A friend of mine and I were day dreaming out loud about what we would do if we won the lottery. We laughed about the trips we would take, the shoes we would buy, the peace we would feel with millions of dollars in the bank.
It got me thinking about more realistic goals. We have no bills except for our house....what if we paid off the house? How would our lives be different without a mortgage payment? We wouldn't be thinner, or better looking. The kitchen sink would still be full of dirty dishes...but it would be our sink.
With a bit of extra money, we could take a family vacation somewhere that is not grandma's house. We could take a honeymoon at last. It makes me smile to think of the small things which would be easier if we had no mortgage. We're getting close enough to daydream about it, and it got me wondering what would you do if your house belonged to you and your paycheck were yours to spend, how would you spend it? Daydream with me a bit.
14 comments:
We would buy a small farm... with enough land that our children could build homes with their own parcels. We would grow our own food, make our living with our own hands and set up future generations to be able to grow up in the country. Can you tell we're itching to get out...? :)
I want to give large donations to my favorite charities, esp. the little Catholic school my children attend. They rent space from a church and struggle to get by. I'd also love to give it to Catholic SISTERS, St. Vincent de Paul all of our pro-life clinics. A family trip (that is not in an RV) would be a dream. A bigger house might be nice too... I'd also probably want to adopt more children, but don't tell my husband! He he he.
Ooh, good question! This might sound silly, but I would go out to eat whenever I wanted. And I would just love being able to buy things we need ("need" being debatable.. things like curtains and a new bed spread) without a second thought. Then, if we really had lots of money and all those initial needs were met, I'd want a big house in a nice neighborhood. And, because I should really add something that's not entirely selfish, if we're talking lottery money here, I'd buy crisis pregnancy centers ultrasound machines. I think that'd be a really direct way to help.
I would make sure dh gets his dream kitchen and dream bathroom. I would hire a professional organizer, too, and maybe a chef. I would eat out a lot. And, I would pay off bills for my friends and family, help good Catholic charities and my parish, and make sure my kids can graduate college with little or no debt. :)
I also always wanted to give money anonymously to struggling Catholic families who sacrifice to have many children.
We would have TONS of kids, and adopt some too!!! And I would buy a Chai Tea Latte from Panera Bread every day :)
We've been married for 36 years and paid off the house while our 4 kids were in high school. We sent them to Catholic Colleges and now we are able to give 11% to charities. So much fun to write those checks! (Next year we are hoping to up it to 12%)
Trips are nice and we do take some, but we're more concerned with the final trip...heaven.
It would go to college tuition for the ones that dream about the small, Catholic (and very expensive) liberal arts schools, all the cool camps and activities we can't afford, probably a horse and definitely a pot so we would have $$ to help out friends, family and strangers in need. So often you hear of someone who has had a run of bad luck or blindsided by tragedy and you think ""if only....."
I don't even dare to dream about this. We are doing a major finance overhaul (getting away from CC debt) and trying to pay down loans. The husband thinks we are doing fine but I am very dissatisfied with the money game. Maybe it is the pregnancy but I'm longing for financial freedom... if only we could sell the house and move back in with my parents. NOPE, I'd rather be in debt. Seriously, I'd probably take the kids on a yearly nice vacation and put the rest towards their college, but still have them work for it so they appreciate it and take it seriously. -Loretta
What I would do if I won the lottery and what I would do if I didn't have mortgage payments are two different questions to me (large chunk of money versus a small chunk "saved" every month). If we didn't have mortgage, I would do some more activities with the kids (but not too many because of time). I would tithe more. But mostly I would save for retirement because we have very little saved :(
First, I'd pay off my house and then I'd buy all the books on my wish list and a whole closet full of new towels. :)
If I won the Lottery, I would (try) to give away the 2, way too many miles, minivans we have and get Brand new shiny ones. Retire early, (I do not like rotating all 3 shift)
I would save some right away for my kids' HS and college funds, give some to some of our close families that have lots of kids and are money strapped; I would hire a tutor for my kids; I would hire a housekeeper/2 times a week!!!
I would sign my family up for a cruise trip and bring along babysitters; I would buy a few laptops for my kids....
how's that for starters?!?!?! haaa haaa!!!!
God bless!!!~~~~!!!.......Mary
OH YES! how could I forget~!?? I would look into adoption and give some $ to friends/family that I know want to adopt too but dont' have enough!!!
God bless!!!~~~~!!!......Mary!
If we are going to dream, let's dream big!
If I won the lottery, I would first pay off all our debts. Then, I'd make sure that my in-laws never had to go into a nursing home.
The rest is gravy.
If I didn't have a mortgage payment? I'd try to save part of it each month, but with inflation like it is...
Post a Comment