Re: Making it on your own as a couple..
We also did it from scratch. We just did not wanted to put burden on our parents. During all this time, we in fact also supported our parents (not that they needed our money but just as a token of appreciation for all they did).
My wife did not work in early days (for around 2/3 years) but she really got me going on saving. With Grace of Allah, we never had to go though bad times (except for 5-6 months during these 9 years) and those 6 months were also bad due to the "fear" of losing job but not actually losing it (remember DOT COM BUBBLE??)
So I started life in Los Angles some 11 years ago .. with US$ 3k, Professional Education and taleem-o-tarbiyat from my Parents, got married in couple of years ...and we are now Mashallah a happy family. Allah has showered us with whatever a successful family can dream off in terms of adorable children and money.