Our Story
We’re your Average Retired American Couple
Hi. We’re Heather and Paul, and we’re probably much like your average middle-age (well later middle age) American couple. Married, divorcees, kids – lot’s of kids, traditional education, traditional careers, lots of responsibility, yadda, yadda, yadda,,,, add and quite a few more yaddas.
Paul had the traditional corporate career, if there is such a thing anymore, working 39 years for small and large tech companies. Heather is the entrepreneur having started, run, and close many business – some very successful, some not so much – such is the life of a true entrepreneur.
We have both always been health conscious realizing our health is critical to feeling good and necessary to maintain a lifestyle we enjoy. We’ve also experienced health incidents, the kinds that change lives, including life-threatening cancer, auto-immune disorders, and others. Needless to say, our seriousness regarding health in retirement came in to focus.
“It starts with “I love to cook…” It makes people happy!”
Heather S.
Heather in the Kitchen
Founder of TheSpicyApron.com and Author of 3 cookbooks
I love to cook. But doesn’t every food blogger’s “about me” start that way? I can’t imagine anyone putting in the amount of time and effort a food blog requires unless they love to cook!
Prior to TheSpicyApron, I was a successful litigation attorney – It’s where I learned the power of persuasive writing. I figured that if I could convince judges and juries to award millions of dollars to my clients, then I can probably convince you to try my hummus chicken.
I was the CEO of a large medical practice and laboratory that I helped start and run until it was sold to a national organization – It’s where I learned how to manage a bazillion things at one time. And keep a smile on my face!
I owned a tattoo shop – Now that was interesting! That’s where I learned the power of social media. I was a pharmaceutical sales rep – That’s where I learned how to “work it” in a short skirt. I used to sell cars – It’s where I learned the value of honesty. It’s always the best policy. I was a model in Hollywood (many many years ago!) – It’s where I learned how to prance around in a bikini and not feel stupid. It’s also where I learned how to take rejection. Lots of rejection! (Maybe I should have re-thought that whole bikini thing…)
I have five kids (and they all eat!) – They’re each two years apart. Numbers four and five were born while I was in law school. That’s when I learned the real meaning of organization. I don’t really remember law school. Can you blame me? I was a nationally ranked springboard diver – That’s when I learned that no matter how good you are, there’s always someone better. Learn from them.
I have had marriage failures and successes – I’ve learned WAY too many things through those to list here. But it boils down to… you get what you give. And the giving comes first.
Our pre-retirement years
Would you believe that we put together a 10 year plan leading into retirement? This of course included a very thorough financial plan to not only save money, but how to gracefully wind down our careers, as well as a strategy to earn an income outside of our investments while in retirement. Our plan also included a health strategy, as we realized that our health will enable our retirement enjoyment and longevity. Here were our general areas of focus for our retirement planning.
Retirement Priorities
We spent 100’s of hours discussing our priorities in retirements. Our goal was to make sure we were fully aware of each others dreams and ideas, where they are on the priority scale, and then deeply explored what steps were necessary to make them a reality in retirement.
Our Personal Transition Plan
We created a transition plan that over time would help us be ready at retirement time. This included our own personal financial forecast for what we needed in retirement, including income requirements and expenses specific to our retirement priorities. We also created a health achievement plan that would help us be physically and mentally ready for retirement.
Health Realization
Through our 100’s of hours of planning, it became very apparent that our health would be a huge factor in our retirement reality. We turned this away from passive hope that our health would be OK, into an active plan implementing a reasonable transition to a more healthy lifestyle. This included hours of research into how our bodies and minds change as we age, and what steps are necessary to maintain health.
Constant Learning
As we transitioned from passive retirement thoughts to more active planning, we realized we had a lot to learn, and in more areas than we ever thought. What is a true healthy diet? What exercise is necessary as we age? How will we afford the travel we want to do? And once again as the old adage says, Knowledge is Power, especially, and maybe most importantly, when it comes to our health.
And here we are…..
Yes, we’re retired and we pinch ourselves every single day for how much we love where we are and what we’re doing in retirement.
First and foremost, we love to travel and it’s one of our highest priorities in retirement. We rented our house in Arizona for two years and now travel the globe, nearly full time. We spend the six good weather months in North America traveling in our Airstream, and then three to four of the winter months traveling outside of North America where there is a beautiful world to see and other cultures to learn and appreciate. We weave in family and holiday time.
We also have stuck to our health strategy – dedicating time every day on the steps necessary to maintain our health – Food, Fitness, and Focus. Oh yeah, we never stop learning and adjusting.