Empty Nest And Beyond

After years of child-rearing couples find that there comes a time in life when the children move out to establish a life of their own. This can be a confusing time for parents. Of course they want their children to grow but at the same time this means the couple will have to make some adjustments in their relationship.

A common realization for couples when their children begin moving out is that they will soon be alone together. For some couples this may be the first time in their relationship that they will not have to address the issues of raising children. For others, it has been so many years ago that they had any time without children that it will seem like the first time.

Although this is a time that couples look forward to and work for there is usually some apprehension about how things will be once the household consists only of the two of them. This is especially true of couples that have lost touch with each other over the years.

It seems that the responsibilities of children, work, a mortgage and life in general often take center stage. This is unavoidable at times and when those things take over more often than they should it is easy to forget that your focus should be on your partner.

So many couples are faced with the dilemma of how to relate to one another when they feel much of the closeness that they once had is now gone. Just as with anything else, planning will make this transition easier. Plan ahead, you know that this time will inevitably happen sooner or later.

You should discuss plans with your partner. There may be some interests that the two of you put on hold during the time you were focused on raising kids. If so this is the time that you should plan to rediscover that interest or hobby. Plan an activity that the two of you can enjoy together.

Now I am not suggesting that because the children move out that you and your partner should spend every minute together, far from it. Actually you will now have more time available for your partner as well as for yourself.

Along with renewing old interests in hobbies from the past consider new things to do together. The reason this is important is that spending time together on an enjoyable activity will help to renew the relationship and build a new bond between the two of you. It will give you an activity to talk about together and quality time to spend together.

During this exciting phase of your relationship you should rediscover yourself and your spouse. Build on what you have and improve it! Things will only get better.

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