Fa la la la la, la la la la!!!!!!!!! WOOOHOOOOO!

Well guys, it’s official!Β  I have decided NOT to return to my sweet part-time shift-work gig meaning Nic and I have both retired early!

Our Back Story

First off, we know this post will likely come off as a brag to some readers, but we truly are writing this (and every blog post on here really) to help inspire and motivate others. Here’s a bit of our backstory to see how we’ve been able to pull this off.

Nic stopped working back in 2018 at the age of 30 when our daughter was born and my last day of work was back in June 2021 at the age of 35 when our son was born. I’ve since been on parental leave for over a year (earning $357/week – woop woop!) and recently made the decision to not return back.Β  The timing has worked out pretty perfectly for us both to be able to take 15-18 months off when each kiddo arrived (thank you Canada!) and then not head back to work.

We are so so thankful of the work we put in during our 20s to be able to create the life we live today in our 30s.Β  While we didn’t really know what we were doing back in the day, we understood the importance of a high savings rate and not letting lifestyle creep interfere with our long term plans.Β  We are also incredibly fortunate to have been able to participate in the upward bull market since we started our careers (2009 for Court and 2013 for Nic).Β  We are also so incredibly thankful that we’ve both been able to test the FIRE waters out during our long parental leaves to confirm that this is indeed the lifestyle we want to live.

We started off with over $100,000 USD in student loan debt combined ($65,000 for me and $40,000 for Nic).Β  It took us 9 years to pay off the debt and reach the $1,000,000 net worth mark.Β  Β Our net worth is now in the ~$1.65M range and we have a passive income portfolio of ~$1.15M. We didn’t receive any sort of inheritance – we simply worked hard and were boring long term investors (simple concept to grasp but very hard for many to actually implement).

On average, we earned $113,000 per year combined between the two of us from our employers (when we were living in the States this number was in USD and when we were in Canada this was in CAD).Β  We also house hacked and had rental income coming in for multiple years (2012-2017 and 2020-2022). Nic worked for a total of 4 years and I worked for 12 years. I transitioned to part time work in 2019 – and would highly recommend it!

I first discovered FIRE back in 2011/2012 thanks to a co-worker at the time.Β  I already had a frugal mindset and had aggressively paid off my student loans and was saving up for a downpayment so the timing was perfect as my next question was “now what do I do with this excess cash?”.Β  Enter, index funds, travel hacking, house hacking, etc.Β  We travelled to over 25 countries and then in 2015 we took the plunge to both quit our stable jobs in Florida, travel for a bit (all over the US, Canada, Iceland, and Norway) with the intention to figure things out later in the year with an eventual move to the Calgary area planned.Β  We then added two kiddos to our clan and our “why” shifted from travelling the world to being able to be present parents and spend time with our kids.

Was It A Hard Decision?

Yes and no.

It is extremelyΒ rare to have a part-time job in my field.Β  The only other person who I knew of who had one was my co-worker, Z, who I was splitting this shift with.Β  And the only reason she was able to work part time was because of health reasons.Β  Her other half of the schedule was being filled by OT pay from other team members.Β  Then in I swooped to “save the day” (company no longer had to pay OT and less people feeling burnt out having to constantly cover shifts) by taking over her other half of the shift schedule.

Unfortunately, back in January she passed away unexpectedly in her sleep at 45.Β  This was the same month when one of Nic’s best friends passed away in a freak ski accident at 33 and Nic’s brother-in-law was diagnosed with Stage 3 cancer at 41.

As awful as these back-to-back-to-back events were, it was the reminder we needed that life is indeed precious and short.Β  And we are not going to waste it on One More Year Syndrome. The goal posts can forever move further and further back, but we’re not going to let that fear stop our plans.

So yes it was hard to give up a very rare opportunity to work part-time but no, we need to live the life we’ve created on our own terms.Β  Now.

Here’s a brief run down of what went on this year work-wise:

January: Z passes away

March: My boss contacted me to let me know that when I return, it would be for a full-time spot not part-time as the part-time gig was only created/needed because of Z.Β  He told me to take some time to think it over as he knows how much I enjoyed the part-time setup with the kids.

