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Writer’s Note – I’ve been on an extended hiatus for about three months. So, I first want to say “Thank You” to all of you who continue to stop by and check out my blog. This blog and several to follow have been accumulating in my head for quite a while.
Late August 2014 – As we end summer and the month of August, Vicki and I find ourselves in a whole new world…the world of “Empty Nesters.” I commented on this on Facebook not long ago. Zach graduated high school in May and went off to Georgia Tech in mid-August. Now, with Labor Day fast approaching, Emily will return to Maryland as a junior. We will have no children at home for the first time in 20 years!
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| Last time we were all together… |
So the question becomes: What do we do with ourselves? We have spent the better part of two decades tending to the daily needs of our kids, even as they have grown up and become more independent. Even in high school, we were part of their daily routine, and the kids were part of our routines and rituals as well. So many years of worrying about coordinating schedules, car rides, after-school activities, and waiting up late for someone to come home. (“Don’t forget your key!” became a weekend mantra.)
I’ve heard from other “Empty Nesters” that it IS a big adjustment, at first, but like any other change, you get used to it. I’m sure it will be quite an adjustment…the house will be even more quiet than it is now. Priorities will certainly change. We’ll have something known as “freedom,” though I’m not sure we’ll know how to handle it at first. Maybe we’ll both take up a new hobby…like ballroom dancing! That’s it…we can be like the couples you see in those drug company ads on television – middle-aged adults leading happy, fulfilling lives all because of a little white (or purple) pill. I can’t wait!
Or maybe we’ll be just like we always have been…taking care of business both at home and at the office, running our errands, cleaning house, working in the yard, and paying bills. In other words, continuing to live our lives like we always have. Heck, you can’t spend all of your time on the dance floor, or on a Viking Cruise ship, or re-tiling the bathroom (with the Home Depots’ help, of course), or lounging around in one of those bathtubs with nothing on but your birthday suit. (How DO they get those bathtubs outside?)
As parents we spend so much time preparing our kids to “learn how to fly,” then pushing them out of the nest, that we forget what it’s like to be independent ourselves. What it’s like to be FREE!!!!
Certainly more to come on this front.
Certainly more to come on this front.
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