AND THE ADVENTURE BEGINS

August 18 6:45 am. After saying tearful goodbyes to parents and older children we are checked in and waiting for 8:30 boarding for our flight.

There are many people we need to thank for their support and encouragement. First off will be parents, older children, sister and her family. Thank you for your love and support and for being there for us always.

. .... Who, I know are sad we are leaving, but happy for us for the change we are making. Then there are many others, too many to name, but we will touch on some: Thad Allen (at Edward Jones)who helped us get our money in line, talked with us about the move and prayed for us and with us. Midway Wholesale employees who did not want me to go, but were excited that we were making this change. John Osello who found out in March we were making the change and told me that I could work until the actual time came. Customers at Midway Wholesale who, when talking to, were excited for us. Friends at churches both in Wichita and Topeka. You are all invited to come see us when we get settled. Just have to get yourselves there. We promise we will provide room and accommodation and a tour of the beautiful beaches and islands the Philippines have and of course our world-famous roasted pig. Flor will probably add to this list when we layover in Minneapolis-St. Paul. Mike

-LESS AND DEBT-FREE

These past two weeks leading up to our flight to the Philippines is one of a revelation to Mike and I. In our 28 years of marriage, we have lived in 5 different cities and in three different states in this great United States of America. And all through those years, God has placed in our paths strangers who became friends. We didn't realize, until now, that the friendships we forged have made an impact in our lives whether positive or negative. Nevertheless they all help us become who we are and where we are today. Now we hope that we too have made an impact on others lives. Friday was when a friend came by to pick up our van...what a weird feeling when she drove it out of the driveway. The first time in 28 years we do not have a car. Not only are we homeless, now we are car-less, pet-less, jobless, key-less (nothing to open, nothing to start/drive). We are counting the days until we leave for the Philippines. Can't wait to start all over again - DEBT-FREE. Here is Michael burning our mortgage papers at the lake:

.....so we celebrated the mortgage burning ceremony with very close friends not with champagne but with hotdogs and beans,

ABBY, OUR BELOVED DOGGY

Our oldest son, Josh, wanted a dog one day so we encourage him to look for a "free dog" in the newspaper ad and luckily he found one.  The owner graciously gave us Abby, her bucket of dog food, her balls, her metal crate and her dog house. Abby was a year old when we got her. This was 2003 and Abby since became a part of our family.  Like all dogs she loves attention and lots of love which the boys readily gave her.  She also loves BALLS.  She loves to snuggle and sleep with anybody who would let her.

We got her in Omaha and moved with us to Kansas. She eagerly welcomed JJ when we adopted him as well and the two became inseparable.  JJ loved playing in the sprinkler but Abby hated the water.  Whenever JJ is out in the backyard Abby is right behind him.  It is always a delight to watch them together.  When the boys moved out it became JJ and Abby and Michael then.  My role is to give her food and water and occasionally play with her.  Abby knows she cannot set her foot on the living room carpet and the kitchen area because of the mean woman in the house (that's me) but sometimes she tries to push her right to be where she thinks she should be but I always win :).

When we decided to go on this journey, we thought of several options as to where Abby should go.  Both the boys can't take her in their apartments.  We've asked friends both near and far if they would be interested and finally it was getting close for us to move out.  Abby has to go to the shelter.  It was a hard decision and a struggle.  Abby is and will always be part of our family and giving her away like that is really hard and it hurts everyone in the family but we don't have a choice.  JJ cried for a while the day we have to take her to the shelter.  I cried with him and I know Michael was crying too. The only way I could comfort JJ was to assure him that he will get another dog JUST LIKE ABBY in the Philippines.  I told him to ask the intake person at the shelter for Abby's collar and leash so he can still use it for his future dog when we get to the Philippines.  That seemed to help the hurt.

A pet is another thing you need to deal with when moving out of the country.  We would have loved to take Abby with us but we believe the long flight will be too much for her.  If you can't find anybody to take care of a pet when moving, try calling your local pet shelter.  They will take your pet for a donation and although there is no guarantee that your pet gets adopted, they will do their best.  Moving is not easy for everyone when there is a pet involved.

