It's quite a reality punch when the first one moves out. When my friend's first kid moved out, he started tearing up when struck with the reality that they most likely would never live in the same house again, and that kind of prepared me for that event. You never know nowadays, though, with the world as it is. They might come back!
We became empty nesters early this year as our youngest moved out. On the drive home from the airport, my wife and I looked at each other like we were seeing each other clearly for the first time again. It was quite a moment.
Not only that, but both our boys moved overseas, so they're far, far away. We still vid call together every week to catch up, and sometimes we even play Hearts or Euchre online. We also have to exercise exquisite restraint not to keep offering advice to them about how to find their way in the life situations they encounter. They just tell us that they'll figure it out, which I guess is a good sign.
