DH and I are 49 and 50 - empty nesters this year. Love it, but so far the nest is only empty a few months at a time and we are in touch with kids frequently. .We are a couple again and it’s wonderful. Excited for the retirement years. We are social with our friends and love to travel with (and without) our young adult “kids”. As others have said enjoy your freedom - hike, explore, volunteer or pursue your interests. I work out a ton and work part time as a management consultant and have an amazing herb garden to cook with. DH plays guitar and jams with friends at home and I entertain around these gatherings. . It’s So fun! The kids will kinda cramp our style this summer, but I’ll enjoy every moment. I must also add both kids played competitive sports that consumed our lives and empty nest is way better.

OP, we're childless and mid-50s. We spend our free time working on the house, exploring (we like to hike), and volunteering with a local civic group, which we got involved in simply to meet people. We occasionally do Meetups -- mostly hiking -- and we started organizing regular get togethers with neighbors in the hopes of turning them into friends.

It's work, but it's the rest of your life. Our only rule is that we don't do anything we don't enjoy just to "be busy" or to meet people.

Anonymous wrote:When I was 50 and my then ex-H was 55 our kids were ages 30 and 25, we had two grandchildren, there was plenty to do and it was all fun. You'll never convince me it's a good idea to have kids later in life.

I am now in my 60s and have been doing whatever the hell I want for the last 20 years, oh and also working. I highly recommend it.

DP Great it worked for you but not everyone meets their spouse young and has kids.

Anonymous wrote:Have another set of kids.

Too old for that one. I know people who have done it though.

Anonymous wrote:I won't be an empty nester till my youngest goes off to college when I am 64 and by time she graduates will be 68. People are having kids later, empty nesters will not exist as most of us will be half dead. My good friend is 57 and has a 1, 3 and 7 year old. He already has a stent. When his youngest is off to college at 74 he will just be happy to be Alive and healthy

Are you a man?

When I was 50 and my then ex-H was 55 our kids were ages 30 and 25, we had two grandchildren, there was plenty to do and it was all fun. You'll never convince me it's a good idea to have kids later in life.

I am now in my 60s and have been doing whatever the hell I want for the last 20 years, oh and also working. I highly recommend it.

Anonymous wrote:If your kid is going off to college in the fall, believe me, you will still be on parent duty. You will see them at breaks, you will help them to figure out the logistics of getting to/from school, you'll most likely help them move into the dorm, you'll attend Parent Day...etc

It's not like your kid goes away to college and you stop being a parent. Even after they are working and raising their own kids, you'll be involved to some degree as grandparents.

As for what you do when you no longer have to supervise your kid in the evenings.....go out and have fun. Seriously. Go to concerts, go out bar hopping, go out to dinner, take weekend trip to the beach.

What did you and your husband do together before kids?

Sometimes our kids in their 20s need more support than our tween

A lot of the people I know live in fun neighborhoods in DC like Logan Circle and are constantly trying out new restaurants and going to see plays and performances. They live like people in their 20s, only with more spending money!

Anonymous wrote:I'm getting ready to be an empty nester and quite honestly, feel like I'm coming completely undone. For the last 20 years, being a parent has been such a huge part of my identity and even though I work, I still feel like my life is centered around my life as a mom. I am having such a difficult time imagining what life will be like in the fall once it's just DH and I. But then I think about how many people there are in their early 50's who never had kids at all, and I feel like I should look at them as a model for what my life should be like, thing is I'm not really close to anyone in their 50's without kids. So if there is anyone out there who is childless and in their 50's can you give me an idea of what life is like for you? And I'm more interested in the day in and day out, not just things like traveling.

This will give you an exact idea how it is going to be.. dr. Wikipedia is in the house:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empty_nest_syndrome

Have another set of kids.

Early 50s, unable to have children:
We work, probably will be working until 70.

For entertainment we garden, fix up our old house, go to movies and concerts, go to museums in DC, trying to get involved in church. I'm trying to find some new hobbies and make new friends, since we moved here it's been hard to befriend others since many people in their 50s still have kids at home..

Anonymous wrote:I won't be an empty nester till my youngest goes off to college when I am 64 and by time she graduates will be 68. People are having kids later, empty nesters will not exist as most of us will be half dead. My good friend is 57 and has a 1, 3 and 7 year old. He already has a stent. When his youngest is off to college at 74 he will just be happy to be Alive and healthy

Lol. Guess there’s something to be said for staying alive.

I won't be an empty nester till my youngest goes off to college when I am 64 and by time she graduates will be 68. People are having kids later, empty nesters will not exist as most of us will be half dead. My good friend is 57 and has a 1, 3 and 7 year old. He already has a stent. When his youngest is off to college at 74 he will just be happy to be Alive and healthy

When we first became empty nesters, first I gave the house a good cleaning.
Then purged a bunch of stuff and had a couple yard sales.
Then I painted a couple rooms in the house.

Then I set up my sewing machine and made Christmasy pajama pants for my kids and their sweethearts. Then I made aprons for all the women in my family and DH's family.

Then I tried growing a vegetable garden, but after a couple years I realized that a home grown tomato costs twice as much as a store bought tomato, at least for me. And I also realized you can't go on a long vacation if you have a vegetable garden because you need to water it every few days.

Then I made a family cookbook.
Then I organized a family reunion.
I made homemade tortellini and other labor intensive meals.

Then I made 40 aprons with the intention of selling them at craft fairs / farmers markets. But I realized it was taking me about ten hours to make each apron, from the shopping for fabric part to the ironing and packaging the finished product part, and I was only making about $2 an hour by selling aprons. So I gave up on that.


Then I became a grandparent.

gardening, travel, sailing. Volunteering, community activism, if that’s your thing. Planning for retirement.