How our Plan Came to Be

In early August 2015, Tony's cousin posted an article from Forbes magazine on FB that intrigued me.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/vanessamcgrady/2015/08/11/millennial-sisters/?utm_campaign=Forbes&utm_source=FBPAGE&utm_medium=social&utm_channel=Investing&linkId=16215773

After days of thinking about it, I brought it up to my sister and my husband one evening, and we briefly discussed how it might work if we tried it.  Tony has quite a bit of student loan debt, and working together as a family to help each other just makes so much sense!  After talking about the details, we quickly decided that it WOULDN'T work, as none of us have a large home, and we would have to rent too large of a house to fit all the family members, and the rent would eliminate the potential savings. =(  I thought I let the idea go, but ended up mentioning it to my mom the next night.  She thought it sounded like an incredible plan, but that was as far as the conversation went.  When I got off the phone, the thought came to me!  I asked Tony "why don't we look at using Mom and Dad's house and do this with my entire family?"  His reponse?  "Let's DO IT!"  I was floored, but at the same time, it all made sense.  Tony grew up with LOTS of family around him, and attributes that to the man he's become.  He's ALWAYS dreamed about living with our family, and allowing our kids to experience the same thing.  I guess I just didn't ever think of it from the perspective of my family and in IL!  (He grew up and his entire family is in TN)
God had brought this option in front of us, and He worked it out from there.  I called Meredith, (my youngest sister, who current lives in TN near us) and she was all for it!  She graduates in May 2016 with her Master's Degree, and had been struggling because she was feeling called to move back to Roselle (suburb of Chicago), but she didn't want to move away from my family.  She has significant student loan debt, and some other debt as well, and paying it off quickly is a huge motivator.  I then called Mom, and she was all for it!  She retires in May 2016, and was in the process of figuring out finances once she has a reduction in income.  She knew she would have to get a part time job. I called Jill (middle sister who lives in Roselle with my parents already) and she was all for it.  She loves being around my kids and likes the energy my family brings to the household.  I called Dad, and he was all for it.  He loves the idea of becoming debt-free so quickly, and would love to pay down the mortgage quicker!  Arahn (9) and Alannah (8) are both very excited to move to Roselle too.  They love visiting Grandma, Grandpa, and Auntie Jill and cannot wait for the new experience.  Suddenly, this idea that intrigued me was becoming a possibility!!