Author Topic: Reader Case Study: (Edit: Our Twins are Here Now!) and I Have Brain Cancer  (Read 35133 times)

Matumba

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Re: Reader Case Study: (Edit: Our Twins are Here Now!) and I Have Brain Cancer
« Reply #100 on: October 27, 2015, 10:14:57 AM »
Wow, you have a great attitude.
My first thought is that 70k will outright buy a house in some parts of the nation. I know you need to be in NYC right now, but what about later in life? Since there's a pretty good chance that your wife will be a single parent at some point, owning a house outright in a low COL area might make that a lot easier. Another thought would be what she would want her life to look like at that point. Does her current career make enough money to support her and at least two kids? Maybe she would like to work from home or work part time. Switching careers now could make a huge difference in what life would be like later for her and your children. And if you live much longer than predicted, it only gets better because you get to spend more time with her and your family.
And I actually think your food budget is pretty reasonable considering your dietary restrictions. Eating out is pretty high though, and cutting that would help. I also wouldn't sweat the taxi rides. The eating out is definitely your low hanging fruit. Having a chronic or terminal illness is one of the best reasons to buy time I've ever heard.
I don't mean to derail the thread,  but could you please name these parts of the US where you can buy a house for 70k? Preferably safe place with nice weather and relatively low taxes.

TheInsuranceMan

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Re: Reader Case Study: (Edit: Our Twins are Here Now!) and I Have Brain Cancer
« Reply #101 on: October 27, 2015, 12:16:05 PM »
Wow, you have a great attitude.
My first thought is that 70k will outright buy a house in some parts of the nation. I know you need to be in NYC right now, but what about later in life? Since there's a pretty good chance that your wife will be a single parent at some point, owning a house outright in a low COL area might make that a lot easier. Another thought would be what she would want her life to look like at that point. Does her current career make enough money to support her and at least two kids? Maybe she would like to work from home or work part time. Switching careers now could make a huge difference in what life would be like later for her and your children. And if you live much longer than predicted, it only gets better because you get to spend more time with her and your family.
And I actually think your food budget is pretty reasonable considering your dietary restrictions. Eating out is pretty high though, and cutting that would help. I also wouldn't sweat the taxi rides. The eating out is definitely your low hanging fruit. Having a chronic or terminal illness is one of the best reasons to buy time I've ever heard.
I don't mean to derail the thread,  but could you please name these parts of the US where you can buy a house for 70k? Preferably safe place with nice weather and relatively low taxes.

Small towns in the midwest.  Hell, in my town, there is a house that is for sale for under 40k.  Two story even, and move in ready.  That is pretty common for small towns in the midwest, plus, you get to see and feel all 4 seasons that mother nature gives us :).

boarder42

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Re: Reader Case Study: (Edit: Our Twins are Here Now!) and I Have Brain Cancer
« Reply #102 on: November 06, 2015, 06:15:19 PM »
i think it would be more important to give your kids educational videos of you to show them how to not accrue 100k in debt.  or spend 100k on college ... i mean thats a but load of money on an education.  there are scholarships for everything now adays.  apply and get them. work while you're in school.  dont spend 100k on an education.. tell them to be engineers and get degrees from state schools.  IN STATE schools.  all more valuable IMO than a fund specifically for college. 

have the videos played by your lawyer as part of your will at certain ages in your kids life to teach them how to manage money properly and not graduate with 100k in debt.  i never lost my dad but i lost a close cousin when i was going thru college and i would have paid attention to videos like this had he left them for me.

Acg

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Re: Reader Case Study: (Edit: Our Twins are Here Now!) and I Have Brain Cancer
« Reply #103 on: January 08, 2016, 01:45:06 PM »
So we want to buy a house in a couple years but we want to put enough down so that my wife is able to pay the mortgage solely on her income in the case that something were to happen to me and she couldn't depend on my income.  So we've determined that we need to save another $140k. We don't live very frugally right now and I was wondering what tips you guys had for changes we could make to increase or savings?  Thanks.

eliza

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Re: Reader Case Study: (Edit: Our Twins are Here Now!) and I Have Brain Cancer
« Reply #104 on: January 08, 2016, 09:52:16 PM »
Glad to see you checking back in and doing well.   Your story has been very inspirational. 

Perhaps if you could do a quick overview of your current situation (assets, liabilities, budget) people will be able to chime in with specific, helpful information.

frugaldrummer

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Re: Reader Case Study: (Edit: Our Twins are Here Now!) and I Have Brain Cancer
« Reply #105 on: January 08, 2016, 09:55:18 PM »
Cut yourself a little slack, this is a crazy time with 3 mo old twins and your main priority should be getting enough sleep. Period.  The college plans can wait a little bit.

As for food: when my ex and I were in med school with crazy hours, we would make one big dish on Sunday and eat it for the next 4-5 days.  You could freeze portions and get more variety. Slow cooker recipes are another good approach to save time and energy.






pbkmaine

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Re: Reader Case Study: (Edit: Our Twins are Here Now!) and I Have Brain Cancer
« Reply #106 on: January 08, 2016, 10:01:07 PM »
For food that's organic, dairy and gluten free, I think soups and stews are your friends. Think crockpot. What about a huge pot of chili, frozen into individual portions? Or hearty chicken rice soup?

little_brown_dog

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Re: Reader Case Study: (Edit: Our Twins are Here Now!) and I Have Brain Cancer
« Reply #107 on: January 09, 2016, 07:49:12 AM »
+1 to crockpot cooking with cheap cheap staples like lentils, canned tomatoes, and celery/carrots/onions (look up lentil soup recipes in google and just pick one with a simple ingredient list and strong reviews - can't go wrong). we have a 3mo old at home right now and the crockpot has been a lifesaver. I just throw all the uncooked ingredients in when the baby is resting after her early morning feed, and then 8 hours later we have dinner ready. a big plus: a large crockpot will easily make 6 meals for 2 adults (even a breastfeeding mama), and you can just pull the ceramic insert out, cover it, and pop it in the fridge to hold the leftovers. only dishes are the 2 bowls and spoons!