If we would have decided to take her with us, we would have to have her papers, current vaccinations, an approved crate and according to the Consulate website, she would be quarantined in the Philippines before she's released to us.  So, with sad and heavy heart we parted with our beloved Abby. 

Please keep following our blog as we discover what God has in store for us in this exciting journey.  Thanks for following and God bless you and yours.

THE BIG EMPTY

August 1 is when the buyer took possession of the house, so we are officially homeless that day.  We took one last picture of our living room and the dining room that my husband calls "the big empty" hence, the title of the post.

My husband's parents graciously offered two options for our living arrangement: we can stay with them or we can stay in their camper.  We checked out two short-term apartments in town but none of them suited us so we moved in to my in-laws' camper.  This will be our "home" until we leave for the Philippines.  Our 6-year old has the bed to himself while my husband and I have the pull-out bed in the "living room."  Granted we are cramped in our quarters but I know the grandparents are happy we decided to "move in" with them.  They get the chance to spend plenty of time with our little boy and us while we wait for the day we fly out. 

The truck is sold and Michael took it to its new owner today and the only thing left to dispose of is the van which will go to its new owner next week. The utilities companies have all been notified to discontinue their services and will forward the final bills to our temporary address and once all that is settled we can shout at the top of our lungs ................."WE'RE DEBT FREE" wohoo!

Lord willing, the proceeds from the truck will be used to buy a van in Manila which we will use to travel to my mom's place in Leyte.  That van will also be used as a van for hire to generate income wherever we'll end up settling down.  Several of you are praying for us as we embark on this journey and we thank and appreciate all of you.  We've looked at several properties on-line and I know the Lord has already prepared a place for us.  We will know which place when we get there.  I just have that feeling...........................

MONEY, MONEY, MONEY - Let's Talk About Finances

Nobody wants to talk about money - I found that out in other blogs.  I was hoping I'd get some words of wisdom from others who are living outside the USA regarding banking, i.e., money transfers, deposits, earning a living, etc., but although there are some who vaguely talks about finances, I don't find any of them helpful.  So here is my two cents regarding the subject. I hope you'll find this article helpful in some way.  I do, however, strongly suggest that you talk to your financial adviser in earnest.

A month ago my husband and I met up with our Financial Adviser to get his opinion and guidance on what to do with 401K, retirement account, investment portfolios, international banking, etc...I will not go through everything we discussed here as it is rather a personal matter of opinion.  Remember we all have different needs and goals.

From that meeting he was able to set us up with a checking account with Edward Jones Financial Services where we can write a check once we get to the Philippines to initially make a deposit to a Philippine bank of our choosing.  The only drawback is that it will take about 6 weeks for the money to be available.  Not a problem.  We won't need the cash right away anyway as it will probably take several months before we decide on where we will settle down.

The other thing we talked about is a no-brainer, really.  We all know this, but just in case, you need a reminder.....If you are leaving your job and you have contributed to a retirement account (401K) with your employer, be sure to roll it over to an IRA to avoid steep penalties.  It's easy to have your financial adviser request the transfer himself.  He will give you a form to fill out and he'll take care of the rest.  If you don't do this, your company's benefits coordinator (or whatever they're called at your place of work) will end up cutting you a check for the amount of your retirement account and you are then responsible for rolling it over to another retirement account.  You have 60 days to roll it over, otherwise, you will be penalized.  Talk about 30%-40% penalty - ouch.  I don't know about you but that is a LOT of money down the gutter.

We also talked about converting a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA.  In traditional IRA you are not taxed until you withdraw at retirement age, whereas with the Roth IRA you pay taxes now but withdraw tax-free at retirement age.  You can opt to have your financial adviser convert your traditional IRA into a Roth IRA in increments, say for the next 3 or 4 years instead of in one lump sum to avoid being placed into a higher income tax bracket come April.

