I have a guilty confession: if this first week is any indication, I'm gonna love being an empty nester.
Our kid left five days ago for her big travel plans with a friend's family followed by a summer camp ("Happy Graduation!"), and she won't be back until 11 July. We've monitored sporadic reporting over her Facebook page, and no news is good news. Everything's fine with her.
But everything at home is even better. At first I couldn't identify what I was feeling, but now I think I finally understand: for the first time in over eight years of ER, I'm having a real no-foolin' vacation!
I don't hear our little nightowl coming into the house just before curfew, and I don't hear her earlybird banging around in the bathroom or kitchen at O-dark-30. I go to sleep, after four hours I wake up to roll over, and after another 2-3 hours I wake up well-rested. This is highly unusual. What's even better is that spouse is also sleeping more soundly, so I don't hear her either. I've had the best five nights of sleep in over a decade. Maybe three decades.
Spouse and I have been eating whatever we want with no regard for setting a good example. We cook when we feel like it, and we experiment with Nutrisystems & frozen dinners when we don't feel like cooking. We've eaten lunch out at our favorite places. We've eaten chocolate and ice cream (including chocolate ice cream) whenever we've felt like it.
Naptimes are unlimited and there's no scheduling interference from family plans or disturbing noises. Bedtime is similarly flexible, and reveille has been canceled.
Our whirlpool tub pump has run a lot of hours in the last five days.
I get to drive the Prius whenever I want. (Although I have been bagged with an oil change, but I plan to boomerang that bag job right back at her.) We run errands if we want to. We do the honey-dos we feel like doing. We have one or two events each day with neighbors or friends but most of our time is unscheduled.
I haven't been to taekwondo in a week and I haven't worked out, either. My physical activity has been yardwork and surfing and quality spouse time. I'm having so much fun not working out that I may decide to not get kicked in the head for another week either.
I've browsed just about everything on the Internet. I've spent incredible amounts of time in the recliner watching old Clint Eastwood movies and reading novels. I'll get up from a nap at 1 PM, sit down to read a little, and look up to see that it's nearly 5 PM. Same thing after dinner-- suddenly it's 8 PM.
Spouse and I have been trying to read the book "Letting Go". It's very well written, and it's a big help with a topic that takes many parents by surprise. But spouse and I keep reading passages to each other and snickering or even guffawing at the parents' lack of foresight. Didn't they see this coming?!?
It's been over five days since I've had to answer a question about the UCMJ, Navy uniform regs, Leadership & Combat Ethics 101, and whether the submarine force is a better deal than the Civil Engineering Corps.
I do miss watching our kid go about her daily routine and push herself in workouts. I have fun with her at taekwondo and I always get stoked watching her catch a wave. I like doing home-improvement projects with her or showing her how to fix a toilet. I enjoy taking about future choices & plans, and I always enjoy [-]telling sea stories[/-] coaching & mentoring.
But parenting? Don't miss it a bit!
Our kid left five days ago for her big travel plans with a friend's family followed by a summer camp ("Happy Graduation!"), and she won't be back until 11 July. We've monitored sporadic reporting over her Facebook page, and no news is good news. Everything's fine with her.
But everything at home is even better. At first I couldn't identify what I was feeling, but now I think I finally understand: for the first time in over eight years of ER, I'm having a real no-foolin' vacation!
I don't hear our little nightowl coming into the house just before curfew, and I don't hear her earlybird banging around in the bathroom or kitchen at O-dark-30. I go to sleep, after four hours I wake up to roll over, and after another 2-3 hours I wake up well-rested. This is highly unusual. What's even better is that spouse is also sleeping more soundly, so I don't hear her either. I've had the best five nights of sleep in over a decade. Maybe three decades.
Spouse and I have been eating whatever we want with no regard for setting a good example. We cook when we feel like it, and we experiment with Nutrisystems & frozen dinners when we don't feel like cooking. We've eaten lunch out at our favorite places. We've eaten chocolate and ice cream (including chocolate ice cream) whenever we've felt like it.
Naptimes are unlimited and there's no scheduling interference from family plans or disturbing noises. Bedtime is similarly flexible, and reveille has been canceled.
Our whirlpool tub pump has run a lot of hours in the last five days.
I get to drive the Prius whenever I want. (Although I have been bagged with an oil change, but I plan to boomerang that bag job right back at her.) We run errands if we want to. We do the honey-dos we feel like doing. We have one or two events each day with neighbors or friends but most of our time is unscheduled.
I haven't been to taekwondo in a week and I haven't worked out, either. My physical activity has been yardwork and surfing and quality spouse time. I'm having so much fun not working out that I may decide to not get kicked in the head for another week either.
I've browsed just about everything on the Internet. I've spent incredible amounts of time in the recliner watching old Clint Eastwood movies and reading novels. I'll get up from a nap at 1 PM, sit down to read a little, and look up to see that it's nearly 5 PM. Same thing after dinner-- suddenly it's 8 PM.
Spouse and I have been trying to read the book "Letting Go". It's very well written, and it's a big help with a topic that takes many parents by surprise. But spouse and I keep reading passages to each other and snickering or even guffawing at the parents' lack of foresight. Didn't they see this coming?!?
It's been over five days since I've had to answer a question about the UCMJ, Navy uniform regs, Leadership & Combat Ethics 101, and whether the submarine force is a better deal than the Civil Engineering Corps.
I do miss watching our kid go about her daily routine and push herself in workouts. I have fun with her at taekwondo and I always get stoked watching her catch a wave. I like doing home-improvement projects with her or showing her how to fix a toilet. I enjoy taking about future choices & plans, and I always enjoy [-]telling sea stories[/-] coaching & mentoring.
But parenting? Don't miss it a bit!