How the Dream Began...

I remember when Seth and I were first talking about our dream to move to paradise about three years ago. We were walking on Seven Mile Beach in the Cayman Islands talking about how happy everyone seemed. Me, being the realist, thought this is a far, far, far off dream of ours that may happen someday when we retire. Seth, being the dreamer, thought why wait until we are 65 years old to live our life?

At the time, I was working in my established career, but I knew my heart wasn't in it anymore. However, I didn't know how to get out (this is kinda a predicament for a lot of retailers). The
pay was great. The hours long. The stress astronomical. We had the house, 2 cars, 2 dogs, family nearby, and plans of babies...the American dream. But, after walking on that beach, we realized maybe that wasn't our American dream, and we didn't want to wait another 30 years to live it out like most Americans do in their life.

Fast forward to our trip to Hawaii two years ago, and that's when we really fell in love with the idea of moving to paradise. I know! I know! Everything always looks better when you are on vacation, but we were pretty convinced that we could make this dream happen. I was already thinking about what else I could do besides retail? I mean that's all I'd ever done. I'd been brainwashed to believe that was the life for me and to leave the walls of retail would lead to perpetual doom!

When we got home, we started the research of where we wanted to try first. Me, I wanted to move one place and stay for a few years. Seth, wanted to hop countries like they were carnival rides. We compromised on staying in one location for at least 1 full year before even thinking about moving. We wrote down our wish list of countries, medical care, airfare costs, weather conditions, and travelability (I know its not a word, but work with me here). After looking at everything, we decided on Panama as our first stop.

It started out as a 5 year goal to save up enough money to put in our savings for "just in case." You have to remember that I would not be able to work in a foreign country, and Seth would be the sole provider. We were taking a HUGE hit on our income. None the less, we contacted a realtor and found out that the sale of our house was going to be much more than we thought. So that 5 year plan turned into a 6 month plan. Then I started getting itchy and being the "doer" that I am, the plan went from 6 months to 3 months. Before, we knew it, we were on our way!

We sold the house 12 days after being on the market, bought our plane tickets, sold or gave away all of our furniture and possessions, sold 2 cars, packed up the dogs, crammed everything we needed into 5 suitcases, and moved to Panama. Crazy, I know! I still can't believe that I was able to make the plunge because I am definitely NOT a "jump" kinda girl. I think things out. I make spreadsheets. I talk about it. And talk about it. And talk about it. And now, here we are a year and half later on our second country and already making plans for a third in the next couple of years!

So the story continues....

I will be posting more about:

1. What's up with Panama? Good, Bad, and Ugly
2. How to import dogs to Panama
3. How to obtain medical and car insurance in Panama
4. Process for delivering a child in Panama and obtaining proper paperwork
5. What we liked and disliked about Panama
6. What's up with Mexico; Good, Ok, and Not so bad
7. How to find a place to live in Mexico when you live somewhere else
8. How to import dogs to Mexico
9. How to find a place to live if you are currently in Mexico
10. How to obtain health insurance in Mexico

If there is additional information that you are interested in learning, drop me an email or comment on the blog. I'll try to answer any information I have so that maybe your move to paradise can go as smoothly as possible.