AARP Rewards Online Community Empty Nest Contest 2025

 Hard to go through, 'cause it's a game changer, for sure. But once we settled into our new life, we did a lot of stuff that needed done; projects we put off for years. After we got tired of that, we checked off some things on the "bucket list"   A Panama Cruise (A-mazing), driving through the Appalachian Mountains to take in the fall foliage, and more travel to learn about all the beautiful scenery, cultures and people that make up our Country's regions. We visit our family and friends more often and have made new friends too. And we always look forward to holidays, when our family comes together again.  

We had really lived separate lives because of our different careers. My husband was an economic development planner and I was a university teacher. Now that we are empty nesters, we have created a company and do consulting together. It has been amazing because we spend so much time together and have a common goal: Doing the most that we can for our clients. It has helped us relate to each other much better because we can celebrate the "wins" together.

Spending more time together by going on dates and focusing on us as a couple.

Unchartered territory for us --worrisome but exciting at the same time. We will always be available for our children but are looking forward to developing new hobbies and just spending time together.. It's been a while since my husband and I can truly focus on each other  and embrace how we've grown over the years. Our new mantra every day is times change, people change and people change things. Enjoy the journey.

My life is substantially different from that of the other folks who are responding to the "Empty Nest" subject.  I've always lacked maternal instincts (at least for human babies); so my cohabitants have always been cats...and, occasionally, men. 

At this point, co-living with men has been "off the table" for half of my lifetime.  As for furry-purries:  I can easily afford food and litter...and, of course, my undivided attention and love...but I can no longer afford their medical bills.  (And even when I could take them to the vet, it was heart-wrenching to lose them as they aged...)  

So...I have pivoted my love for cats to the occasional house+pet-sitting gig.  I've expanded my love of animals to include dogs; and I "get my 'kitty fix'" a few times per year.  I think it's a reasonable compromise, and it's a win-win for everyone.  

I began my emptiness by moving into a smaller home downsizing with my new fiancé over the last eight years I missed my kids and grandkids terribly even though they lived about an hour away so last year we took the plunge I bought a house with my two daughters and two grandkids and my son lives a few blocks away now I have my emptiest nest on the first floor my daughters live on the second floor and my grandkids live on the third floor I have said yes to so much more so many more bike rides and walks and school and community events, soccer games the beach I stamped my passport at least four times and four different countries now this is really what I call living in the empty nest dream!!!!

I am very much an empty nester. My children grew up and left home years ago and it took me a while to get used to it. But what makes it worse is that my husband just passed away a few months ago and my house is now very empty. Enter my whole life. I have never lived alone until I was alone. But I am learning how to cope and live a good life. Since he’s passed, I have taken four trips with at least three more planned. They aren’t very long, but it’s just enough to make things bearable when I come home. Plus, I’ve been to see family and friends that would have been difficult when he was still alive. I also feel my free time at home with volunteer work. I volunteer with the USO at least four times a month and I am a member of a crochet-knitting group in my community Where many of the projects that we work on are donated to charity. I have also joined the Ethel group and I’m starting to attend some of the local functions. I know I have a long way to go to get used to being a total empty nester. 

GRATITUDE is my theme to Reconnect, Revel and Reinvent- thanks AARP & fellow empty nesters!

An "empty nest" is no longer a reality for most in these United States. A decades-long race to the bottom has resulted in a situation where the vast majority of the population face difficulty making monthly expenses. Our children, who work full-time jobs, cannot afford the most basic safe housing, so they live with us at home. Maybe it is time to re-think our priorities. This idea of a carefree retirement of independent living existed briefly in our history for the past couple generations when wealth was more evenly distributed. But for generations before our grandparents' generation, the idea of an empty nest did not exist. For hundreds (thousands?) of years, a working family (often agricultural) lived as an extended family with multple generations living together as the most common living arrangement. The benefits for old and young are obvious in an extended family. But our culture needs to change to allow this. Heathcare, housing, transportation, and a reversal of the concentration of wealth by the top 10% all need reform.

I am slowly but surely refilling the Empty Nest with ME, MYSELF, and I. I'm pursuing my too-busy-to-do-before interests and hobbies, and just taking care of my physical and mental health.I have a more positive outlook as i consider my work, not as an everyday grind, but as a workout to further develop my social skills/emotional intelligence without worries of home responsibilities.Quietness at home means busying myself with arts and crafts, listening to music, and gardening, cooking anything I'm craving for and eating junk foods once in a while.My empty nest is not so empty at all as im rediscovering me, myself, and I.