AARP Rewards Online Community Empty Nest Contest 2025

One of my biggest dreams in becoming an empty nester (I am almost there), is just getting to be with and reconnect with my wife (she's the most amazing person I have known). We have shared so many dreams together over the years, it will be nice to act upon them. ANY of them. Travel to Europe again. Going rock and fossil exploring. Record music together. 

Time! All of a sudden I find there is more time to do...whatever. Less chauffeuring, laundry, making beds etc. 

I love it, LOVE the empty nest. I am living my dream life. The kids are through college and working. I am downsizing to smaller home in a warmer state. I can hardly wait to spoil grandkids. I have traveled to many places since the kids moved out. 

The house became too quiet so I began volunteering. I am busier then ever and enjoying it. My spouse has filled her empty schedule spaces with friends and activity. We also are enjoying our winters in the warm climate of Florida where we have made many new friends. We seem to be doing more, meeting more people, and going more places. An empty nest can give you an opportunity to enjoy your world.

My husband and I are not quite empty nesters yet. We are enjoying having our two adult sons with us for now. Once they do leave the nest we have plans to change a few things, but for us the biggest change will be when my husband retires next year. The freedom we will have with both of us retired will be wonderful and I'm looking forward our time together.

 When we finally became members of the "empty nest" it was much more difficult for me than my husband.  His work hours kept him away for many events that the kids participated in, although he came to everything he could.  It was very difficult for me to not have somewhere to go, some meeting to attend ... However, eventually, I began to realize I had time for myself ... time to join a yoga class, go for that hike, bike or kayak trip with my friends because I didn't have some extra curricular activity to attend for the kids.  

Kids finished college and settled in two different states and when we finally decided to downsize, we headed south to be closer to one of them.  We still enjoy doing things we love that we never had time for when the kids were at home, but we also have started attending activites the grandkids are in.  It's a better balance now because we don't have work interfering.  

Life is so good!  We are blessed.

With extra time on my hands, I volunteer more in the community. I volunteer with a local theatre venue, a local university theatre, local university athletics and one-off events like an Asian festival, kids' books distribution, arts festival, Pride parade and more. My wife enjoys the extra time to read and binge shows on Netflix. Without child-related schedule obligations, we're also much more free to do random date nights during the week or any time we want. Who says you can't go to a nice restaurant or bar in the middle of the week? 

It’s been a huge adjustment as my 3 kids were my life & soul for years as their father didn’t participate in their school & lives. But they’re all on their own & thriving- it’s great to watch them thrive as I have done the same with my life! ❤️ 

Work, hubby, friends, church, volunteering & traveling - plus actually having my own time - my life is still full. 

II've been retired for several years now and I'm just as busy as when I was working.  But my work could be very stressful, and I don't have much stress since I retired -- and I'm so grateful for that! Since I retired, I've been busy volunteering at a soup kitchen and an animal shelter.  I've enjoyed taking lifelong learning classes through OLLI and other organizations, both in-person and virtually.  I've signed up for various AARP classes, programs and Movies For Grownups - and there are many more I'd like to do but don't have time for.  AARP's offerings are fantastic!  And I also join some friends in tutoring 2nd-graders during the schoolyear.  I feel incredibly fortunate to be reveling in this chapter of life! 

My husband (80) and I (78) still ride and compete on our reining horses, so a large chunk of our time is spent training, grooming, cleaning stalls, shoveling sawdust, etc. We just retired (again) from being 4-H leaders, but we continue to volunteer with the program and serve as horse superintendents at the county fair. I just recently retired (yet again) as co-director and facilitator of our local leadership program. We work the polls at election time, and volunteer with Friends of the Library. When we aren't doing all that, we travel. I've been to 49 states! We try to take a cruise each spring when we really relax. I frequently work with new writers to help them focus their work.  Several of them have now published!