Originally Posted by Texasjeepgirl:
well I debated about jumping in on this thread.. but I guess I may as well..
I see things from all spectrums...
church... gym... puzzles... reading... sand sculpture... so.. I'll throw me in there also...
I'll say this to begin.. just remember that life changes.. evolves...as your children grow up..
When I started home daycare in 1992 my oldest daughter was 2 years old..my husband and I were extreme HOME BODIES.. cooked dinner at home..church on Sunday morning... dinner and television every night of the week... NO HOBBIES... we raised our little girl.. and that was IT...
At some point we started bowling on a league.. and although we struggled to keep a reliable babysitter for our girls.. and then the cost of sitter... bowling fees... eating out..it was several hundred per month..but.. we NEEDED something to do... so we made it work...for a few years... but.. after 15 years.. we divorced...
Our girls were 6 and 10 . .. After divorce life was so different..
I began dating my NOW husband.. a year later we married.... (11th wedding anniversary will be May 25) He has 3 daughters.. oldest is a stepdaughter ..but he is the only daddy she's ever known.. and then his two daughters... at the time they were 4, 5 and 10.. now they are 15, 16 and 22.... my girls were 7 and 11 at wedding... now 18 and 22...
Life began to revolve around visitation weekends... visitation week nights.. and.. KID FREE nights and weekends..
His girls lived with their mom... my girls with their dad....about two blocks from me..
. we were BOTH child support paying/visiting parents....that is a huge adjustment...some of it WONDERFUL.. and some if it heartbreaking... (First Christmas Eve was the other parents turn to have both sets of kids... that's a rough night)
In the beginnging we ate out allot... later we bought a jeep.. joined a jeep club.. husband later became PRESIDENT of club... I became Membership Secretary for a REGIONAL 4 wheel drive association... .. we made trips to East Texas... Kansas.. Colorado... with our jeep... tent camped most of the time... with and without our kids...
AND THEN... we started playing POOL..
Our girls were getting older... and.. most of the time we played on weeknights so our girls weren't with us...
My husband had played all his life... and although I grew up with a pool table in my grandfather's basement.. and.. and pool table at my aunt's house.. I never played much.. the boys always played..
8 years ago.. my husband and I are out with friends for dinner.. the place has a pool table...
the other couple insist that we play couple against couple..
I fell in LOVE..
We came home and I told Hubby... we need a pool table..
lol.. he thought so too.
He bought us a used 'bar box' off of Ebay...
We started playing local pool tournaments.. leagues...
2,3, 4 nights per week..
sometimes it was really hard for me..
On a weeknight a tournament can run really late... and if we were playing well.. then I was OUT LATE...then up early to run daycare.. then OUT LATE again the next night... There were weeks that we were out 3-4 weeknights.. but.. WE LOVED IT...!!!
Then 2 years ago my husband took a second shift job...
Our pool playing came to a SCREECHING HALT...
We were on a league.. we quit... All the team members begged me to continue even though Mark would be at work..but I said no..
NO WAY am I hanging out in a bar/tavern/pool hall .. without my husband...
We were ALWAYS together.. ALWAYS...
I went through about 9 months of almost constant sadness and depression..
By then my oldest daughter was out of the home.. married.. and had just given birth to my now 2 year old granddaughter...
My other daughter had moved to live with us.. but she was 16.. in high school.. driving.. and working...
I was home alone...EVERY NIGHT..
you want to talk about a life style adjustment!!!!!
No pool..
No socialization except for daycare clients..
plus my husband was working tons of overtime...and allot of weekends..
It was an UGLY UGLY TIME in my life.. I cried all the time..
sadness and uselessness...
Then I slowly started shaking out of it..
Time goes on.. people adapt..
I started meeting friends for dinner several nights per week..
My husband and I have a joke about it now.. he asks who is your 'date' tonight.? I start texting him as soon as the last daycare child leaves.. if not before... I keep him constantly informed of where I am.. who I'm having dinner with.. I take pictures of my friends at the table.. of our food... and tell him what is going on... what our conversations are about.. etc... he messages me as he is able.. on breaks..
Wednesdays it's David and Robin.. a married couple we've been friends with for years... we meet at the same place .. eat dinner... hang out awhile.. home by 8:30 or 9 p.m.
Thursday nights I have a group of about 6 women.. we meet at the same place each week.. We call it our MENSA meeting...
we sit at same table..have the same waitress... One of my girlfriends comes here to my home to pick me up... we ride together.. she drops me off on her way home...
Friday's is 'open'.. but I seem to always have someone text me to see what I'm doing..
It's either girlfriends... single or married.. with or with out spouse..most of the time we end up with a fairly large group...
We go to local places.. sit and visit.. catch up on each other's lives...
Saturday is my night with my husband.. we eat out.. we have or go to parties ... cards.. pool... etc...
Sunday afternoon... 4 p.m.. pool tournament at the VFW...
We started going about 1 year ago... and..
It is usually the same people each week... about 8-12 of us.. people we've known and played with for years... we have a blast... Most weeks I win LAST LADY in tournament... My husband frequently wins 1st or 2nd place... which.. doesn't pay much.. $15 for me .. last lady... but.. it only costs us $5 each to play.. so .. I usually make our money back plus $5
My youngest daughter still lives with me..
she is 18 now.. graduated last year.. works.. and sleeps.. I seldom see her.. but she stays in touch by text and is home everynight safe in her bed..
We also travel several times per year..
Last year we went to Mexico in late May and again in mid June..
In December we took a 4 day cruise to Mexico..(5th cruise since we married)...
We just booked a trip to Playa del Carmen for end of May with another couple...
It's a good life...
www.texasjeepgirl.shutterfly.com
Besides Blackcat, I would like to move in with you also for awhile and do a practice run so I'm prepared for this empty nest stage.
It sounds fun even though my hubby says I'm going to hate it, he doesn't know how I loooonnnngggg someone not needing me 26 hours a day-
