Thefed is checking in! Long time no see! Divorces, kids, new business update

[thefed]

So it's been a while since I've been on the boards...a long while! Some of you may remember all the trials and tribulations I was going thru...namely a dirty divorce and custody battle...the start-up of a new company...some rehabbing houses. Well, here's the low-down for anyone who cares!

• The divorce was finalized Nov 2012. Just last week, I won full custody of my 3 boys...Sunday night to Friday night every week! Cost me my entire retirement savings plus a little more....but it was worth it! The boys drive me nuts, but my ex is certifiably crazy. It takes a lot for a mom to lose custody.
• Some may recall the updates on my inflatable bounce house business which morphed into a full-fledged mobile entertainment company? Well, last year was our 3rd full season after the re-branding and we did about 750k in sales. We are on pace for a $1mil year!!! Very excited about that. Ohio Mobile Gaming.
• The air duct cleaning biz I had for years is defunct...sold it and the equipment after the divorce. My ex wouldnt let me get to my equipment and I lost a lot of business and contracts. Same for the landscaping biz

So....I'm ready to start saving again. I cant believe I found these boards almost 10 years ago! I was farther ahead at age 21...shoot 18 even...than I am now. I'm getting back to the basics of paying off credit card debt and putting a few bucks a week back into my IRA's. It's rather upsetting when I look @ my 4 figure retirement that was once nearing 6...but it's now or never!

Hope all has been well

 

[samclem]

thefed
Thanks for checking in. It sounds like things are going great now, though you've certainly been through the wringer. Are you done with house rehabbing and instead concentrating on the inflatables?

Regarding the restart on retirement savings: That's a kick in the butt. The silver lining: you already know about this board and the LBYM stuff, you've got the mindset to do it again. Lots of folks who are your age will go another decade--or maybe never--before figuring that part out and getting started.

Don't be a stranger!

 

[Gumby]

Welcome back, Fed. I always enjoy hearing how things are going with you. Sounds like the entertainment business is really going well.

 

[Htown Harry]

Glad to hear from you, fed. Great news on the custody win.

 

[travelover]

Good to hear from you. Getting custody of your kids is amazing.

 

[HFWR]

Cost me my entire retirement savings plus a little more....

I've known several friends and acquaintances who went through long, expensive divorces, usually made longer by the [-]offensive[/-] offending party in the issue. The sad thing is that once the money is all gone, the divorce magically happens...

Anyway, glad all that is in the rear-view mirror. Nothing but sunshine and lollipops from here on!

 

[Bestwifeever]

You should sell your story to Hollywood, Fed. It would make quite the entertaining sit com, especially going forward with three little boys growing up with bounce houses!

 

[HFWR]

You should sell your story to Hollywood, Fed. It would make quite the entertaining sit com, especially going forward with three little boys growing up with bounce houses!

Something like...

 

[Bestwifeever]

Something like...

With the fun family in the movie Overboard

 

[thefed]

Update: almost hit $1mil in sales in the bounce house business last year! Bad news, my new partner and I had a 'divorce' of sorts and split the company geographically. This year, we'll be back around $450k, but my work load is 25% of what it was before...so that's a win!

Kids are still mine, mom is still a clown, and we're in a new home in a great school district! Living the dream, or so they tell me...

 

[JPatrick]

Good to hear from you Fed. I thought you might have forgotten to nail down one of those bounce houses and were..well, elsewhere.
Hope your better luck continues.