Choices

So, my "little" brother (he's 6.5 years younger than I am) is house hunting. I'm happy for him, really I am. I found myself getting a little jealous today as he described the house he and his girlfriend (I call her the girls' future Aunt L) are planning to buy. It's in a nicer, more affluent suburb than the one we live in, and the house is a good $50,000 more than our house was when we bought it in 2004. It is 800 square feet larger than my home. He and his girlfriend have a huge amount to put down as a down payment. We had next to nothing to put down when we bought our home! As he described the house with excitement and a smile in his voice, I found myself getting more and more grumpy about the whole thing. I was unhappy about my little brother's good fortune. And thinking why in the heck A and I didn't pick professions that pay more?!? I often feel like we're just getting by and never have money to get ahead.

But then I thought about the amount of money we spent to bring our girls home. True, had we not adopted our 2 girls in less than 3 years, we would be a lot better off financially than we are now. But then we wouldn't have our girls... Obviously, there is no question which life I would chose if it were between being better off financially or having my daughters!

So, the jealousy in my heart about my brother is gone, and I just feel happy for him and proud that he's ready to take this next big step in his life-- becoming a home owner. I guess it is all about perspective.