April: I put on my big girl pants and told my boss I was not looking to take on a full-time role and was not coming back.Β  I wasΒ antsy throughout the whole call, but I did it!

May: My boss calls me for a quick “Mother’s Day Chat” to let me know he spoke to his bosses boss and they created a part-time spot for me to come back to.Β  Happy Mother’s Day. Bye!Β  Uh… what? Noooo.Β  Is this a sign?Β  Am I supposed to go back?Β  Noooo!

June: My boss gets in touch to go over mid-year goals (which is odd since I’m off but whatevs).Β  Now I have to haveΒ another chat to tell him I’m not coming back.Β  And I amΒ SO non-confrontational!Β  So what do I do?Β  I panic and the words don’t come out!Β  I head into the living room afterwards and told Nic “I couldn’t do it!” and she quickly shouted “WHAT do you mean!?!”

July: After multiple hours of editing, I send my boss and email stating that I am humbled that they created a part-time position for me, but I am not returning.

August: I met up with my boss at the office to hand in my work phone and badge.Β  We left the door open to possibly returning part-time in a few years. We celebrated with a meal out at Finn’s favourite place – our local Vietnamese restaurant.

PHEW.

It was honestly so taxing and exhausting from my end that I didn’t even feel like celebrating after sending that email out in July when it all became “official”.Β  Instead, I felt sorry for leaving a gap in the schedule for my boss to have to fill.Β  Now I know I am just a number in the corporate world and turnover is very common on my team, but I still felt bad.Β  By the time August rolled around and it was time to turn things in the jitters calmed and I’m back to feeling very excited and zen about it all.

Here’s our celebratory selfie in August before driving to downtown Calgary to hand in my work supplies:

What Are We Giving Up?

The biggest thing of course is a steady paycheque.Β  I was earning $56,000 as my base salary for my part-time gig.Β  I also received annual bonuses that happened to be well above this annual pay the past 2 years (which I was NOT expecting).Β  I also was able to receive the same health/financial benefits as my full-time counterparts.Β  For us, the highlights included 4 massages per person per year and 70% coverage for dental, vision, and prescription costs.Β  My company was also contributing a small amount each month into my DC (defined contribution) pension plan – which currently has ~$8,000 in it from 1.5 years of part-time employment.Β  Nothing huge but still something.Β  Lastly, last year I received RSUs (registered stock units) as part of my bonus pay which means I’m giving up on $13,000 in March 2023 and another $13,000 in March 2024 for not sticking around until those payout milestones. It’s pretty hard to walk away from $13,000 when all it would take is 6 months back in the office.Β  But, we know there is more to life than letting work drag on (aka the proverbial golden handcuffs).

Are We Worried?

We’re now entering the wild wild west of early retirement.Β  We’re starting things off in a recession where the stock market has plunged ~20% during the first half of the year.Β  YIKES.Β  We’re starting things off during record high inflation.Β  WOWZA.Β  We’re starting things off with a war going on, a pandemic still ongoing, and energy prices skyrocketing. SHIIIIT.Β  We’re starting things off during a time that most similarly replicates the 1970-1980s when the 4% rule didn’t look so hot. UH OH.

And guess what? We’re actually feeling really confident with everything.

Pardon me? Why?

First, we have been super conservative with our figures. Even though we only spent ~$40,000 last year, our investment portfolio of ~$1,150,000 allows us to withdraw $46,000 using the “4% Rule” and our current spend is closer to the 3.4% withdrawal range.Β  This gives us a decent amount of wiggle room for one-off spends that will come up over time. When I calculate our “Fat FIRE” number it’s around $60,000. I’m sure there will be some years where we do end up spending that much but the majority of the time I’m estimating we will be spending well under $46,000 and very likely closer to $40,000.

That $1,150,000 portfolio value also assumes everything is in CAD (the currency we spend), yet a large majority of our investments are in USD.Β  If we convert the USD portion to CAD based off today’s exchange rate, we are looking at a portfolio size of ~$1.4M CAD and we are well under a 3% withdrawal rate. Using the “4% rule”, this puts is closer to our “Fat FIRE” figure which we know we are not going to consistently be spending.

