The Empty Nest

The holidays are over and its time to start a new year. The Christmas lights are down, the decorations are put away, and I'm all alone in the house once again. After spending so much time with the ones I love, its hard to get back into the old routine of day to day living. As a Mother, we love the quiet times that we get to ourselves. It seems when your kids are growing up, those quiet times are few and far between. Then, they get older. You go from midnight feedings to bedtime stories, and before you know it, your giving them curfews to be home when they are out with friends. Where did the time go? It feels like only yesterday that my kids were crying over scrapped knees, now, my oldest is in the military living on his own and my youngest is a junior in High School. I've been raising kids for so long, I forgot what I was suppose to do now. You get so use to being a Mother that you sometimes loose track of who you are and what makes you happy. As a single mother, I've always had to do double duty, which wasnt easy. Its been a struggle but one that I'm proud to say I survived. I guess its almost time to put one chapter of my life to rest and start another. After spending my 20's and 30's raising kids, I'm really excited to see what my 40's and 50's have in store for me. I'm feeling a little melancholy tonight, it must be the sound of emptiness in my house. Thats OK though, once my teenager is back from his friends house, that silence wont last for long.