Ringing in the new year - 2016

It is a surprise to realise that my last post has been over 6 months ago so it is my duty to myself to post something to keep my timeline going. It is enlightening to review my previous entries and so I must endeavour to keep posting my thoughts and wishes more regularly, in a similar vein to taking more pictures of my children so that I can look back upon them more fondly.

So without further adieu:
1) House - we have now been living in our new abode for more than a year and have complete our wonderful pool as well.  The pool has been put to good and frequent use since the spring and I treasure the leisure times spent within it.  I have purchased a swimming tether that I have been using regularly as part of my new year resolution of exercising more and I really enjoy it.  The certifier has just visited this week after the builder finally organised to have inserts on the stairs put in to meet the regulation width so hopefully the house will soon be certified and it will be something my husband can finally put to bed.
The back yard is looking nice, we have removed the dead old gum tree, the side hedges are fitfully healthy and our herbs around the side of the house are flourishing.  We have planted a grape which is also faring well and while my little fig tree has born fruit, the fruit has fallen victim to bugs so this year's crop is naught.  Our front yard is still a barren wasteland but my husband will pay attention to it soon.

2) Friends - we have visited my friend in Queensland while we were on xmas holiday in the Gold Coast. She seems to be doing well and I must admit I do not miss her that much.  My closest friend would have to be the girl at work.  We talk often at work and msg each other after hours but sadly may be parting work places soon but more of that later.  My other friend has had her baby and seems to be doing well but to be honest I have not spent much time with her as I feel like I have moved apart from her.  It feels as though maintaining friendships has not been a priority for me although I regularly catch up with old workmates and socialise quite often but have not taken it much further than that.
My other longtime friend with the naughty kids has told me she is due for the 3rd baby! its exciting and i'm very happy for her although she is over 40 and it is a bit risky.

3) Family - the kids are doing reasonably well healthwise although my daughter has had a very long case of eczema all over her extremities.  I have been putting cream constantly on her since we have moved in actually.  I wonder if there is something in the area that is different to where we were before as my hayfever has also been rampant but only of late.  My son has had much lower grades so this year I am focussed on helping him overcome his weaker classes.  I want them to try karate class too this year so will switch them out of gymnastics after the 1st quarter of the year.
My mum's health had a little scare late last year as her blood tests showed a factor related to bowel cancer but since then we have had further scans, an endoscopy and gastroscopy and the doctor has cleared her, attributing the factor to her past operations.
My nephew is still showing delayed speech ability and I still believe he has a mild case of autism as he is ferociously brilliant with numbers but my brother and sister in law keep to themselves about their battles with him.
My husband turned 40 recently and I organised the birthday bash which turned out to be a fantastic night although I was quite nervous about it, as I always am when I am the host or organiser.  It was a joint party with a long time friend of mine but I am also now feeling like I am out of touch with her too.
We have been on a few trips over xmas- Dubbo Zoo which was fun except my daughter got strangely sick for 2 days, Gold Coast and camping in the downpour at Kangaroo Valley.  I railed against going camping on a weekend where the forecast was storms but we persevered with the two other families and while I didn't have the best of times, it was manageable and the kids loved it.
Skiiing was also not so great this year as my daughter was sick as well so it felt like we didn't get the most out of it.
Our rabbit is a constant joy and I am really pleased that purchasing him has worked out.  The kids adore him and my mum dotes on him, making him fresh salads twice a day and sending me daily photos of him in various states of repose.  I am contemplating creating an instagram account of him but feel I don't have the time yet to commit to it.

4) Work - well working as a contractor has been fine so far, I was extended and also placed in a lead role within the biggest project of the company when the other lead resigned.  I have learnt a few things in this lead role as in my responsibilities as lead as well as endeavouring to learn about my direct reports capabilities rather than relying on what their team members report about them.  The company is in a volatile state at the moment and it is likely that I will not be there in 6 months time.  But the money has been fantastic and I wish to continue to benefit from that.  I am thinking of moving to work closer to home but we'll see.

