We had a very good August. The first week Tim and I took a five day trip to Traverse City, Michigan to visit Tim's GiGi. We arrived just in time to be with her for Chris' anniversary and we spent the next few days relaxing and spending quality time with her since it had been too long since we had seen her. It was a wonderful long weekend because she is such a gracious host, and because she loves us so much. It was nice just to be with her and take care of her for a little while. We missed her so much, and we still do. My mom's one year anniversary was on August 31st, which was a day of sadness for us, but we all got through it. We also moved into a new apartment at the end of August and we dealt with a few car issues (mine) and got things sorted out. It was a good thing since we were able to get a good head on our shoulders. We also got things moving for the next year and plans for next year.
September was a pretty good month for us too. I turned 26, Tim and I celebrated our 3rd wedding anniversary, and it was an overall good month. Not a lot of other things happened during that month, but we've been working hard at paying down our debt and budgeting for the next few years, including getting me a new car, amongst other things.
October and November were much the same as September, minus the anniversaries and birthdays. Our lives are keeping things moving and we are feeling good about where things are at. I don't know if I mentioned it but we totally paid off one of our loans earlier this year, so we have been planning to pay off the other by Tim's birthday next year. The last few months we had been noticing that while we're paying more than the minimums, the excess was NOT being put towards the principle like it should have been. Instead it was being put towards the interest, and that made us pretty angry. So we just paid the whole thing off a few months before. It made our budget tight for a few months but it was worth it.
For Thanksgiving, my dad and brother came to visit us for the holiday. We had a great time, and the weather was just perfect for them! We had a good meal on Thanksgiving and we went to the Mall of America on Saturday just to have a little fun. I think they had a good time. I know I certainly did. It was really great to see them and reconnect, so I think it was fully worth it.
David liked that there was an amusement park inside the Mall of America. We got some tickets to go on one of the roller coasters there. It was surprisingly fun and we had a great time on the ride. It was quite short but entirely worth every penny. It made for a good story to tell. And so that was our holiday. It was the best days I've had personally in a long time.
So that's what we've been up to.