We also built in some cash into our plans so we don’t have to sell in a down market (we are holding 2-3 years of spending in cash).Β  We plan to implement a rising equity glide path – thank you Wade Pfau and Michael Kitces! – where we are currently sitting ~80% stocks and will be shifting up to 90+% over time.Β  While a lot of it is more of a psychological benefit, spending from our cash cushion provides a buffer asset during these first few years so we do not need to sell from our stock portfolio if the markets are down to start things off (ahem 2022).

Additionally, during these first ~17 years of early retirement when one or both of our kids are under 18, we will be receiving Canada Child Benefit (CCB).Β  When playing around with the online calculators, starting in July 2024 we should be receiving close to $18,000 in tax-free money from the CRA between CCB and a few other federal and provincial benefits we qualify for.Β  This is WILD.Β  Absolutely wild and this clearly drops our withdrawal rate even more. If we factor in the USD/CAD exchange rate and CCB, were sitting at a withdrawal rate of ~1.5% even in this depressed market.Β  And then once CCB is gone, that also likely means that kiddo related expenses are gone/lower too so we should see our annual spend drop around that timeframe too. Please note that we are not relying on these external benefits to make our FIRE plans work, they simply are icing on the cake.

[Note for anyone interested in learning more about CCB, this is the topic I am focusing on at the Canadian Financial Summit!Β  I will be posting about the summit in more detail next week, but if you’re interested in attending this free event you can sign up here.]

Lastly, what any FIRE naysayer doesn’t understand is that we are not robots.Β  We are flexible humans who are not going to see our portfolio go down, down, down to $0 and shrug and say “ah crap, it didn’t work”.

For the majority of retirees who follow the 4% rule, the opposite usually happens where their final portfolio value is actually higher than their starting value even when withdrawing each year.

But let’s say we enter this crazy Great Depression era where the portfolio can’t keep up with our spend.Β  We are very capable of earning $5,000 each ($10,000 total) from a fun part-time side gig if we want to (and likely will someday – I’ve got my eyes on you casual position at the library and Nic is eyeing seasonal lawn mowing for our town).Β  This $10k may not sound like much, but when your spend is ~$40k, that’s 25% of your expenses covered which is HUGE and likely a make or break for your portfolio to recover.Β  Or, worst case scenario – Nic and I have to go back to work for a few years to make enough to cover our annual spend while we coast and let our portfolio rebound back.Β  Based off our current spend, that would mean both earning $20,000/year.Β  Again, this can be accomplished by a low-stress job.

There is this weird stigma in the FIRE community that if you retire and then end up making money afterwards that you’re a fraud, or phony, or did it wrong.Β  But the reality is that most people who are able to pull of early retirement are your very organized type-A go-getters and their brains will find something to do – be it paid or unpaid. We know that we can’t turn off the hustle button just because we no longer have to work.Β  For reference, last year we made ~$5,500 on the side from various gigs we’ve done (coaching, blog related stuff, selling items on FB marketplace, etc).

Also, not all of our spending is considered “fixed”. About 40% of our spending is what we consider discretionary spending and thus we have the flexibility to also reduce our spending if sequence of returns risk (SORR) is shaping up to not be in our favour during these first few years.

Dave from Strong Money Australia recently wrote a great post on your “personal flex rate” which I thought was a great read. After going through this FIRE journey ourselves, I wholeheartedly agree with him about backing down from your stressful full-time position even prior to reaching your FIRE number.

[Note, this is the topic that Brad from ChooseFI and I recently dug into, so if this interests you, be sure to check out our upcoming ChooseFI podcast episode! Will let you know when it’s released.]

Are we anticipating needing to do any of this?Β  No.Β  With our extremely low withdrawal rate, we should beΒ more than fine.Β  But these are our “worst case scenarios” and guess what?Β  They still beat what most adults do… work full time!

What Are We Gaining Instead?

We’re gaining freedom.Β  We’re gaining choices.Β  We’re gaining optionality.Β  And we’re damn excited for it all.

