My husband and I have three grown children, and I was a stay-at-home mom. When my middle daughter was nine years old, I was offered a part time temporary position at the local university for two hours a day, two days a week. In going through some old photo albums, I found a picture of a message she had written to me on her easel. It said “I love my mom. No job for Mommy.”
My daughter was upset when I told her about the job offer, even though I explained that she wouldn’t even miss me, since she would be at school when I was working. She said to me, “Well, I’ll be at school thinking about you at work and I’ll miss you.” I sensed that seeing other kids with moms who worked gave her a fear that I wouldn’t be there for her. Even though I never questioned my decision to stay home with my kids, that message she created really hit home as to just how valuable I was to my children in their everyday life.
Now that they’re grown and out, people assume I’m having a hard time with living in an empty nest, since I spent so much time with my kids when they were growing up. On the contrary, I am proud to see them able to function on their own as adults. They are hard-working, polite, good people, and I was there to watch all those moments growing into who they all are today. I can’t feel “empty nest syndrome” when I’m so happy for them out there making their own lives.
Laura
Why I’m Proud to Have an Empty Nest