Detour

Plan A

Marshall finishes degree and gets job in or near Austin.

Sarah becomes a SAHM when applicable.

Pay as much of our house off as possible.

Move from Austin to somewhere with seasons (Idaho, Oregon, or Colorado) around 2019.

Plan B

Marshall finishes degree and gets job away from Austin in Texas.

Sell house and buy new house close to Marshall's job.

Sarah becomes a SAHM when applicable.

Marshall works for 4-5 years at job, then we move to somewhere with seasons (see options above) around 2020.

We've been talking more and more about what would be best for Marshall and our family once he graduates from Texas State University sometime in 2014. If he pursues the foundry industry, we don't foresee being able to stay in Austin due to the lack of employment opportunities. How would we feel about moving many years before we thought we would in Plan A? What are the drawbacks? What are the benefits? Do we really want to stay in Texas longer than necessary? By necessary I mean Marshall gets free college while in Texas, so we would not want to move out of state before he is through. I am yearning to get back to winter.

We feel that Marshall landing a job with perfect working conditions--minimal stress, constantly changing responsibilities, stimulating environment, etc--is extremely important to us. If we have to move in order to achieve this, we're not going to put up a fight. Would I love to hightail it to Idaho and build a permanent nest in the woods by Lake Coeur d'Alene? Of course! Is it worth Marshall getting valuable job experience and staying in Texas and delaying such a move? More than likely. These thoughts have been heavy on my heart lately, and I just wanted to share with you a possible detour that we may take.