Looking ahead to 2018...

Looking back at 2017

This year has been a challenging one for many reasons.  We started the year with our two new children (still in foster care) having just moved in our house in late 2016.  We had numerous social worker visits for seven months until finalization proceedings could begin. The adoption of Br@yden and K@celynn was finalized on August 1st.

Br@yden had a total of five hospitalizations mainly for breathing complications due to his mitochondrial DNA disorder.  One hospitalization was an adenectomy.  He also had his G-tube replaced with a GJ-tube.  Because of Br@yden's disorder, we have gotten to know his numerous pediatric specialists (neorologist, gastroenterologist, pulmonogist, ENT specialist, physiatrist, cardiologist, opthomologist).

Getting used to these two additions has been extremely challenging for our family, and has stretched us in ways that were unimaginable.  Here we are at the end of the year, and we still have a long ways to go.

As a result of this adoption, we lost friends that just didn't understand why we were doing what we were doing.  We also gained new friends that are supportive of our situation.  We switched churches as well late in the year.  Unfortunately, the church that we had been attending for many years was not supportive of our adoption.  It was not equipped to minister to a child like Br@yden.  Numerous folks that we had regularly interacted with there for years stopped talking to us.  Luckily, we have found a new church that is equipped to minister to our entire family, including Br@yden.

In late August, we traveled with all six kids down to South Florida to our favorite Gulf Coast destination. This was a much-needed time away for all of us.

We spent the entire year debt-free and didn't make a single debt payment to anyone (with the exception of Seth's $1.50 library fine).  It's been a great feeling to track our progress as we head towards financial independence.

Our major home project consisted of pulling out all of our flooring (carpets and hardwoods) and installed all new flooring upstairs and downstairs.  It took nearly five months, but it's finally complete.

Looking ahead to 2018

Here are my goals for our family this year:

1.  Step up savings and investments significantly.

2.  Focus on my family and continue to acclimate our two new children into our family.

3.  Read thirty books and track them at Goodreads.com

4.  Get back in the Bible and read it again cover-to-cover (archaeological Bible that Kristie gave me a long time ago).

5.  Increase passive income streams.

6.  (Carryover from 2017 Goals) Take steps towards writing our adoption journey.