One of the Best Things

One of the things that led up to our CH7 decision was the series of layoffs we both experienced.

However, the most recent layoff was one of the best things that could have happened to us.

I was pregnant and two weeks away from my due date when my husband got laid off. We spent those weeks playing cribbage, finalizing stuff around the house, cuddling, and really enjoying our time together. It was at the end of the year and there weren't many companies to send resumes to or temp jobs to apply for. So, we decided to enjoy the time.

Part of the reason we were able to do this was because the layoff before that one resulted in a small severance package. Between that, my hubby's disability, and unemployment, we were okay for three months.

Hubby resolved to start looking in earnest in mid-January and we settled in to wait.

I had my baby. A homebirth, in case anyone's interested. My daughter was born just before Christmas.

The next ten weeks were amazing. My husband fell in love with our baby and became a doting father. He helped me recover from the birth, held my hand through the difficulties I had with breastfeeding (moderate-to-severe mastitis in both breasts!), became a whiz at changing diapers (pun intended), and bonded like crazy with her.

He got a job offer right before our savings ran out.

Notice that there is not a "regrets" label on this post. We are so thankful for this time. Yes, we would be in a financially better place if we could have used our savings to pay off debt or put a bigger down payment on our home, but in hindsight the time together was far more valuable. Not all layoffs are bad things. Sometimes they're a gift.