We are doing okay . . . or at least we think we are!

When we decided to start blogging we wanted to be very transparent and offer insight into our retirement by sharing our experiences and emotions during this transition.  We consider ourselves to be fairly normal people, at least among our colleagues and friends, and most of us are at the same point in our lives  . . . either approaching retirement or recently retired.

We have saved and invested our money fairly well; once in awhile we bought high and sold low and once in awhile we bought low and sold high.  We are grateful for our health; there have been challenges and issues and we’d like to get off our blood pressure meds but all in all we are healthy.  We have a wonderful family; not without some challenges and issues, but overall we are very blessed.  We like each other most of the time, and on most days!

Most of the family!

A couple of months before Bob retired we started our blog and titled it “Our Retirement InSight” because the date was in sight but also because we wanted to be able to offer some insight into this transition period.  Our post-retirement friends shared with us that retirement was going to be an adjustment and we thought we might as well document our experiences.  It’s been an interesting two months since Bob retired and we are doing okay.

Financially, we planned for retirement and we hope the nest egg holds out.  Of course, as soon as we stopped earning an income the stock market has gone through a bit of a downward turn.  It’s hard to look at our portfolio every day and see it drop a little bit but we have to keep the long-term, bigger plan in mind.  Bob’s better at that than I am!

On a daily basis our life is pretty easy.  We live in a ranch style house (no steps!), which is easy to maintain.  We are both good about keeping things picked up and like a clean but comfortable home.  Bob loves to garden and enjoys puttering outside so the shrubs and beds are maintained.  Weekly we have a yard service that mows and edges, and keeps an eye on our koi pond if we are gone.  Our neighbors are great and are willing to watch the house if we ask.  We are lucky.

Our family is very encouraging and wants us to have a good time.  There’s a bit of a role reversal because now we are the ones who need to check in with “the kids” and let them know our whereabouts and travel plans.

I think it’s good that we had a plan for how/where/when we want to spend our time during this new phase of our lives.  For now our sense of wanderlust is still strong and we are eager to go places, meet new people, and experience life differently.  It’s not really our intent to make the blog into a travelogue but of course when we are traveling our posts are blogging about the journey . . . but actually life is a journey and retirement is part of the path.

Last weekend we started out on a day trip to see some of the lakes in Central WA, and ended up doing an overnight stay.  I think we are catching on to the idea that we don’t have to stick to a strict schedule and the only restrictions are ones we put on ourselves.

Soap Lake

Pot Holes Reservoir

Dry Falls

Blue Lake

Banks Reservoir

 

Moses Lake

We have been blessed to reconnect with friends and this weekend we will spend time with our family.  Sunday evening we get on the jet plane and go north to Alaska . . . retirement is good.