The GypsyNester

Tag Archives: Decibel

So I Broke Down and Tried Botox (please don’t judge me!)

I’m a squinter. Always have been. My Grandma used to caution me, “Quit doing that – your face will freeze that way!” In my twenties, David would affectionately tease me about my “worry line.” He would always know when something was amiss, all he had to do was look between my eyes.

Fast forward thirty (or so) years and, still, I squint on. The squinting’s worst when I’m writing – I don’t even realized I’m doing it.

And Grandma was right, my face… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged baby boomers, big ideas, change, Decibel, dirty secrets, gauntlet dropping, gypsy nester, holy crap, magic elixir, messed-up fads, old stuff, panic, The Boy, The Piglet

Exclusive GypsyNester Merchandise for Celebrating Life After Kids and Breaking the Empty Nest Rules!

Smooth Sailing? Not Likely!

I’d been following the controversial Abby Sunderland story with interest. Remember Abby? She was the sixteen-year-old sailor who, while attempting to sail her vessel around the world solo, found herself stranded in the middle of the Indian Ocean. Her parents took quite a bit of flack over the situation. I’d looked at this story from many different angles – and, as usual, my feelings were mixed.

The helicopter Mommy in me shouted, “What the &#*% were her parents thinking?!” But after calm reflection I saw things a bit differently. I too have a child with “dangerous dreams.” My son, The Boy, has been flying airplanes since he was thirteen.

Sure, I’ve heard all the arguments… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged baby boomers, big ideas, Decibel, empty nest, gypsy nester, helicoptering, holy crap, panic, The Boy, The Piglet, things going terribly awry, Veronica crying

Post-Parting Depression: Saying Good-bye to My Adult Kids

I’ve got an issue and I need help! I’m hoping I’ll get a lot of suggestions on this post from our amazingly insightful readers.

This past holiday season, we had a lot to celebrate. In addition to our typical yuletide festivities, we were blessed to celebrate my in-law’s 60th wedding anniversary two days after Christmas and our own 30th a week after the new year started.

As wonderful as it was to have such momentous events smack-in-the-middle of the holidays, it led to more good-byes to our adult kids than I’m normally used to.

Having The Spawn come and go in such short and hectic celebratory spurts gave me some interesting insight into how I deal with my empty nest good-byes.

Not well, it seems… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged anniversary, baby boomers, change, Decibel, empty nest, gypsy nester, in-laws, pitfalls, The Boy, The Piglet, things going terribly awry, Veronica crying

The Long and the Shorts of It All

When women get to be “of a certain age” questions of appropriateness inevitably rear their ugly heads. I think I have squarely hit that certain age. With a vengeance.

My questions of appropriateness have actually turned into a LIST of questions of appropriateness:

Should I stop wearing shorts?

What about sleeveless blouses?

Is my hair too long?

When should I stop dying it?

Should I do something about my wrinkles? The shorts quandary is a tough one for me. It’s on the top… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged baby boomers, big ideas, bikes, change, countdowns, Decibel, empty nest, gypsy nester, hike, messed-up fads, old stuff, pitfalls, self defense, The Piglet, things going terribly awry, Veronica crying

The Best? (Worst?) Funniest. Family Portrait. Ever.

Every family has ‘em. Piles of throw-away snapshots that you can’t bear to actually throw away. Before digital cameras our generation put every picture, no matter how bad, into a photo album. After all, they were precious – and we shelled out big bucks to have them developed.

Then there are the CLASSICS. The ones you should have thrown away, but instead you frame them. This one is ours.

Think about it, we thought we were sitting for a lovely family portrait. Clearly, all heck is breaking loose and none of us could… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged baby boomers, charmed life, comedy, Decibel, empty nest, grandkids, gypsy nester, holidays, holy crap, homecoming, in-laws, out-of-the-box memories, the, The Piglet, things going terribly awry

No, We Won’t Buy You a…

Our main goal as parents was to end up with happy, healthy, self-sufficient adults.

We can’t tell anyone how to do this — everyone’s different and Lord knows we made our share of mistakes along the way — but we can offer an insight that we’ve gained through our own offspring’s transitions from childhood to adulthood.

Don’t give kids everything they want, just everything they need.

A whole lot of what they want is stupid crap and… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged baby boomers, big ideas, boomerang kids, college, Decibel, drunken college kids, empty nest, get a job, gypsy nester, killing and eating ramen, The Boy, The Great Puberty War, The Piglet

Things We Wish We’d Known BEFORE We Sent Our Kids to College

With autumn upon us, many new empty nesters have sent a fledgling off to college for the first time. Here are some DOs and DON’Ts on how to get through that first semester without losing your mind.

