To ask, what is your 'vaguely achievable' dream life?

[RedTravellingSocks]

Not the crazy fantasy one you need to win the lottery to have. The one that is a bit more realistic, more or less, maybe, kinda, perhaps one day, with a bit of luck

Mine would be:

• live in a house with a view of the sea, and a dining kitchen, grow herbs and veg in the garden and have a wildflower patch with loads of bees and butterflies
• keep chickens
• have a dog that I can take on long walks
• work in a bookshop, preferably a small independent one (that also sold cake)
• train as a yoga teacher on the side and maybe teach a bit as well
• take every summer off and travel, as cheaply as possible, for a minimum of 2 months (someone would have to look after the dog and chickens I guess!)

I would like to have a bedroom big enough that I have to walk across to get from bed to wardrobe instead of just turn round.

Have an apartment in Spain by the sea
Still have a little stone two up two down terrace in uk to come back to
Go on a cruise with a balcony suite

Achieve a PHD (currently doing MA)
Love your idea about a bookshop with cake!

Ah, a PhD almost made my list too Reader but I'd feel obliged to do something with it once I'd got it

I have a PhD. Worst thing I ever did 😂

OP you will be lucky to have a house at all if you work in a bookshop, never mind one with a garden big enough to grow veg!

My dream is similar - I want to live in a semi-rural place with a nice big garden, lots of wildlife and no nearby neighbours making a noise. I want a pond and fruit trees and room to grow veg. No idea how I’m going to afford this house - my preference would be to write books or do something artistic or designery.

A house with enough bedrooms, a garden, a garage to turn into a home gym and a separate utility and dining rooms. A hot tub or whirlpool bath. A king size bed to myself. The newest IPhone, IPad & Mac Book Pro. A part time job that pays the bills and which I don't hate. A cleaner to come round once a week and Blitz the place. A dishwasher. A tumble drier. A really big American style fridge freezer. A soda stream. A dog. A good group of friends. Happy kids at a school they like. Better health.

Ever since I was a teenager it was 4 bed detached house with 2 cars and a holiday every year (god knows why as a teenager I was thinking like that haha). DH have been together since teenagers so done it together, hopefully getting the house this year, then we've ticked it all although the cars need an upgrade and I wouldn't say no to multiple holidays!

As a somewhat mature adult it's a work life balance, enjoy my job but ensure it doesn't take over my life.

To be fair on reflection I have much of what I'd like, but I need to practice more gratitude, especially for the "simple" things like health that is so easily taken for granted.

Most of mine are limited by limited finances...

Have DH's business succeed so that we do not have any debt and are ok for retirement

Cash out DH's previous pension pot and buy a small flat in London and a cottage in the country.

Stop work and be a SAHM permanently without any money worries.

Do gender selection to have a third Dc so that I have a dd

Take my children to Europe every summer and live somewhere several weeks at a time

Another one who wants to live by the sea. My actual dream house is up for sale at the moment!

Pay my mortgage off enough that I could take a less stressful job, that would be within walking or cycling distance of my house. Preferably something in the voluntary sector and 4 days a week. Spend my remaining free time gardening and doing to yoga and spanish lessons.

(I know that's pretty low ambitions to some but I currently work in a very unpredictable job and I'd love to guarantee I could finish work on time and plan things for my evenings!)

I don't think a "dream life" is ever obtainable.
No matter how much money we have there will always be spikes.

Open a shop in my town. No idea what I’d sell though!

Buy and renovate my house (I rent)

Meet a nice man and get married, have a baby.

Beautiful house.... one day!
Do my job part time and still have a nice standard of living.
Be a size 10 again!

Thanks speakout - do you pour cold water on every nice thread you see?

Some lovely ideas here

I think we need a link @champagnecommunist!

I think I would like to have a detached house in a nice town, probably in Suffolk, with a pied a terre in London (with parking). But as I've never lived outside London, I'm not sure I'd be as happy anywhere else.

Work part time and spend the rest of my time pottering around and doing art classes.

Have a nice garden flat in say, Islington or Highgate, as well as a proper house in the country.

Regular holidays including skiing once a year.

All three probably aren't achieveable at once!

Haha, mine also involves a bookshop! Well one of them. I have a few. But this one is the most well thought out.

Live near Black forest in Germany (where I live now)
Run small English specialist bookshop for new and secondhand books. With a small Café serving tea and English style cakes plus a few imported UK groceries like marmite and bisto. Run English classes in the cafe area in the evenings and Saturday mornings before the shop properly opens.
Be able to speak German fluently.
Have a dog and cat. Maybe 1-2 more DC.
Visit UK 2-4 times a year to top up stock and visit family.

I have job doing something with my brain that makes a difference to people's lives. I earn a bit more than DH is making now. Nothing massive (though that would also be nice!) but enough to be comfortable. DH is stay at home dad (he would love this) and does occasional consultancy work for his current industry (I don't think he could totally cut this off). We have one more DC and several animals. A nice house with a garden. Either live in UK or able to visit 2x per year. We have enough space people can visit us too.

• Have a super king size bed
• Be comfortable enough that we can help both kids out with a decent deposit for a house in our low-cost part of the U.K.

I dream of moving further out into the countryside, either Wales or Scottish islands. It would be a beautiful period cottage with enough space for my vegetables, pigs and chickens (not sure why these are in there as I don't eat eggs and wouldn't eat the pigs!). I would also be able to swim in the wild every morning, sea or river I'm not fussy.

I would work as a proof reader/editor for new releases and also have my own counseling business through online sessions. I would drive a beaten up old discovery and dress eccentrically which would be considered a mark of my genius rather then insanity.

I think the bulk of this might be achieved. I'm working towards my counselling business and while my DH probably won't let me have the pigs and chickens I reckon he could be persuaded to move in the near future!

Great thread! I always say I have little dreams, not big ones! I just want two cats and a house with a garden big enough to build a pizza oven in. If it's near a beach that's a bonus.
Also I would love to do a degree in languages just for fun. I've looked into this, because I live in Scotland it wouldn't be outrageously expensive to study with the Open Uni. But it's still a few grand I don't currently have.

@Molocosh- Oh no! Why was it the worse thing you've ever done??

@ChampagneCommunist - Buy it!! And link please :)

Oh god yes, I want a knackered Land Rover as well, @Dottiedot19. I want to wear wellies and old jumpers most days and have dirt under my fingernails (not when I'm serving the cake in my bookshop though, obviously )

To have my own room and not share with one of my children.
Buy own house.
Fall madly in love.
I’m sensible enough to know that these are not going to happen but hope springs eternal

I want to live in a warmer country (preferably Portugal- I’m learning Portuguese), where I will be in less arthritic pain, and therefore more productive. I’d like a small holding type place, with potential for some kind of holiday lets, for back to nature/get away from it all type holidays.