Empty Nester Puns

Any opinions welcome.

Wife and I are looking to buy our first RV (travel trailer). Last night we looked at a Heartland Pioneer RE275. I am comfortable with the weight, but it is 32 feet. We will be towing it with a 2017 Expedition Platinum. Is that too long for an SUV? We really like the layout, but are open to other suggestions as well. Looking for something roomy, no bunks as it is just us 2 for the most part.

Once Mariah left, Kody just stopped putting in any effort into having a romantic relationship with Meri. All of the other wives watched that happen. He showed Janelle and Christine exactly how easy he could abandon any wife once worshipping minis were out of the house.

The whole catfishing episode was partly Kody’s fault. He wasn’t there for Meri emotionally. The other wives have felt the same way at various points, and maybe even have had passing thoughts or fantasies about seeking validation and attention elsewhere, but just didn’t act on it. The distance they keep from Meri could very well be because they fear seeing too much of their own futures in her isolation and desperation, more so than any resentment they have about control issues from 20 years ago.Meri

Married with almost adult kids and going to be empty nesters soon. I had kids early but not that early. Anyone else in the same state of life?

Where are my Empty Nesters at? We've had posts about being childless Gen Xers, but how about the flip side? My youngest just turned 18 and he's looking to head out soon. Anyone else in Gen X already at this stage? What are you looking forward to doing? What do you miss?

Anyone interested in an empty nester get together? Drinks or something? It is hard to make friends once you are 45+

Anybody who's also been through losses (death, separation) who might like to have me for a friend? I have accepted that my son, my only family, is getting married 2 months from now. I would have to adjust though, to the separation & to having to live solo. Believe me, I have chores & hobbies. But relating with a human might help me focus less on my impending separation from my son.

Okay, so 10 out of 19 kids are now married off (not including J'Tyler). That leaves only 9 kids left to marry. And should Jana, Jeremiah, Jason, James, Jackson, and Johannah get married off in the next 5 years, that number goes down to two. Its weird to think that Jim Bob and Michelle could be empty nesters when I am so used to seeing complete chaos erupt from The Tin Mansion, although with 22 grandkids ("and counting"), it probably will never be quiet for long.

Realistically, I think Jeremiah is going to court and be engaged by the end of 2022, and it wouldn't surprise me if Jason or James gets hitched after Jer. Jana seems perfectly content about staying single, and when she has seen her younger sisters get married off so quickly to the first piece of pasta that stuck to the wall -- my shitty analogy meaning that they got married to whomever Jim Bob said they could court -- who can blame Jana?

Once Pest inevitably does 20 to life in a federal penitentiary, the only thing that we have to look forward to, in my opinion, will be: Does Jennifer get married before Jana does? Will Kendra have more children than Anna does? And will Jim Bob throw his hat in the ring and stop updating social media about their lives after November?

The real question will ultimately be who wants to get married and get away from The Tin Mansion the fastest, or who wants to stay single to avoid having to have a dozen kids.

Edit: Math is hard & I edited Tyler's name to include a J.

It is just not *that hard* to let your employees have a life.. whether it's for their kids, or their continuing education or for reasons. If you have chronically high turnover, you're the problem, not the employees.

https://preview.redd.it/7h48lvi9ay581.jpg?width=750&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6e2beb55e7c16b56532ac9b44ed81084f0f84061

I’m a teen mom, and I’m really depressed because I’m missing out on my prime years. I can still go out once in a while, but having to be responsible 99.9% of the time and always having a time limit is really really exhausting and sad, especially watching all my friends being spontaneous and stupid. Missing out on a normal life sucks, so I’m kind of putting all my hope in the future.

Will it be easy to make friends once I become an empty nester? Friends that want to go on trips, have fun like teenagers, etc.

Will I be able to enjoy it as if I were a teenager again? Obviously being a mom doesn’t end in an empty household but will I really have my life back?

