Shadows of The Empty Nest

Siesta Key Beach voted one of the top beaches in the USA

My wife Mary Beth and I just returned late last night from a week at my parents home in Sarasota Florida. It was a the first time we've taken a weeks vacation without any of our kids along! It was something we really hadn't thought about until we were leaving. We've taken trips together before just the two of us... mostly work related trips. But this was the first real vacation kind of trip without the kids and it was a little odd at first but mostly really nice. Not because our kids are hard to be with in fact my children are some of my favorite people to hang out with. I think what made this so nice was the fact that we could focus on each other with nothing and no one else requiring our attention.
It occurred to me one day as we were cruising in my Mom's little VW  Cabrio convertable, that I was getting a glimpse of what the Empty Nest might be like... and I liked it! Granted we were in an breathtaking beautiful place with nothing on the agenda but sleeping, reading, eating and hanging out at Siesta Key Beach for seven days. What's not to like! But all of that aside  this time together just reminded me how blessed I am to have fallen in love and married a girl who is my best friend. Our years together have been so rich and full and our kids have been a big part of that. But I can honestly say that getting a glimpse of these shadows of what's to come makes me smile.