Clinty emails and letters won't work. Phone calls are good to get the ground work done. Ie. Whats the CP's name, the SBP name, the owners name, where do they fly to what equipment do they have. Keep a diary with all the details. Get to know the industry what minimums they have. Etc.
On reading your post a second time I notice you don't have children, YET. This changes things. Basically you need to work out how to support the mortgage repayments. You could chance it without the 200 series time but as you have a friend that has one you could get a few hours in one which might help
Nothing beats the meet and greet followed by a follow up phone call and then yet another drop in. What you could try is treat it as a holiday where you show the wife Australia. Might make it a bit more bearable. Its good to have the support there. I did it alone and it can be very lonely!
GG comments below are accurate. It takes an awful lot to keep a woman interested in a ga pilot. Its a long road.