We’re So Glad You’re Here!

Join Us as We Find Enjoyment in Our Semi-Retired Life: At Home, Venturing Out, and in Our Relationships

We’re Bob and Liz. We’ve been married 40-ish years and lived in Orlando, Florida most of that time. We recently relocated to a smaller, less-congested community north of the city. Our goal is to be closer to the beach one day.

We have three adult children, two sons and a daughter. No grandchildren yet, but we do have a grand-dog, a grand-snake, and two grand-tarantulas!

Bob has worked in sales and marketing most of his life. He is gifted at drawing people to himself and loves to tell long stories. As the old saying goes, he has never met a stranger.

Liz is an event coordinator and a writer. She is a detail person to the point of being a perfectionist, which often drives Bob crazy.

Enjoying Our Semi-Retired Lifestyle

Our daily life is pretty average. We’re at the age where we qualify for Social Security and Medicare. We’re still working, but we’ve cut back on our work schedules and have reached a point where we have a little more flexibility.

Like many couples our age, we don’t have a perfect retirement fund. We worry about whether we’ll end up working at Wal-Mart when we’re 80. But we’re burned out with full-time jobs, and the work environment is a whole lot different than it used to be. We’d love to completely retire, but we can’t afford to yet. So we’re working on making the most of our “semi-retired” life.

We believe it takes intentional effort to experience the fun and relaxed lifestyle we’ve all looked forward to in our middle age. Our goal with this blog is to share what we learn as we find ways to enjoy our golden years with a little bit of free time and not a lot of money.

Here Are Some Areas We Plan To Address:

At Home: Everyday stuff, from ‘cooking for two’ recipes to things to do when we’re bored

Venturing Out: Day trips, date nights, hobbies, free resources… anything we venture out to do!

Relationships: Marriage, kids, family and friends – relating to others in middle-age and beyond

And Everything Else:

  • “Remember When” – Memories of the good old days
  • “Grace Notes” – Inspiration and encouragement for a peaceful, joyous life
  • “Miscellany” – Anything else that grabs our attention or we want to share

Fun Facts About Us:

  • Bob served on a nuclear submarine that was based in Holy Loch, Scotland while in the Navy. (We’re still trying to figure out how he passed the psych tests to qualify for the program!)
  • Liz was the first baby born in Minneapolis, Minnesota on January 1, 1960. She and her mother made the front page headlines in the local papers. Her “fifteen minutes of fame” were the first fifteen minutes of her life.
  • When Bob was in elementary school, he beat out six girls in his class to play the role of the jack-in-the-box in the Christmas play. His famous singing line was: “Ho ho! Hello! Are you surprised… that I am living in a box?”
  • Liz learned to catch nightcrawlers with her bare hands, make a fly buzz around pulling an ad banner, and play an instrument made from a lily pad while spending the summers at her family cabin in northern Minnesota.
  • Bob was the winner in a recent chili cook-off, and Liz once won first place for her peanut butter pie recipe.