We’re gaining TIME to spend how we want.Β  For us, that means being involved parents.Β  It means getting to witness many of their “firsts”.Β  It means being best friends with our kiddos and creating life-long relationships with them.Β  It means letting the kid in us shine through.

It means being able to escape the Alberta winters and slow travel to different warm regions for a few months each year… Portugal, we’re coming for ya this winter!

It means having the privilege to be able to explore alternative schooling options for our kids if that’s something we all want to pursue.Β  Homeschool? Unschool? Worldschool? Hybrid learning? These are all routes we can consider because we are no longer strapped to a desk.

It means shaping our days however we want.Β  Zoo on a Monday? Yup. Skiing on a Tuesday?Β  Right on.Β  Science centre on a Wednesday? Let’s go.Β  Hiking on a Thursday?Β  Which one?Β  Swimming on a Friday?Β  For sure.Β  Hibernating on the weekends when the majority of the population is trying to cram everything in for the next week?Β  Absolutely.

What’s Next?

We still haven’t told many of our family and friends what’s really going on.Β  Instead, we’ve been telling them that I’m not returning to work and instead switching to be a financial coach.Β  This *technically* isn’t a lie as I do coach people (and truly enjoy it) but little do they know how few hours I actually spend coaching others… I try to limit it to 5-10 clients a year! We thiiiink they are catching on that we really don’t work anymore. Eeep!

Even though this is the “official” start to our family’s post-FIRE life, we have both been living the RE lifestyle for awhile now.Β  So really, it’s more of the same of what we’ve been doing.Β  It’s a bit anti-climatic really haha.

We are now *officially* transitioning occupations from nurse and energy trader to teachers.Β  We want to be the best teachers for our kiddos and for our surrounding community.Β  We want to help others.Β  We want to use our time wisely.Β  We want to be life long learners.

Most recently, our time is being spent researching alternative schooling options for our kiddos and also researching where to travel this winter.Β  I have a feeling that these two topics will remain at the forefront for a few years.

It’s exciting to see how our passions can (and will) evolve over the years. It is interesting to witness this firsthand in that FIRE has been aΒ huge part of my life for the last 10+ years and now that we’ve reached the holy grail, I can see how my interest is fading – I’m more focused on simplifying things from a financial standpoint – and shifting my focus on other things.

I heard a long time ago FIRE being defined as “financial independence rewired early”.Β  I really like that R being “rewired”.Β  We’ve escaped the rat race.Β  We’ve figured out that living a contrarian lifestyle can be a good thing.Β  We’ve rewired our brains to stop chasing the next shiny new thing.Β  We’ve figured out that a simple life really can be a happy life.Β  We understand what it is that we, personally, truly value and focus on that.

So there we have it – a mushy post highlighting all our thoughts and feelings.Β  We areΒ so excited for this next chapter and looking forward to seeing what’s next in store for us!

Any additional questions for us??Β  Anything you were hoping I would have covered but missed?Β  More than happy to do a follow up post if there are additional topics you’d like me to cover.

Support This Blog

If you liked this article and want more content like this, please support this blog by sharing it.Β  Not only does it help spread the FIRE, but it lets me know what content you find beneficial.Β  Writing is NOT my strong suit and it honestly takes me hours to write each post so the more encouragement the better!Β  Engaging in the comments below keeps me motivated.Β  You can also support this blog by subscribing to receive emails anytime a new post is published.Β  Thank you FImily!

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42 thoughts on “It’s Happening! We Reached FIRE and Retired Early In Our 30s!”

  1. Mary almost on fire

    Congratulations on making the leap!! Your plan is rock solid, and as you mention, when one can accomplish this, we can always find solutions should worst case scenarios arise! Wishing you all the best , and hoping to read more of you!

    1. Thank you Mary! We’ve tried to be super cautious about it all, but yes, staying flexible just in case πŸ™‚

    1. Thank you ladies! Exactly, we are very happy to have been so focused in our 20s to allow this next chapter to actually pan out.

  2. Congratulations to you both! Long time coming but still must feel so good!

    We’re also setting our sights on Portugal this winter. My husband turns 30 in January so we’re hoping to see Lisbon & Porto!

