If your children have left home and you are wondering what you should do with yourself, here are 10 fun, relaxing, and favourite activities for empty nest couples you can try. Empty Nest Syndrome, according to Psychology Today, is a feeling of loneliness or depression that occurs among parents after children grow up and leave home. This may occur when children go to college or get married. Women are more likely than men to be affected; often, when the nest is emptying, mothers are going through other significant life events as well, such as menopause or caring for elderly parents. But becoming an empty nester doesn’t have to leave you feeling depressed. Why not turn that feeling around and try some of the activities for empty nest couples we have listed below? One of the suggested activities is to re-decorate together. If you would like some help in getting started, Graham’s & Son will visit you in the comfort of your own home and give you a free consultation. Why not book yours today?
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10 Activities For Empty Nest Couples
Don’t waste your empty nest years being sad about your children leaving. Enjoy this season and take advantage or your new-found freedom and extra cash flow. Here are 10 great tips for empty nesters that you and your spouse can try together.
1. Take a Class Together
According to the Readers.com, one of the best activities for empty nest couples is taking a class together. It doesn’t matter if it is a painting, cooking, exercise, or even a language class. The important thing is that you find something that you are both interested in and spend the time learning it together.
2. Travel
The empty nest years are a perfect time for traveling. Since you don’t have to plan your vacations around school holidays, you may be able to take advantage of some really great deals, especially if you are adventurous and flexible enough to do last minute departures. There are many great websites like TripCentral.ca and AirCanada Vacations where you can find some incredible deals.
3. Date Nights
The empty nest years are the best time for you and your spouse to re-kindle the romance you enjoyed before your children took up so much of your time. If you think you are too out of practice, read the following article for some really great ideas on why and how to go about dating: Why And How To Date Your Spouse: 6 Tips For Successful Date Nights.
4. Trade Your Home in the Suburbs for a City Condo
According to the Washington Post, one of the latest trends for empty nesters is selling their large homes in the suburbs and moving into condos in the city. Now that they don’t need all of the extra space, they can enjoy the convenience of being close to all of the action of the city, and the extra time that a maintenance-free condo allows.
5. Volunteer Together
If you are not sure how to get involved, there are some great websites that can help you, such as Volunteer Canada. It will help you find volunteer opportunities in your community and even let you take a volunteer quiz to see where your skills and interests would be best used.
6. Adopt a Pet
If you are really missing that parenting feeling, Readers.com suggests that maybe the solution is to adopt a pet. Now we aren’t suggesting that a puppy or kitten could replace your lovely children, but they will give you an opportunity to exercise your caring side and the best part is that there are oodles of pet-sitting businesses nowadays so you won’t feel too tied down.
7. Exercise Together
Exercise is very important to good health, especially if you are over fifty. According to BetterAfter50.com, exercising together can be a great way to build on your relationship and having someone that you are accountable to will make it easier for you to stick with it. Exercising can be as informal as regular walks after supper or something more organized like taking a yoga class together. Whatever you decide, the benefits to both your health and relationship will be indispensable. Make sure, however, that you consult your physician before embarking on any new exercise routine.
8. Join or Start a Book Club
Remember when your children were young and your excuse for not reading more was that you had no time? Well, now that excuse is gone. Why not join and book club, or better still, start your own with your spouse? That way you can choose the type of books that you want to read and the friends or acquaintances to join. Goodreads.com even gives you a helpful list of popular books for book clubs to get you started. Having people over on a regular basis can also give you a great excuse to have your chairs or couch reupholstered.
9. Redecorate Together
One of the best empty nest suggestions is to redecorate together. Now that the children have left, it’s the perfect time for updating your decor. It will also make your home a nicer place for your family when they come home for a visit. How about renovating your kitchen or bathroom? These are two of the most popular renovations for increasing the value of your home as well. If you are not up for a complete renovation, why not consider updating your window treatments or flooring? It is amazing how much of a difference the installation of hardwood floors or even custom blinds or shutters can make to a room, not only in appearance but also in increased home value with energy savings from blinds or shutters.
10. Make a Bucket List
We’ve given you some great ideas for activities for empty nest couples to do together, so now our final empty nest suggestion involves your and your significant other putting your heads together and coming up with your all-time best bucket list of things you would like to do. Once you have your list, start making a plan of how you are going to accomplish each one and then start checking them off one by one.
Save Big on Blinds Now – Buy 2 Get 1 Free
If you’ve decided to follow through on our suggestion to redecorate together, it’s a great time to start. Right now Graham’s & Son is offering a great deal on our window treatments. Buy any two shades, blinds, or shutters and get the third one absolutely free. Now is the perfect time to purchase the window treatments that you have been thinking about. Contact the professionals at Graham’s & Son today to book your free in-home consultation and take advantage of this amazing deal.