Edit: Thank you everyone who commented with their experiences and advice, I think I’ve replied to as many as I can but each and every comment means a lot to me and suddenly I don’t feel so alone in this, or at least I don’t feel like the only person who’s gone through this. You guys have no idea how much you helped out this lost teenager who’s been on the verge of breaking for a while , my world just became a little brighter, thank you from the bottom of my heart ❤️

I'm doing a rewatch and even in the early seasons the problems they're having now we're always there. They don't communicate well, they don't work cohesive, it's still 4 small families instead of one big one. The only difference is they had a gaggle of children to keep them distracted and busy. Now the children are grown and they're left with each other realizing they never fixed they're early marriage problems. I think Kody likes all the children more than his wives cause they are an endless supply of unconditional love.

Jumping the gun a little but it’s fun to be thinking about :)

We’re 51, live in sw Fl. Retiring in 10 years. Would like to get out of Fl to someplace with four seasons and mountains or at least hills. Lakes without gators & amoebas. (Ok maybe mild seasons lol I’ve only seen snow a couple times.) Preferably a place we can purchase a small home, cottage or cabin that isn’t too rural as we’d like to go into a city with culture & nightlife without driving for hours.

We’re going to spend some time over the next few years exploring places & appreciate any suggestions.

I'm 63, my husband 66. I was hoping all our children would have left home by now but there is one who hasn't. He's now 26, doesn't drive or have a driver's license, doesn't work, shows no initiative to do anything with his life. It's a chore to get him to do anything to help around the house, or to take a shower. He has no friends. He plays video games all day. I've tried for years to get him to "do" anything, but he gets angry if I nag too much. His dad also gets mad at me when I try to tell him that our son is ruining his own future by not working or actually living. I'm stressed.

Due to PeTA’s raid in 2011, most of the data on the component genomes used in the creation of fluffies has been lost. As such, we can only guess as to the components used.

However, the recently observed habits of feral mares have clued us in to one possible progenitor. Scientists have observed in rare instances that a mare that has recently lost its litter (be it from predators or gross incompetence) will try to replace her brood with foals from another mare’s litter. This leads to one of three scenarios;

1. The mare will kill the mother of her targeted litter. Even if successful, the “empty nester” will not treat the foals well. This is not an act of malice. Rather, she will likely smother the foals in an overcompensating attempt to convince them (but more realistically convince herself) that she is their birth mother. This scenario leads to foals getting trampled, smothered or (in some extreme cases) having their necks snapped as a result of the mare hugging too tightly.

2. The mare will suffer injury in trying to take the targeted litter. Shamed, humiliated and branded a “monster” by the rest of the herd, the “empty nester” will be forced out of the group, with the only alternative being to be killed by the resident smarty.

3. The “empty nester” will manage to take away the least appreciated foal. The foal’s birth mother does not pursue. While this is the least bloody outcome, the “empty nester” will likely start to resent the foal within the week. 86% of cases die of neglect.

While not an exact match, scientists theorize that this may be a result of emperor penguin DNA, as “empty nesters” within that species behave eerily similar.

We are 5 years away from being empty nesters at 40 and 38 and are terrified! We are worried we will not have any meaning after our daughter goes to college. With the house being empty at our age is kinda scary. We’ve spent our whole adult life being parents.

My wife is a SAH mom and I work remotely and will for the rest of my career. I make a fair living that would allow for a lot of freedom coupled with my income…..but is it enough? We don’t currently have a large social circle(mostly non-existent). We don’t live near family. We don’t own a home. We finally are in the position financially, but it doesn’t even make sense for us to buy anymore in this market or our area.

We do live in colorado and love it here. Go camping and hiking every chance we get. I honestly would love to build a cabin now, that we can enjoy while she is still in the house and then possible move to when she leaves for college.

I guess my question is…are there any in this sub in their late 30’s early 40’s or became empty nester at that age?What did you do to prepare for this stage? What does your life look like now?

Edit: thanks all! Very helpful tips. I definitely have some things to consider in the coming years. Will definitely work to add some hobbies soon. Maybe even be able to share those hobbies with my daughter and wife.

What makes marriage difficult for some couples when they become empty nesters?