5) Finances - we are doing well financially and I want to take it to the next level this year and purchase at least 2 more properties.  I'm currently seeking loan approvals based on the fact I have changed my employment and looking at QLD properties as the Sydney market is too expensive.
If I am able to take a break mid year, I would love to spend time renovating an old house or apartment but it would have to be in Sydney as I couldn't leave the kids.  I still have goals to retire earlier and think maybe I should be more detailed in how I achieve this.

6) Health - my goal is to have a firmer belly and more slender arms.  I have been swimming for about half an hour twice a week for the last month or so but still haven't seen any results.  I wonder if i need to sweat it out instead but I do love swimming.  I feel at least my cardio has improved.  I have also removed all sugar from my tea and coffee which wasn't too hard although I admit I dont get as much enjoyment out of tea or coffee but only mildly so.  I almost feel like i'm leaning towards becoming vegetarian but I have just instead tried to minimise meat.
I feel I"m eating pretty well but have not seen the results in weightloss yet.  Maybe I shouldn't look at the scales so often!

2015 was a good year and I want 2016 to be better!

Reaching the midpoint of 2015

Fast forward to 2015, let's take a look at what has happened in the last 6 months:

1) The big move - in November 2014, we finally reinstalled ourselves in our brand new home. Over a hot weekend, my husband, cousin, uncle, brother in law and cousin in law helped with moving the many boxes we had prepared. What a mammoth task! I had taken up the kind request of a friend to help mind the kids while we did the move which was a godsend. In reality we could have gotten rid of at least 10% of the boxes we packed. It took us the two weekend days to move everything out. On day 1, we drove the truck a little close to a low hanging branch of a street tree so it actually created a little damage on the front corner of the truck box! This type of damage would have cost over $2K on our rental, but my husband was able to fix it (at close to midnight after a full day of moving!) and the next morning when we returned the truck it passed inspection! The remaining day of the weekend was spend moving in and also taking the remaining boxes in the car. It was hectic trying to establish a living routine out of boxes but now I barely remember the stress. Then on Monday would be the start of the kid's first day at the new school. I drop them off after spending a little time watching them being welcomed into their class and I'm happy. I then spend the rest of the day until school pick up time cleaning the house we had just left. Admittedly in cleaning up the old house, I am hit with a little nostalgia and remember the fond memories of the house. Sadness hits me as I realise this is the house where the kids spent their early years growing up, running up and down the stairs and sharing birthday parties with friends. They were good times. It is now 6 months since we have moved in and I can honestly say that the kids are in a great school. I can be confident that their schooling until university should be reasonably taken care of with the local high school being well regarded and within walking distance. The downsides of the move is that the commute is almost half an hour longer to work though which while expected, took me longer to come to grips with. Also another big downside is the neighbours. One particular neighbour has left us with a bad taste in our mouths, she is nosey, judgemental and things she should be consulted about anything within a 10 meter radius of her new house. We have had several issues with her during the build and a couple since we moved in including a retaining wall, planting of boundary trees and us installing a privacy screen around our pool. We've had several verbal altercations and now try to limit any eye contact with any member of that household.

2) Work - not hard to predict I guess, given my last entry, but I'm now working in a different company and have also embarked on the contracting journey. The new company is also smaller and a little behind in the times but they are nice people and after 3 months, I am enjoying myself. After a slow start where I questioned why I had been brought on, I'm now working across 2 projects and churning through the work. There was also a little scare when 2 other contractors were let go allegedly due to cost cutting but it turns out that they were not performing. And another lovely surprise is that a friend from my old job will be joining me on my new project so I am expecting fun times ahead!

3) Family - the kids are my pride and joy and I am always happy with them no matter what. My son had a terrible asthma episode and I was really worried at one stage when there were several people surrounding him at hospital and no one was talking to me about what was going on. I got scared for the first time for his life and started crying which he saw. He did get better after 3 days in hospital and asked me why I cried and I told him I was worried about him. My daughter's eczema really flared up as well and both instances of asthma and eczema from the kids seem to have been their worst ever. We are wondering if it is something about the new location and still are not on top of it. I hope they both improve. My kids also admitted that they missed their old friends which saddened me a little but I know they will get over it. They have friends in the new school and it will only be a matter of time before they develop similar friendships. We also had a nice little trip away on a cruise for the first time. IT was a great holiday and very relaxing for me after a frenetic year last year. We went to South Pacific which had beautiful islands. Noumea was ok but Isle of Pines and Lifou were fantastic and I would love to go back there again.

