Thursday, November 21, 2013

10 Days of Thanksgiving: Day 5

Today I am thankful that I have had the financial means to go home as often as I have.

In the 7+ months since I moved to Charlotte, I have been home 5 times (although one of those trips was for the CFA which was obviously not a fun trip home), and I will be home next month for Christmas.  Going home on an almost monthly basis has really helped me tolerate living so far from home.

It's not by chance that I have had a budget for these trips home, though.  When I looked for an apartment in Charlotte, I would only consider places with rent that was lower than my rent in Minneapolis by the cost of a plane ticket home.  As a result, I lost over 400 square feet and live in a place that is not nearly as nice as my place in Minneapolis was, but being able to go home frequently matters way more than where I live right now.

After Christmas, I have no trips home planned as I do feel like I need to spend less on plane tickets as that money needs to be put towards a savings account to fund my move back to wherever I end up living in 2014.  I am sad that I don't have frequent trips home on the horizon, but I am thankful that I went home as often as I did in 2013.

14 comments:

Kelly (She Wears a Red Sox Cap) said...

That's such a good idea to find an apartment where the rent is less by one plane ticket!
I've noticed a running theme in a lot of your grateful posts that you are often grateful for things that you have made happen yourself :) which is a good thing of course!

Becky said...

Rent is less than a plane ticket - agree with Kelly - SO smart!

Nora said...

can't wait to see photos of your Christmas; love seeing the smiling faces of you + your nephews =)

Marlys said...

I am thankful you came home that many times this year, too! It is always wonderful to have the "brood in the nest", you could say!

Abby said...

I am glad you've been able to go home as much as you have this year -- considering the tough transition you've had!!

All our trips and vacations seem to be planned out 1-2 weeks in advance, due to both of our schedules that have no consistency. Hopefully this will be changing soon. When you can't plan ahead, tickets get assinine!

Jeanie said...

You are somewhat fortunate in that your work allows you to travel too, so even if you might not get home, you may still get away from Charlotte. You were one smart cookie when you planned that!

Stephany said...

I am really happy you have been able to go home 5 times in this year to see family and reconnect with your happy place. :) And hopefully, early 2014 brings about a one-way ticket back to Minneapolis!!

Raquelita said...

Hooray for being able to get home and visit family often! I wish it were more feasible financially and time-wise for us to do so more these days, but I'm trying to cherish what time we do have with our families.

San said...

That was so smart to plan in the budget for traveling home when you moved! I know myself how important it is to be able to visit family (even though I can't go quite as often!).

Charis Faith said...

I think you were so wise to plan it out the way that you did! I really wish I had home office contacts in my company so I could get you in the door and back home sooner!

Amber said...

Definitely a smart move to save that extra rent money towards a plane ticket home! I hope you do manage to get home sooner rather than later in 2014!

Kyria @ Travel Spot said...

I think it's less about having the finances and more about knowing how to use them / using them wisely! You should be thankful that you are financially savvy. I hate it when people say that they don't have enough money to ___, but really they are just not spending their money wisely! You are really smart with your money!

Jolene - EverydayFoodie said...

That is awesome that you've been able to come home so much - I can't imagine how you'd be doing if you weren't able to. Very fortunate indeed!

Nilsa @ SoMi Speaks said...

You had an incredible amount of foresight to financially plan for so many trips home. You're a smart cookie, though I'm sure you already know that. ;)