empty nester

I'm not quite there yet, but close and really looking forward to it. My oldest graduates this year and has plans to go off to college and I'm really excited for him to start becoming his own. My mom had 5 of us kids to deal with all of us leaving. She said it was difficult each time a child left home, but once she was comfortable about their safety and that they'll be okay she did better. By the time she got to me...the 4th kid she said it was a lot easier. Once my younger brother was on his own, she said she had a new found freedom that she really enjoyed being able to develop who she was. Almost like a new identity...the true her. She learned to love her freedom quickly. I hope the transition is that easy for me. I think in my case, being my husband and I are fairly young ourselves, we'll get to know each other more and enjoy our relationship deeper as we learn to lean on each other.

My oldest daughter is in the Army and the youngest is in college. I gained weight, so the transition was hard. Now I am working on taking off the weight with the tips Mylot Members have given me. Its not easy, but am losing the weight.

When our daughter (our 2nd child) left home to join the Army, it was really tough, but we adjusted to "just us" fairly quickly. It was a perfect time for me to go back to school and finish my bachelor's degree and work on my masters, so that helped to keep me busy.