4) Health - well I'm 41 and feeling fabulous... I am still working on establishing an exercise routine but i'm not overweight, I'm just looking at some more tone. Won't spend too much time on this area of my time.

5) Friends - last year was tumultuous, new jobs, separations etc, this year seems to be continuing the trend, I am attributing it to my circle of friends all entering their late 30s early 40s and going through various cycles of mid life :). One of my closest friends who is going through separation has decided to uproot herself and kids and go to Queensland. I feel I have been out of touch with her for over a year and have little in common anymore. It saddens me but I cannot go on this journey with her as I do not understand it. My cousin and other friend have now had their first babies. I know the road ahead for them in the next few weeks will be tough. My friend who I think is a bit of a perfectionist is also another person I feel I have fallen out of touch with. The baby gives me an excuse to limit contact in the guise of giving her personal space to get through this period of her life. One funny episode was when I caught up with another friend and her kids... my kids ended up exclaiming that they never wanted to play with them or visit them again because the kids were so naughty! I now use them as a threat whenever my kids misbehave hahaha. I do admit they were the naughtiest, spoiled kids I had met within my circle of friends and hope that when we see them again that they will improve with age :)

6) Finances - our finances are extremely healthy, we are both contracting now and we also purchased another investment property. We now hold 4 properties including our principle home and I am looking to add another one by the end of the year. Our retirement plan is in good shape. I feel we could be more aggressive in our investing but for now there are too many things going on for me to give this a proper look.

counting down to xmas!

Once again the year has flown by and as it nears xmas, I take stock of where I am and what I have achieved: 1) house building - the saga continues, the journey is long and we were always in it for the long haul. Since my last post, we have sold our current principle residence and are now renting back from the new owner with a clause in the contract of sale that we can rent up to 3 months from settlement date. We are about 2 months into that... everything is almost done, we are awaiting the interim occupation certificate now but its really dragged out much longer than we imagined house renovating - we have since had our other investment house renovated thanks to my extended family and just a fortnight ago obtained a tenant! It was a super fast turn around, we signed up with the agent that sold our house and within 2 days, they turned around the property to get a tenant who moved in 4 days later at a higher rent than what we expected which was tremendous news! I should add that the auction of our current principle residence while resulted in a profit, was not as heated or exciting as we had hoped. It did not make our reserve of 950K and we were optimistic of making the 1 million mark but it was not to be. Still, it was good to not have to worry about open houses every weekend. 2) work- I have since passed the 9 month mark but it really feels like 5 years. I know my heart isn't in it and I keep urging myself to look to the positive. I don't feel I belong although all the signs are there for a long and reasonably easy extended stay there. Thoughts of leaving give me hope so I believe it is only a matter of time (once we move to the new house) before I move on although I dread the goodbyes and disappointing anyone there. I keep telling myself the work is interesting and that I am learning a lot, which I am but something is still missing and I'm not entirely sure I will find it back at my old workplace. 3) kids - always my light and my joy, i'm now in preparation to move them to the new school. We met the new principal who seems a little more proper than our current principal. I will miss our current little school but onwards and upwards. Kids at school have told my kids they will be missed which is sad, hopefully they will make just as great friends in the new school 4) in laws - in a complete unforeseen turnaround, my father in law is seemingly well installed in the new nursing home. While I am at times sorrowful and wracked with mild guilt that he is there, there is much less friction in the house hold and he also seems quite busy with his social group at the home as well. I am now counting down to the end of the year, where I hope it will signal a time to enjoy the hard work we have put in this year. It has been a hard slog but also a rewarding one. The year has been a tumultuous one for many of my friends, I have seen break ups, separations, changes in jobs, new homes, many new beginnings. I hope next year is a settling one.

