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| empty nest |
We have been empty nesters for two years now, and I have to say we may have become a little set in our ways. Especially me, since the only thing I have to worry about besides myself all day is the dog. However, the past two weeks my fifteen year old niece from out of town came to stay with us. It took some adjustment on my part to adapt to having to think of someone else again. What does she like to eat? What would she like to do?
Fortunately she is not a picky eater at all, so she was happy with
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| Butterfly House |
whatever I cooked or where ever we wanted to go to eat out. We had a good time shopping, visiting the science center, planetarium, art museum, the Arch, Forest Park, Butterfly House, the Loop and other St. Louis attractions. She even indulged me in my current obsession with photographing the Cakeway to the West displays. She made an interesting comment about the St. Louis Premium Outlets center, stating that it was geared towards children and older people and not so much for teenagers. Hmmmm...interesting observation. I hadn't given that too much thought, but considering that teenagers spend 40% of their money updating their wardrobes perhaps the outlet mall needs to think about opening some retailers appealing to teens.
She flew back home on Friday. While we very much enjoyed having her visit with us, it certainly made us appreciate the fact that our day to day parenting is over. It was wonderful to go through each of the stages with our two kids, but it is also fun to have come full circle to the family we became in 1978. The dog and I have settled back into our routine quite nicely.
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| Kirby & me |
3 comments:
I'm sure your niece left with an impression of how wonderful it was to stay with you, and she will reminisce about it fondly throughout her life.
I would love to come stay with you for two weeks! When is your calendar open?
From the picture you posted, it looked like you all had a lot of fun while she was there. The Cakeway is pretty interesting. I've seen decorated whiskey barrels in Lexington, Kentucky; cows in Chicago, Illinois; Adirondack chairs in Holland, Michigan; and so many others as we've gone about our travels. They are all fun and very creative! As an empty nester myself, I understand what you mean though...we love when family visits and enjoy our time with them, but afterwards, back to routine is good.
Jodee, have you seen the pigs in Cincinnati? They are fun, too! Yes, I like my routine :)
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