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Christine: You are listening to the Your Empty Nest Coach podcast, with Coach Christine, episode number 41: How Early is Too Early to Plan For The Empty Nest? … A Green Popsicle Stick Facebook group member asked me, “How early is too early to prepare for the empty nest?” I thought about this and I’m not sure if there is a “too early.”
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Christine: You are listening to the Your Empty Nest Coach podcast, with Coach Christine, episode number 41: How Early is Too Early to Plan For The Empty Nest? This podcast is for you, a mother who years ago walked away from a career to raise your child. Sure, you’ve been busy volunteering, car pools, maybe part-time work and taking care of everyone. But your main gig, that has been your child. Now, that they are in their later years of high school, the empty nest looms ahead for you and it is freaking you out. I’ve been there and I get it. Together, we’ll turn our freaking out energy into freaking awesome energy.
00:00:48
Hello, my future empty nest friend. How are you doing? How are you doing with your thought deliveries? Are you noticing them? I hope you are because I want you to gain power in your life. A quick reminder that all of my episodes are brought to you by my free seven-day program, “The Empty Nest: A Guide to Uncovering My Future.” To be clear, we are talking about your future, not mine. Hop on over to my website, youremptynestcoach.com and sign up today. Look for the link that says “Uncover Your Future.”
00:01:16
This may be a super quick episode. A Green Popsicle Stick Facebook group member asked me, “How early is too early to prepare for the empty nest?” I thought about this and I’m not sure if there is a “too early.” I mean, we only have our children in our lives temporarily, after all. These amazing humans enter our life, and we have no guarantee how long they will remain a part of our life, or how long we’ll be in theirs. When I genuinely consider it, parenthood is this incredible temporary custody situation. The end goal is for our children to become emotional adults who can soar on their own. It kind of changes the whole journey with this perspective, or maybe you already understand this concept.
00:02:05
The essential thing in all of this, is to know that each moment should be treasured. Not all parents get to see their child reach adulthood, and not all children have both, or either parent, with them through their teenage years. We are a mere blip on the radar. The older we get, the faster each year appears to fly. Is this my wake-up call to you? Maybe, or maybe I want you to be aware that our children aren’t ours. They are theirs. They will be who they will be. We can do everything in our power to help them become who they are meant to be, or we can go through the motions and do what everyone else does, checking off the boxes of life.
00:02:48
When you know your child well, you’ll fully understand that the decision for them to leave town, to move 200 miles away for a great opportunity is the right decision for them to learn, to grow, and to continue on their life’s journey. The opportunity for growth, in both your child and you. From now until then, build them up. Provide them with fantastic life skills. Encourage them, and most importantly, give them permission to fail and learn from their failures by providing them with tools that they need to sort in their life. When the time comes, you can enjoy watching them fly away.
00:03:25
Sure, you’ll miss them like crazy. That is a given. After all, bittersweet is the word that I feel represents this time better than any other word. As a parent, the best thing we can do is to prepare ourselves for the empty nest time, so that when our children leave, they’ll know we’ll miss them, but they’ll also understand that we’ll be okay. That is a gift worth giving, to them, and you.
00:03:54
How do you do that? That is what this podcast is all about. If this is your first time listening, I invite you to subscribe to this podcast, and head back to episode 1. I also have a popular episode about life skills, where I share life skills needed for college. Some of those are general life skills, not just college-dependent.
00:04:16
The questions I have for you, in this episode, are: Where are you on the empty nest journey? And, do you agree or disagree with my timing? I invite you to fly on over to our Facebook group, to share your answers to these questions with our amazing flock. Our name is Green Popsicle Sticks. Want to know why? Listen to episode number 17, or head to my website, youremptynestcoach.com/community for links to join our flock. I know the adjustment to not having your kiddos at home full-time isn’t always easy, but it sure can be a ton more fun with a flock of friends. We look forward to seeing you there.
00:04:56
As always, I provide content to make you think, my empty nest friend. I hope that I am able to provide you with thoughts that positively impact your life. You’ll find the show notes for this and every episode on my website. My next episode’s title is: “My First Retreat; an Audio Experience.” Here’s my plan for this episode. I took videos, pictures and some audio sounds of nature from my very first retreat. My goal is to combine it and make it a video that I will post on Youtube, and I will also post the audio here, as my next episode. Fingers crossed it goes well.
00:05:38
Don’t forget to subscribe to this podcast. It is free and you’ll be notified when I post a new episode every Friday. Oh, my goodness, did you hear? I have an online program, “The Empty Nest: First Steps Towards Success.” I now offer GPS Reset Weekend Retreats, “Unplugged and Charged Up,” and I am available for speaking engagements. Seriously! What are you waiting for? Visit my website, or see this episodes full show notes. If my show has helped you in any way, please share it with one other person you think it will help, too. You’ll be giving them a free gift. Thanks for your time and energy with that, and thanks so much for listening, my empty nest friend. Remember, you are amazing!
