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Hey, y'all, I'm back! I retired 4 years ago- RIGHT into the pandemic, and I faded away from the site as I was out doing fun stuff. I have been volunteering, traveling, learning new crafts, and hobbies and enjoying life. My husband says I'm busier than when I was working. That's true...

We are considering taking our kids on a cruise over Christmas break. I was talking to a friend about this and she explained some options that I hadn't been aware of. I also read the thread about unexpected cruise costs. I am normally a do-it yourself travel person, but I haven't ever booked a...

It was Mardi Gras break here last week which meant both of my teens had a week out of school. My kids had never seen snow and had been asking to for years, so this year we took a friend up on his invitation to visit in Michigan. We had an amazing week! We rented snowmobiles and tried 3 kinds...

For some reason I decided that last night was the night to clean out my closet. I've been retired for a year or so, and have resisted doing this for some reason. My workplace was more formal than most, so mostly what I got rid of was suits and other things I would only wear to an office. It...

Our 17 year old son is researching colleges this summer and would like to earn a degree in computer science/programming or something like that. We're having a lot of trouble figuring out which colleges are good at this- we're getting a lot of ads when we try to find info online. Does anyone...

Our oldest son is about to be 17. He got into and then kicked out of a STEM high school for not completing his work. We sent him back to the local public high school where he again nearly failed thanks to coronavirus homeschooling mess. We sent him to a Catholic boarding school and he is...

My husband keeps asking what I want for Christmas. I can't think of a thing. What's on YOUR Christmas list?

18 months ago I made a new years resolution to get myself in shape. I sort of threw my self at it- I joined a gym hired a trainer and got myself in much better shape. I'm trying to fine-tune it a bit and I'm re-reading "Younger Next Year". I hadn't paid much attention to what my heart rate...

I know it will be awhile before we can go anywhere, but I'm dreaming about vacations to be enjoyed when we can. I love planning them, too. What's your favorite brand of travel guide and why?

I Loathe buying cars. I like my car, and hadn't really planned on getting a new (to me) one just yet- maybe fall or spring. I'd have been content to keep this one a while longer but my husband doesn't like it- its too small for him. Anyway, I saw one I thought looked like a decent deal and...

I'm 2 months from my first severance check. It's going to be a huge drop from my current income (and a drop in the tax bracket too) but a little more than what we're spending now. And my husband will also be working. Thanks to a bonus, I'll have contributed quite a bit to my 401k before...

I'll be retiring this summer and we already had a Mediterranean cruise planned with our kids. It departs from and arrives in Barcelona. Since I don't have to go back to work, I was thinking of extending for a few days in Barcelona and then... Not sure where. We actually prefer smaller towns...

DS has been accepted into the state magnet high school for Math and Science. (Yay!) He's going to need a laptop. I want to buy one for school work and not gaming. If I ask him, he'll say that a gaming laptop is what he really needs, and frankly I can't tell what the difference is. I'm...

This article presents the possibility that maybe we need sunlight for good health- that D supplements aren't the same, and that maybe the advice to never leave the house without a thick coat of sunscreen was a little misguided. I'll admit this all makes sense, but I don't have the ability to...

There was a thread a while back just for guys (and I have to admit that I read it, and laughed- A LOT) regarding a health issue. Need some help/advice with this one. I'm 47 and have started going through menopause or premenopause. I am cannot get comfortable at night. I wake up sweating and...

I haven't ever been fond of exercise- I have been a runner in the past, but now live where it isn't practical. I joined a Gym that is sort of on my way home from work as that's the only real time I have to do it thanks to the kids' schedules and my own. SO- I know how to use the cardio...

So I'm planning on retiring at 48, and I'll have another 2 years of w-2 income after that. My kids aren't going to be out of the house for a while, and I'm tossing around the idea of teaching a few business/investing/personal finance classes at one of the local colleges. I don't expect to...

Hey y'all. I haven't ever booked a cruise before. So here is the situation- we have a local holiday (Mardi Gras) and are considering taking the fam (Me, DH and two boys 11 and 14) on a cruise. It has to be that week and no other thanks to the boys being off from school. We would drive to the...

DH and I are going to Warsaw and Krakow in July and DH wants to go to Auschwitz. I don't want to. I loathe violence and cruelty of any kind. I don't watch gangster movies or shoot-em-up movies of any kind. He thought this was put on, but after 18 years of watching me flinch involuntarily...

Ok- so my parents pay for lodging at a fantastic destination every other year. We are responsible for getting there and a meal, and spend a week enjoying the destination and (theoretically) each other. Here is the problem I've found- its disorienting trying to fit back into our family roles-...

I'm 46 and we are FI. If I stay two more years (677 days, but who is counting) I qualify for a retirement package which includes a generous payout plus access to co healthcare, etc. Waiting will increase our investment assets by 40%- we'd go from safe to ridiculously safe. Unfortunately my...

So today I went to a company retirement seminar- I was sure there wasn't a thing could say that would make me stay longer than the 9 months and 5 days I have left. I was wrong. So company has a retirement pkg if you stay till your age plus years of service = 70. I'm 45 and I have 20 years...

I don't have much time left- a year and a half maybe- but when I am having a rotten day, I daydream about the astonished look on my boss's face (I am 44) when I tell him I am retiring. Anybody else do this?

DH and I were talking about an article re average net worths of Americans by age- DH said something like, "ours is 22 times that" at which point 12 yo picked up the article and did a quick calculation (future engineer) and gasped. Are y'all millionaires? After a moment of silence, I said we...

So my husband and I were discussing retirement this morning- unusual, he doesn't like talking about it. He pointed out the fact that we have young children and I'm usually more than ready to return them to school when summer/vacation is over. He wonders how I'll adjust to being home with them...