Milestone achieved! the big four O

So here I am a few days after hitting the big one. Let's reflect again: 1) House building - bricking is complete, we couldn't get our original 3rd choice brick as it was out of stock but as compensation was able to get our 2nd choice more expensive brick for the same upgrade price as the cheaper 3rd choice brick. Hubby was happy, I was uncertain of the colour as the second choice brick was quite dark. But fast forward to the finished product and its looking pretty schmick :) Interior gyprocking has started and we were also able to go with a cheaper tiler so able to save some there which is great! 2) Work - so I"m getting more money, but not enjoying the new team as much as my old. People are nice enough but more males and developer oriented. Really immature agile development team. Making friends but I could be happier. Potential to hire a friend but unsure if I should bring her in to a place that I"m not looking to stay long in but I've given her the true picture and its her choice. Obtained scrum master certification and entertaining ideas of moving more into this space. Still planning to try contracting. 3) Kids - still gold and my pride and joy. As long as they are good, life is good. Daughter started kindy and is performing with flying colours. Son is doing just as well as always and is a good little boy. Both open to the school change which is good to hear but we will see 4) Health - so much for new year's resolutions. Seem to have put on some extra layering since trip to Hong Kong (too much good eating) but will attempt to start some activity soon. 5) Personal life - hubby and I also celebrated our 10 yr anniversary with a family photo shoot. Looking forward to putting the pictures up in the new house. My birthday celebrations were awesome, awesome, awesome. Surrounded by a good range of friends who all played well together and had a lot of fun together. Only just made it past midnight after spending some time lying on a couch only to be glared at by security hahaha top night! Making new friends and still catching up with old ones so I am feeling a lot of love. 6) Inlaws - Amazingly father in law has now moved out to retirement home so its now a happy and more relaxed home. Some teething problems with the transition but as to be expected. Mother in law's health doesn't seem to be so good and it has been quite a sharp turn there so will see if it improves. Brother in law has bought a house and looking to move in within the next month. Nephew still attending speech therapist. Speech has improved but behaviourally still behind 7) Retirement plans - still looking to sell our current house when we move into new one but first will have to sell brother in law's house when he moves out so some renos to be done there in preparation. Goal is to still buy two investment properties in the next year, hopefully both in WA, while I am on a permanent salary. Happy to say that at this junction of my life, I am about 95% happy. I do regret not staying at my old job to at least take out long service. That was an silly emotional decision to leave. It was a decision made against what my heart told me. But lesson learned and the worse case scenario isn't that bad. Til next time :)

Reflections

Wow, what a year. Let's summarise:
1) House building - trees got approved to be removed (although it felt like touch and go as we were told we could only remove them if they were hazardous).  Pool has been dug and concreted.  Home loan approved with first progress payment complete. Outlook for 2014 - Good.
2) Work - didn't get Senior. Not good. Performance review was superior. That was good
Went for interview elsewhere.  Got it. Senior, more money.  Decided to leave.  Big two weeks of hellish uncertainty. Certification - passed (fantastic!) Outlook for 2014 - On paper, should be good.
3) Kids - bit sick this last month but otherwise they are gold.  Kindy next year for my girl.  Move to new school next year for my boy. Outlook for 2014 - Good.
4) Health - not exercising enough, look like my new year's resolution.  Eating healthy though and weight pretty stable, not losing or gaining.
5) Personal life - making good friends and connections.  Hubby and I are gold.  Plans for travel next year but not Vegas due to house build.
Outlook for 2014 - Good.
6) Inlaws - father in law quite sick but causing trouble. Complaining about money and annoying us.  Causing mother in law a lot of stress.  Due for serious operation in January where there is 50-50 chance of pulling through, has asked to go to nursing home as well.
Brother in law and sister in law looking to move next year.  Son is going to speech therapist, lot of work to do there, fingers crossed it goes well.
Outlook for 2014 - Not good, more stress to come.
7) Retirement plans - property wise, if brother in law moves out, we could sell that house, we got hit by large land tax this year.  Goal is to get at least one more investment property in 2014, hopefully Perth.
Outlook for 2014 - Good.