  3. Congratulations on your decision to take back your time. I love it! I am retired and I am not even sure how I had the time for a full time job. I am loving the flexibility to do what I want, when I want.

    1. Thank you!! Haha right! Our days are FULL, I truly do not understand that “won’t you be bored” pushback. So glad to hear you’re enjoying all the flexibility too!

  4. Congratulations!!!!
    Just want to add that your blog is one of my favorite ones so I will encourage you in person when we meet in Portugal in a few months πŸŽ‰

    1. Aww thank you Laura!! We did shift our plans a bit (well let’s be honest they were changing daily for a few weeks) and we won’t be staying Setubal but we definitely want to meet you while over there!!

  5. So proud of you guys πŸ₯°. It’s been a blast seeing you guys get to this point. Well done and well deserved. So keen to see how everything unfolds over the next few years. πŸ™ŒπŸ™Œ

  6. I already knew that you would FIRE this year, but it’s still super exciting that you’ve finally made it official! Hooray, congrats, so happy for you, Nic, Finn and Parker! πŸŽ‰

    I wish my husband could’ve FIREd when our kids were little like yours (versus the independent, nearly full-grown teens they are now)! I’ll just have to live vicariously through you and Nic. πŸ˜‰

    Congrats again, my friend! I couldn’t be happier for you.

    1. Thank you friend! We’re now on the other side of the rainbow with you πŸ™‚

      It really is amazing to have us all home together while the kiddos are young. But then you hear allllllll the strange things they say!

  7. All the best to the whole family. Hopefully I will see you out this way again or maybe a visit your way if I can ever make that happen, oddly travel has been hard this year. Congrats again and it was no surprise this day was coming πŸ™‚

  8. So happy you made the decision official! May you enjoy the richness of pursuing your life-long learning alongside your kids. Always grateful for your posts and inspiration + I can’t wait to hear more about Portugal!

  9. Congratulations! This is super inspiring! Going to delve into your site and see how you managed to save so much! I’m super interested in FIRE but my husband likes the finer things so it’s a bit tough. Luckily he also loves his job πŸ˜‰ thanks for all the great info you have compiled!

    1. Thank you Lena! It definitely takes both partners to be on board to make it happen. It’s all about figuring out what you truly value and cutting out the fluff.

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  11. Congratulations to you and Nic on taking this step so early in your lives. I’m truly excited for you all; young and free of the rat race. So many possibilities. Fantastic!

    I was wondering if the prospect of future generous bonuses would pull you into the one+ more year syndrome. You really do have to know your numbers to walk away with confidence, as you clearly do. Having a back-up plan or two is essential in my book too.

    For a future post, it would be interesting to see how you pull the $40K together to cover the coming year’s expenses e.g., all at once in December or January, or perhaps quarterly from dividends, etc. And where do you pull it from first, RRSPs or Non-registered? Then there’s ensuring you balance your respective incomes and perhaps wind down the RRSPs to top up the TFSAs.

    1. Thank you Bob! Those last few work bonuses made it hard to walk away from for sure, but we value our time WAY more.

      Sounds good, we will write a future post with our withdrawal plans, how we are “collecting” our cash for the year, etc!

    1. Hi June! Thanks for reaching out. Ah another pull towards unschooling, I love it. We are definitely leaning that way at the moment πŸ™‚

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  14. Yet another relatable approach, save and invest over the years, avoid lifestyle inflation, and you can make it happen! Surprised that even with travel and all in 9 years you paid off debt while also growing the investment portfolio that high with a mid six figure income, but promising to see that it’s possible. Congratulations!

    1. Thank you! It really is a simple formula but hard to execute!

      Travel hacking greatly lowered our travel related expenses and living with roommates and house hacking definitely helped to speed up the journey for us.

  15. Wow, huge milestone. Well done, well done…. and congratulations! πŸ™‚
    I really appreciate that you share your FI journey to inspire people that FI(RE) is really possible and doable.
    Looking forward to seeing your post-FI journey as well!

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  17. This is amazing, Court and Nic. So happy for all of you! I can definitely relate to the one year syndrome. Making 56k but only work 20 hours a week sounds nice! But I am glad you finally pulled the trigger!

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