As a teen mom at 15, I'm now 38, I broke all stereotypes and satistics about being a teen mother. During the late 90's, teen pregnancy was #1 next to dropping out of HS in the city I lived in. Gangs were pretty bad during this time too. How I got pregnant is for another topic. It's sad that some family, some friends, school counselors, teachers, even my doctor at the time didn't believe I'd amount to anything. They said I'd live off of the state and handouts, just belittled me and quite honestly, that hurt me! I was a pretty good A/B student, never got into trouble, followed the rules, well liked, many friends, hardly dated. Little did anyone know, I was already in the mind set that I will not let my child down, I will not be another statistic, and my child will live a better life than I ever did. My childhood was pretty traumatic. All this actually fueled me more to prove everyone wrong. Through sacrificed late nights up doing homework, diaper changes, feedings, rocking my son to sleep as I wrote a 6 page report on Econimcs of Columbia and more feedings, I finished school, was emancipated at 16, graduated on time, had 2 more kids before 19 years old, completed my LPN certification, divorced by 25. I remarried a wonderful man and had my last child at 27. My kids now are 22(M) son ranking high on the todem poll in the military and recently married- currently deployed; 20(F) daughter attending a very prestige University- graduating 1/2 year early; 18(M) son was just accepted into a Tech college for fall next year and my last child 11(M) is still in middle school and just learned to play the piano willingly, during Covid, our music entertainment. My life has had many ups and downs, many failures, of course more prouder and happier moments, I had and survived cancer, (5 yrs cancer free now), I now have lupus and dealt with the loss of my mother during the start of the pandemic. I'm still not over her death yet. But why am I writing this story? I never imagined what life would be like when the kids grow up, one by one, move out, one by one and be the most humbled, caring and respectful human beings put on this earth. I have my moments where I sit quietly and reflect on how I did it all...I didn't give up!! What troubles me is this empty nest syndrome!! I know I have 1 more to go but I'm just not handling the whole "moving away from home" part. I know, I did my part and it's their time to flourish and no, I wasn't a helicopter parent, it's just I don't know how

..the best kind of irony regarding parenthood. I've just discovered this trend of parents celebrating their "new life full of adventures" with photoshootings tagged as #EmptyNesters - parents whose kids have left home.

I mean, it's great they can enjoy their new lifestyle, but the way they celebrate it makes me feel so bad for their kids. Looks like a guilt trip to me.

If you really enjoy peace and quiet so badly, why would you have kids in the first place?

The wife and I have become empty nesters this year. The kids are off at school and we don't know what to do with ourselves. Does anyone know of any classes for couples that won't break the bank . Or other things to do.

I'll be moving cross-country next summer after my youngest graduates from high school. My older just left for freshman year. We'll have been in a rental 3 yrs so at least there has been one interim move since their childhood home, but it was a rushed move/separation so we didn't get rid of much then. I tried to get the new college student to go through their stuff/start packing up what they weren't taking to college this summer before they left with zero success - it caused massive stress trying to get them started. How do I help my 17 & 18 yr old kids not feel like they're losing all connection to "home" forever but still get rid of lots of stuff that they're not likely to use in the new house, which they'll more than likely only be in for a few weeks a year? I know they'll be moving a lot over the next 10 years as they transition to adulthood and I want them to feel they have a home base with me (their other parent is a pretty extreme minimalist so they won't keep anything there). But I also don't want to create "shrines" to their childhood in my new house by setting up "their" rooms just like here. For various reasons incl the location of my new home, I'm not too worried about them being boomerang kids who move back home for any length of time. Would love to hear from anyone who's been through this!

Now that schools are open to in person learning my girl child is moving 3 hours away for her senior year of college, it's bitter sweet, as I pack up her altar, crystals, and books, I'm so proud of the strong woman she has become, but I miss her already... And she's taking her dog, so it's going to be really quiet around here

Thinking about leaving the OKC Metro for Tulsa but I have questions. What's with all the overhead powerlines going through properties? What are the pros & cons of living there? Which would be the best area?

Hello everyone! I am doing a survey on empty nesters for business school: https://byu.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6DaIMiUnEnpUk9E

It is going to take about 1-2 minutes and feel free to let me know if you have any questions / comments! Thank you very much.