Spring is near...

and so marks the time of new beginnings...? we're more than past the half way mark of the year now and its been a good year so far.  So what is new, we've just come back from a week at the snow.  It was a fantastic time, fresh snow fell on the first night, but was sunny days after that.  The ground was patchy but the kids had fund nonetheless and we're all looking forward to next year already.

How is the house building going? We've been approved in part! The certifier has reviewed the house plans and says all is ok, but now we're just waiting on the tree removal approval which the certifier needs before finalising the CDC but we're on our way!  Demolition quotes are being sourced, the pool approval has also come through and we've also picked our exterior colours.  We're going with a darker brick with light grout and whitish window frames.  I'm quite happy with it.  We'll soon be planning the kitchen and might be a good idea to talk to a landscaper as well but not sure if we'll actually do that.

Had a significant event happen to me actually in July.  I got pregnant.  Not planned.  Mixed emotions.  Before it was confirmed, my first reaction was that I would have it, was even planning names for a boy.  Then reality hit, starting again with a new baby, nearing 40, quite comfortable with things at the moment.  Told my husband, he also had mixed emotions.  Got the pregnancy test, used it, waited for the result.  Positive.  Blast it.  We both felt like teenagers with an unwanted pregnancy.  We remembered when conception happened.  It was a day or so after my period. We assumed it would be safe.  Guess we were wrong.  I had a cry.  Didn't really want it. Neither did he.  I looked up medical abortions and there was a place nearby at work.  Booked myself in and after consultation, was told I was suitable for it if I wanted it.  Took the tablet, some minor bleeding but nothing major.  Just felt nauseous and feverish during the first two hours of taking the tablets.  Was frustrated.  Went back for second visit and was given another round of tablets and was reminded that I had been informed it might not work and also might not happen in the first week.  Second round produced a lot more bleeding as was expected.  Third visit proved that abortion was successful.  All done in two weeks.  Felt so easy, too easy.  But no regrets.  Do I think about the baby that could have been. Yes.  Do I regret it? Not yet.  Only my husband and mother know.  My mother was very supportive.  Not comfortable letting any friends know, just seems too controversial.
His name would have been Jesse.

The big three nine

So.... its two weeks after I'd turned 39 and I'd have to say, its not looking too bad up here.  Had a fantastic birthday week at work, lots of greetings and special treatments.  Planned a night out with some old friends and was getting plenty of ribbing about whether we'd make it to midnight.  We did ourselves proud that night, I had a fantastic time and that night was rated up there as one of the top nights for a long time.

On the home front, things are still slowly progressing with the house. Almost finalised the draft and have gone to the brick yards to pick out bricks, going for a darker look with nice white grout for some contrast.  The choice of brick is key, if chosen wrong, then a new house could look outdated quite quickly.

I'm now more focussed on career, studying for certification, putting my hand up for training at work and contemplating testing the waters of contracting.  I might do so in a few months.

Still nothing finalised for the big 40 and we're already halfway through this year.  Its a lot to organise and I'd obviously want to do it surrounded by close friends and family.  Not sure how it works if I decide to contract as well and take a few weeks to travel.  I guess its possible.  But throw in the new house and selling the old house, there's going to be a lot going on early next year.

Having an easy time of it at work, lots of periods of restlessness.  With 40 around the corner, it really does make me want to be in a good position next year.  Its kind of a milestone I guess.  When I turn 40 I want to look back and think, yep, I've done well, I'm in a good job, in a great house, lots of good friends and making real connections with people.  So far its looking ok but I'm not satisfied yet.

Also trying to keep my goal of early retirement on the radar.  Am looking at salary sacrificing and contracting to earn more money and once this house is built, invest in a couple of properties to solidify our bases and get some steady passive income happening.

I read in the paper about a woman who had a fantastic life material/wealth wise and threw it in to row across the ocean to find more in life.  She wrote two obituaries, one for the current life she had and one for the life she wanted and realised she wasn't happy to stay on the same path despite all the material wealth that most people strive for.  I think I will try that exercise.  Mind you, she ended up leaving her husband to embark on this adventure. I definitely don't intend to do that.