by Hope
I recently wrote about how different life is these days. And then this popped up in my Facebook memories. What a perfect example of how different my life is now.
Phew, that look back just wears me out. How did I do all that?
The move to Georgia, 6 years ago this December put a stop to all of that. Our homeschool community disappeared. History Buff decided to remain in Virginia. And while we tried to keep up with Gymnast’ sport, it faded after our first full year here. It wss just too hard with the commute and the expense. Some of the changes are really hard to look back and see.
However…
The move to Georgia also has led to a lot of benefits that most likely would not have happened had we stayed in Virginia. First, we are close to family again. In fact, we stayed with my grandmother for our first 3 months back. For me, a child who had never lived near family, this was such a blessing. And something I always wanted for my own children.
The cost of living is less than a 1/3 for what I was paying in Virginia. For our 900 square foot apartment, I was paying $1,400 per month (before that almost $1,200 a month for the house my dad owned.) Here, I paid $600 per month in rent for our home and now $658 for our mortgage. (So grateful to finally have stable housing that is MINE. That has definitely been the biggest challenge since I became a single mom over 15 years ago now.)
Jobs…many BAD readers will remember when my work fell apart just a few short months after my dad asked us to leave the home we had rented from him for over 4 years. Almost 2 years of struggle and no real opportunities. And yet, on the day we were driving our last load from Virginia to Georgia, I received a full time job offer in a town over from my Grandmother with a $70,000 salary.
Georgia has been good to us.
The here and now
We (and I guess it’s just I now really) are in better financial shape then I ever have been since separating from my husband all those years ago. Stable income, stable housing and no crazy ups and downs. *knocks on wood
All this from a Facebook memory. There is a point though, if you are just starting on this debt free journey, and moreso, if you are a single mom who just can’t seem to get her legs under her, I’m here to tell you that you can and you will. And whether you know it or not, every dip and every high that comes your way is leading to something better for you and your kids. There is hope, just hold on.
Hope is a resourceful, solutions-driven online business manager with over two decades of experience helping clients streamline operations, manage projects, and grow their businesses through digital marketing and technology.
But life has a way of rewriting your plans.
A year ago, Hope made the decision to move in with her aging parents full time – a season she wouldn’t trade, even as it came with its own financial and emotional weight. Earlier this year, she lost her mother, and is now walking the tender, disorienting path of grief while learning what “forward” looks like from here.
Hope came to the Blogging Away Debt community in 2015 as a single mom raising five foster and adoptive children. She’s written through job changes, financial setbacks, and the bittersweet transition to an empty nest. Her kids are finding their footing in the world now – and so is she.
Rooted in faith and fueled by the same perseverance she’s brought to every hard season, Hope is ready to face her finances with fresh eyes and an honest pen. She believes that clarity, courage, and community can change the trajectory of anyone’s story including her own.
She lives in Austin, TX with her dad, loves adventures with her dog Addie, and is figuring out, one step at a time, what this next chapter is meant to be.
