It sure is amazing to me how fast the past 28 years have gone. I married my high school sweet heart right after high school and we really never gave much thought to goals for our life together. My dream from my earliest recollections was to get married and be a mom.
A year and a half into our marriage we had our first child and a year and a half after that we had our next child. I wouldn't claim that it was always terribly easy or that we didn't have difficult situations to work through but we settled into life as a family. We focused on the celebrations of birthdays, holidays and vacations. Every year we saved enough money to take our kids camping. It was nothing fancy. We bought a used soft top tent trailer with a zip on add-on-tent. We usually went with our friends and had such a good time. I'll tell you more about our camping trips another time.
We always said that we were quite happy that we would be young enough to enjoy life after children. I never actually realized how fast that would happen. This year we went camping alone to Manning Park Provincial Park which was always one of our favorites. We have long since ditched the soft top tent trailer but camping is still camping and we'll love it forever. We had a blast.
So where is this all going? Well, now it's just Terry and I. He still amuses me with his antics. We have a bit of a thing at bedtime. He knows how much I hate being the last one to bed so he purposely tries to sneak in first just to be a pest. Last night I realized he was gone and I kind of looked around the house. Now, our bungalow isn't that big and there aren't that many places to hide. (we try that sometimes) I thought to myself; well perfect I'll just sneak into bed first. I went into the dark bedroom and started to take off the many cushions and pillows and I noticed a bulge under the covers. That kook was hiding under there for I don't know how long . . . in wait.
On occasion we feel like we have the empty nest syndrome. I think that's probably normal. On most days though my nest feels just right. In it is the one person I chose to share it with. What a blessing.
I wasn't hiding there that long and what took you so long, I was getting claustrophobic.
ReplyDeletethe kook
I remember you telling me ages ago that the kook used to throw your pillow on the floor before you came to bed. Does he still do that?
ReplyDeleteLorna
Pretty funny stuff. Where is the picture taken it looks really nifty.
ReplyDeleteOur two came in the same spacing as yours did, and we too had a little camper. The Zipper Hotel fit the budget, and beach camping was always a highlight, as my kids learned to surf with their daddy.
ReplyDeleteA few years later we all traveled to have another beach camp time. Someday, pray God, we'll do it with grandkids.
Our nest was empty after a mere 19 years. Barbara Bush, the wife of President Bush (the first one) said of nesting:
"Long days and short years."
I'm so glad both you and I have kooks that make an empty nest feel just right sized for two.