, certified teachers, underemployed, adventurous, and ready to travel and experience the world. We were introduced to the idea through a passing conversation with a colleague who had taught at a school in Taiwan. Instantly, the scheming and planning began.
Mavis, her husband, and their two boys on a recent trip to Ireland.
After attending the AASSA Recruiting Fair, we found jobs at the American International School in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. Our original plan was to teach in Honduras for two years, travel, and come home to Canada to settle into our lives. After these two years finished, there were still no teaching jobs available in Ontario near our family and friends, and we were not thrilled about the idea of moving back in with our parents as a married 28 year old couple. We decided to do two more years abroad, this time in Saudi Arabia, in order to save money, gain more experience and see a different part of the world. Two years soon became three, and now, after a few great job opportunities and adding two new little boys to our family, we have now been in Saudi Arabia for six years. In total, we have been teaching overseas for eight years, and have stopped making future promises of returning home to our families 😉Continue reading “Location Independent, International Jobs: Mavis”
Lots of people, including our family, talk about location independence. What does it mean, exactly?
In the broadest definition of the phrase, location independence means being able to live wherever you’d like in the world. People achieve this in different ways.
If you’re financially independent, and have enough assets or investments to live off indefinitely, you can probably become location independent without too much trouble. If you keep your cost of living the same, you can probably pull from your investments from anywhere around the globe. Yes, you might have some hoops to jump through to get there, like health insurance, but if you’re no longer working to pay your bills, chances are you have the freedom to move from place to place. Continue reading “Why Location Independence Might Make Sense Even if You Don’t Want to Travel”
In last week’s post, I laid out several streams of income that Mr. ThreeYear and I expect to utilize during early retirement. That led me to remember all the times we’ve had side hustles during our fifteen years together.
Mr. ThreeYear and I have always had an entrepreneurial spirit that runs through our collective veins.
I grew up as the daughter of a small-business owner. Although my dad was a pediatrician, he was also the owner and operator of his practice, and I grew up listening to him talk about managing his business for ultimate profitability. He was great at utilizing available resources to help him grow his practice in an extremely poor region of the country (rural South Carolina). Seventy-five percent of his patients received Medicaid, and despite the very low payout rates for those patients, he applied for government subsidies and programs to not only allow his business to survive, but to thrive. When he sold his practice a few years ago, he had over 14,000 pediatric patients in a town of only 4,600 inhabitants! Continue reading “The History of Our Side Hustles”
We have entered the first days of June. June, sweet June, has continued wet and cold here in New Hampshire. I’ve tallied the rain days–fourteen and then, after a few days of respite, seven. Still, school ends in eight more days, flowers are blooming, and the boys and I are headed to the South for our annual summer road trip at the end of the month. Life is sweet this time of year.
It’s amazing that at the end of the month we’ll have finished half of the year! In some ways, it’s lovely to see the progress towards our goals we’ve made this year, and personal growth we’ve made as a family, in helping the kids navigate school and friendships, and finding the best combination of after-school activities and fun without going over the top.
We’ve also started the process of replacing our roof, and just sent a check in for 50% of the cost–$7,000 dollars of our hard-earned, after-tax dollars. I just keep telling myself that we’ll have a beautiful new roof that won’t leak and will make the house sellable! And I’m grateful that we’ve saved up that cash so we don’t have to panic or take out a loan for this major home repair. Continue reading “A Year of Good Habits: Don’t Throw Away the Food!”
Have I got a recipe for you! Take the cheapest cuts of chicken, add ordinary and inexpensive condiments that you already have in your kitchen, let it cook for 30-45 minutes without really doing much, and voila! A delicious and super tasty main dish. Add one pot of rice and a salad and you have a fast, easy, and international dinner. Filipino chicken adobo!
One of the perks of being an ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) teacher is that I have access to students from around the world. They share their favorite parts of their culture with me. One of my6th grade students from the Philippines taught me how to make chicken adobo last year and it’s one of my kids’ favorites. Continue reading “Make It This Weekend: Chicken Adobo”