We came away with helpful insights in regards to our retirement options with that meeting. and I will not share all of them here.  When we reach our retirement age hopefully we get our hard earned money back plus earnings.  Oh and before we parted with our financial adviser, he asked if he could pray for us.  So, right there in his office we held hands and bowed our heads committing our plans and goals to the Lord Almighty.  How cool is that?

I've read several blogs from other people who, like us, decided we have enough of this crazy, rat-race lifestyle.  I try to glean some insights from these fellow bloggers who are living outside the USA at the present time and are managing well even without a full time job.  We have learned that my husband will not be allowed to work in the Philippines - period.  Did that deter us from wanting to go back? NOT!  With what savings we have to bring over there, we have decided that WE WILL NOT LIVE LIKE THE WESTERNERS DO.  I believe it helps if we keep reminding ourselves that.  "Materialism" and too much "Commercialism" never really bring anyone joy and peace.  Anyone who have visited the Philippines can attest to that.  We might not have everything but everyone you meet there have a relaxed, happy disposition.  Now doesn't that tell you something?  Joy from within doesn't come from material wealth. 

Some of the bloggers I've read suggest renting a place instead of buying or building a house.  That is true if you plan to move a lot and that's what you're comfortable with.  But if you married a Filipina and know that you will stay there indefinitely, here's my take on this:  Why not buy/build instead of rent?  To me renting in the Philippines is total waste of money.  That's how I feel about renting here in the US as well.  One of the goals in moving back there is to not have a mortgage, or a monthly rent.  We will only have to worry about electricity, water, phone and food expenses.

On my next blog, I will share with you what we found out about medical health insurance, starting a small family enterprise so there is a stream of income coming in.  Likewise, I will share with you how our meeting with an international tax lady went.  Yes, Virginia, there is still tax issues to be dealt with even if you move back to the Philippines.  The annoying thing though, and I will just have to rant about it here, is that when I immigrated to the US, the Philippine government didn't require me to continue filing for tax return there.  Now that my husband and I are immigrating to the Philippines, you would think the US government will not require us to file tax return, right?  WRONG! Government over-reach? YES!  I'd better stop here before I "boil over."

Until my next blog.  Blessings to you!

Mid-life Wanderings: MAJOR PURGING - Getting Rid of These and Getting R...

Mid-life Wanderings: MAJOR PURGING - Getting Rid of These and Getting R...: Hi all.  Whew!  It's been almost a month now since I last blogged and I apologize.  My husband and I have been really busy getting rid o...

MAJOR PURGING - Getting Rid of These and Getting Rid of Those

Hi all.  Whew!  It's been almost a month now since I last blogged and I apologize.  My husband and I have been really busy getting rid of almost everything we have accumulated.  What with the sale of the house, fixing things that need fixing per inspection report, sorting, scanning documents, boxing, shipping....and the list goes on.  Will I ever see the end of it, I wonder?

We had our second garage sale (which I called "garage sale marathon") for 4 days, can you believe it?  We were trying to get rid of as much stuff as we can and have extra money for the move.  The last day of our garage sale, my father-in-law was wheeling and dealing it was amusing just  watching him - I love you, Dad!  The next week God's Storehouse came with their truck to pick up the leftover bigger items and Dad and I hauled the boxed items to the Rescue Mission Donation Center.  A U-Haul pulled in to take the piano to its new home.  Very early one morning Atlas Shipping came and picked up the Balikbayan boxes for shipment to the Philippines.  Now the house looks empty with nothing but the leather couch and recliner.  Presently, we eat in the LR and sleep on air mattress.  The house looks bare and sounds hollow.

My husband took pictures of our garage sale marathon:

Three weeks ago we hauled the John Deere tractor to its new home and my husband asked me to take picture of it one last time to which I complied.  I think his heart ached for it as it had been in the family since 1964.

But of course before he loaded it on the truck he and our 6 year old took it around the neighborhood one last time.  I thought I share it here:

So there, all our "stuff" are gone.  After three weeks of sorting, pricing, boxing, loading and talk about stress, they are all disposed of.  Whew!

Thank you all for your patience and thank you for following us as we journey towards a simple, laid back living.