Making Memories Without Waiting for Retirement

A few weekends ago, my husband and I packed up the camper and headed out to celebrate our 24th wedding anniversary. Nothing extravagant. Just a weekend away, some time outdoors, and a chance to get away from the usual routine for a little while.

And, that's pretty much my idea of a great weekend.

We've always loved being outdoors. My husband grew up spending time camping by the river, and I've always loved traveling and exploring new places. Give us a scenic drive, a campground, and somewhere to sit outside in the evening, and we're usually pretty happy.

Of course, getting away isn't always quite as relaxing as it sounds when you're packing everything up. There's the food to plan, things to load, dogs to think about, and the inevitable moment when you wonder what you've forgotten. I'm pretty sure camping involves a whole lot of work just so you can go somewhere else and do absolutely nothing. Haha.

But once we're there, it's worth it.

One of the things I've come to appreciate about camping is that we don't have to have a packed schedule to enjoy ourselves. Sometimes we go exploring, find a little town to wander through, or take a drive just to see what's around. Other times, we spend most of the weekend at the campground, cooking, reading, or sitting outside.

On our anniversary trip, we had actually planned to spend more time exploring Harpers Ferry. But between some closures and figuring out where we could take the dogs, things didn't quite work out the way we'd imagined. So we ended up spending more time at the campground instead.

And you know what? It was still a really nice weekend.

A few years ago, I probably would have been frustrated that we didn't get to do everything we'd planned. But lately, I've been trying to appreciate the fact that we got away at all. We had time together, we were outdoors, and there wasn't a long list of chores waiting for us every time we turned around.

That was enough.

We've been working pretty hard on paying off debt, with the goal of being in a much better financial position when my husband retires from the Air Force. It's something we've been focused on for a while, and I spend a lot of time thinking about how we can make our money work a little harder for us.

Sometimes that means making extra payments instead of spending money on things we don't really need. Sometimes it means deciding to stay home rather than eat out, or finding ways to enjoy things we already have.

But I've also realized that I don't want every decision we make for the next several years to revolve around how much faster we can pay something off.

Because I know myself. If I get too focused on a goal, it's easy for me to feel like anything that doesn't move us closer to it is something we shouldn't be doing.

And that's not really how I want us to live.

Last year, we took a road trip out west, and I still think about it all the time. We saw places I'd wanted to visit for years, drove through some absolutely beautiful scenery, and had those moments where you just sit there looking around because you can't quite believe how beautiful everything is.

I remember the wide-open spaces, the mountains, the trees, and how much I loved being somewhere completely different from our everyday routine. There are still days when I wish I could pack up and head right back out there.

I'm so glad we didn't wait until retirement to take that trip.

That's not to say we're going to start planning expensive vacations every few months.

We still have bills to pay, financial goals we're working toward, and plenty of responsibilities at home. But I'm learning that there's a difference between being intentional with our money and feeling like we aren't allowed to enjoy any of it.

And thankfully, making memories doesn't always require a big trip.

Sometimes it's a weekend at a campground close to home. Sometimes it's packing lunch and heading out for a hike. Sometimes it's taking the scenic route instead of the highway, stopping somewhere we've never been, or sitting outside watching the sunset.

We bought our camper this summer, and while it was another financial decision we had to think through, I'm excited about the opportunities it gives us to get away more often. We don't need fancy resorts or elaborate plans. We can bring our own food, cook at the campground, spend time outside, and enjoy being somewhere different for a few days.

Now, I won't pretend camping is free. Between the camper, campsite fees, gas, and all those little things you suddenly decide you need, it can definitely add up. And somehow there's always another camping gadget that looks like it would make life easier. Haha.

But we're figuring out what works for us, what we actually use, and how to make the most of what we already have.

I think that's becoming a pretty common theme in our lives lately.

We're trying to be more thoughtful about where our money goes, but also about how we spend our time. Because both matter, and neither is something we get back once it's gone.

I don't know exactly what retirement will look like for us. I hope it includes plenty of traveling, camping, and exploring places we haven't been yet. But I also hope that when we get there, we have years of memories to look back on instead of a long list of things we kept putting off.

For now, we'll keep making our extra debt payments, planning for the future, and finding little ways to enjoy the time in between.

And if that means spending a weekend sitting outside the camper with a good book, a cup of coffee, and nowhere in particular we need to be, that sounds pretty wonderful to me.

We might not have everything paid off yet, and we definitely don't have everything figured out. But we're making progress, making memories, and trying to enjoy the life we're living right now.

And I think that's a pretty good place to start.

Here's to taking the drive, finding somewhere beautiful, and not waiting for someday.