Empty Nest Christmas by Corinne Royer

Empty Nest Christmas

by Corinne Royer

The kids are all grown up and gone, but this big old house is not empty. No, sir; the two of us have had to downsize twice. We’ve unloaded tons of "things" on the kids; and we still need more space for our interests and hobbies.

We began our own Holiday Traditions. First, our Holiday’s start on my birthday in October, and end on New Year's Day. Here's how it goes: My birthday, Indian Summer, Halloween, Harvest Tie, Thanksgiving, Paul's birthday, Our Anniversary, Christmas and New Year's Eve.

Focusing on Christmas-we bought these big red and green Matryoshka boxes. They’re all glossy, bright and decorative. We divide them up between us. One year, he starts with the biggest box, me the next size: and so on. Then the next year, I get the biggest box.

We each buy odds and ends. Office toys, sewing items, hair products; you get the idea. Nothing expensive, nothing that will put us into debt: so we won’t spend the next year paying the balance. Anyone else? Have you spent your adult life going into debt every year for your kids and relatives? We send e-cards to relatives, now and we Skype the fussy, needy ones.

We stack the boxes from biggest to smallest, in two stacks, side by side: instead of a tree (no muss, no fuss). We begin opening one box each, every night for the 12 days of Christmas. Each day, we celebrate and occasionally slip in one, maybe two expensive, beautifully wrapped gifts for the season. Last year I got a special sewing machine that sews loose yarn into fabric-it is an amazingly creative form of decorating cloth. We open the left over boxes on Christmas Eve.

We have been married for 33 years, this December. We have had eight years all to ourselves. I recommend that you all consider designing the end years of your lives. The end years that are all your own, single or married. Celebrate everything that you love. Everything!