Anonymous wrote: We’d watch the news together, ha.

Oh my goodness, ha indeed. We would sleep in on a lazy Sunday morning, and read the New York times and the Sunday Washington Post together! Sharing sections. Man, I haven't done that in ages.

Booze, pubs, restaurants, clubs, travel, dinner parties, day trips, cycling, adventures.

Well I still have teenagers, but when it was just my DH and I, before kids, we’d go to the gym after work and either make dinner together or get take-out. We’d watch the news together, ha. Talk, drink wine, have sex. I read a lot more, and spent more time “doing things” with friends.

On weekends, we would go on day trips, exploring, hiking, hang out with friends, parties, go to bars, or work on house projects.

I prayed, said Psalms, and studied the Bible.

We had two years together before kids, and went out to dinner, hiked on trails, visited National Parks. A quiet life. Not very social, because we'd just parachuted from abroad and had few friends.

Anonymous wrote:I lived in San Francisco. I would walk across the entire city to go to the grocery store, and on the way stop at any shop I felt like, and take the bus back.

Lived in NYC but very similar. I was part of a hiking club that did lots of day trips, trained and did tris, and then anytime I was lonely (which was a good bit pre-current partner and kids) I walked and explored and walked and explored. Would just take the subway out to a new neighborhood and poke around pretty regularly.

I could definitely do it again. Think I'd add gardening, art classes, and volunteering with a local school more.

Before kids I worked two jobs so only bars/clubs on Fridays and Saturdays lol, the occasional festival and concert and travel to see family.

Pre kids?

I worked a second job.
I had dinner with friends. We did a book club. I traveled. We took weekend trips or day trips, went hiking.

In retirement? I'd like to volunteer more - I always enjoyed my Girl Scout troop, and would love to have more time to take girls camping again.

Anonymous wrote:I lived in San Francisco. I would walk across the entire city to go to the grocery store, and on the way stop at any shop I felt like, and take the bus back.

I'd go to the beach with friends and smoke pot.

I'd go on long hikes.

I'd go wine tasting with friends.

I'd go to art museums and indie bookstores and peruse as long as I wanted. If there was a speaker I'd go listen in the evenings.

I'd go to concerts.

I visited different churches and tried out different religions.

I volunteered once a week at a women's shelter.

I ran in races and went to parades.

I read lots of books.

I'd forgotten about this. Being young and literally walking all over a city. It was fun.

I lived in San Francisco. I would walk across the entire city to go to the grocery store, and on the way stop at any shop I felt like, and take the bus back.

I'd go to the beach with friends and smoke pot.

I'd go on long hikes.

I'd go wine tasting with friends.

I'd go to art museums and indie bookstores and peruse as long as I wanted. If there was a speaker I'd go listen in the evenings.

I'd go to concerts.

I visited different churches and tried out different religions.

I volunteered once a week at a women's shelter.

I ran in races and went to parades.

I read lots of books.

I played in an adult volleyball league, I took language lessons, I did all my own housework and (small yard) yard work. I took wine tasting lessons, I cooked dinner for my friends on weekends and went out to dinner on some weeknights with friends, I played in a softball league. I also worked like crazy and traveled a lot for fun and for work. I had a blast being young! Funny enough, I didn't date much until I met DH at 35.

I know what I was doing. Practicing law.

Anonymous wrote:you sound boring

Yet, here you are.

you sound boring

DH and I were wondering how the #$W%$ we are going to spend our time in an "empty nest" and started trying to remember "what the hell did we do all day in our 20's/early 30's before having kids"?

I -quite literally- cannot remember (in my 50s now). I know there were periods of time where we went out a lot with various friend groups before those groups just sort of vanished (people moving, jobs, marriages). We'd go the gym. But all those evenings and weekends . . . . I have no idea how i spent my time before kids. And it's not like we did nothing or had no hobbies while raising kids. We did. And we traveled with our kids a lot. But, primarily, we coached, did all the kid activities, volunteered with the schools/teams, etc. And that has been the bulk of the last couple of decades.

I don't know how we'll fill that time again and that is making me a little sad or anxious or . . . . not sure the feeling.

Did we really do so little in our 20s/30s during our free time? I feel like we didn't but we must have.