Wanting, Waiting and Anticipating What’s to Come…

I was inspired to write this post after reading On July Fourth, celebrate freedom from 'wants' at Smart Spending.

I’ve heard that anticipation is half the fun for most things. I’ve also experienced that crazed feeling of wanting something right now. I guess our psychology is just that complex. I want to be debt free, to have enough money for a down payment on a house, a kid or two or four… (Do NOT get too excited about this – yes, I’m talking to you, MOM). As I inch my way to getting that first want checked off my list, I need to remind myself that just because that one’s done, it doesn’t mean the others are close behind.

It will have taken me over 4 years to eliminate my debt and it will take some doing to save up enough to afford even a small house. But that’s OK. There’s no rule saying that we need to be homeowners, especially now. I would rather wait until I have a good buffer before diving into that pool. Anything can happen and it’s a huge responsibility. I have no interest in getting out of debt only to put myself into a position where I’m living on the razor’s edge of sustainability yet again by saddling us with a mortgage before we’re ready.

And the kids… I realize that there will never be a perfect time for that but that does not automatically mean that any old time will be OK. I want some time to not only start redirecting the money that was going to debt elimination to savings but to also enjoy it a little. Maybe take a trip or two with Cute Man before settling down with children.

Ideally, I’d want to save up for a house, get that all sorted, and THEN think about kids. But, um… I’ll be 31 in August. I ain’t getting any younger! I’ve always said that I’m not moving until we buy a house. I may have to rethink that while trying to reconcile my (still blissfully snoozing) biological clock with our reticence to take on mortgage debt. So what if our first (only?) child starts out life in a rented apartment! . People do it all the time. I’d rather do that then stress ourselves out by stretching our finances too thin while starting our family. Although, I do think we’d have to at least move someplace a bit bigger for sanity’s sake and I don’t think our landlady would be all that keen on the crying bambino, either.

So, for now I choose to enjoy the anticipation and planning stage and try not to get too caught up in the ache of wanting.