1. Don’t start off on a bad note. It’s hard to let our kids go. The day our babies head out on their own is a tough one for any parent. Because of her self-awareness about her emotional outbursts, Veronica
… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged Decibel, empty nest, GN Guides, gypsy nester, helicoptering, memory lane, milestones, pitfalls, The Boy, The Piglet, top ten lists, Veronica crying

Creating the ULTIMATE College Care Package – A GN Guide

Let’s brainstorm and come up with ideas for college care package for our newly “empty” nested friends!

Our youngest, The Boy, was entering his second year in college. He was third kid that I had gone through the away-at-school process with, so I was starting to run low on the groovy care package ideas.

I really needed some help. I decided that I should hand it over to the experts. Our scholarly readers… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged baby boomers, caramel, college, cookies, Decibel, empty nest, food, GN Guides, gypsy nester, holy crap, killing and eating ramen, packing, St. Croix, The Boy, The Piglet, things going terribly awry

Fear Conquering & Paragliding in Lima, Peru

Yup, you read that right!

Veronica takes on her biggest challenge yet – strapped on to a parachute high above the beach cliffs of Lima, Peru!

And it’s… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged baby boomers, big ideas, certain death, Decibel, fear conquering, gypsy nester, holy crap, messed-up fads, panic, Peru, South America, sports, things going terribly awry, travel

Fear Conquering & Writing A Will

In the union of David and I, I am the less fearless. David has always been the adventurer – I am the homebody, the helicopter mom, the worrier. Selling the nest and heading out into the big, wide world, for me, was stepping outside the box. WAY out of the box.

My biggest concern was to have our affairs in order, in the event of my certain demise. It’s essential for me to be sure that the kids are not burdened when I go down in flames in a hang gliding / bungee jumping / snowboarding / street food eating episode… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged baby boomers, certain death, change, covering our ass, Decibel, empty nest, fear conquering, gypsy nester, holy crap, inappropriate adjectives, packing, planning, The Boy, The Piglet, urbanite offspring

Stick a Fork in Us, We’re Done!

Our youngest, The Boy, graduated from college on Saturday. He’s somehow managed to graduate with honors, all while holding down two jobs. We can’t imagine having that much energy. As parents, we couldn’t be prouder.

In addition to the pride we feel for our son’s accomplishments, we have found other reasons to celebrate. This is the last year we’ll ever make a tuition payment, have an offspring on our medical insurance, or… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged baby boomers, boomerang kids, change, charmed life, Decibel, empty nest, get a job, graduation, gypsy nester, milestones, The Boy, The Piglet

Helicopter Mom – You Are Grounded!

“A mother is only as happy as her saddest child,” a close friend’s grandmother used to say. When I first heard her say this, all three of my children were young and safely in the nest so I could totally relate. Somehow I thought once they were grown up this would change. It didn’t.

Trouble finds its way into everyone‘s lives – and as much as we hate it – trouble finds our adult children. Whether it rears its ugly head in a… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged baby boomers, college, Decibel, empty nest, gypsy nester, helicoptering, killing and eating ramen, The Boy, The Piglet, things going terribly awry, urbanite offspring, Veronica crying

Who’s Kidding Who?

The last task of raising a child is letting them go. Allowing them to flap their cute little wings and fly… giving them a gentle nudge out of the nest to get them airborne. Ah yes, little birdies, spread your wings and fly. OK, sometimes it’s more like a hard shove off a cliff… but the harder transition from the parent-child relationship to an adult-to-adult one must be made.

This process doesn’t happen overnight. The ritual sounds easy in theory, but it can be a bit sticky in practice. It’s difficult not to be mommy or daddy and even harder for the chicks not to revert… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged annoyed pigs, baby boomers, belief system, boomerang kids, change, Decibel, empty nest, gypsy nester, helicoptering, in-laws, The Boy, The Piglet, urbanite offspring

Grandchildish Behavior

I’ve had two unexpected conversations recently that have given me pause for reflection. The first was with my father-in-law while dining over Mexican food in Kansas. While catching him up with our kids’ lives, he asked me if they were dating anyone of note. I told him that at the moment there were no significant others. Then, the bolt out of the blue,

“Oh, you must be sad that you won’t be having grandchildren anytime soon.”

The next exchange was with my daughters, The Piglet and Decibel.

“All of our friends’ mothers are on crazy grandma patrol. How come you aren’t nagging us about having babies?”

It started out as gentle teasing, but… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged baby boomers, change, countdowns, Decibel, dirty secrets, empty nest, flying spew, grandkids, gypsy nester, helicoptering, holy crap, in-laws, procreating, The Piglet, urbanite offspring

Help! There’s No One to Eat the Leftovers!

Pretty much everything about life changes when that last kid walks out the door. Veronica and I think we should make the most of these adjustments, that’s why we started GypsyNester.com, to celebrate life after kids. Most of the changes were easily anticipated but as always, some things are unforeseen.

Over the past few years, we have had to relearn how to shop and cook for just the two of us. That fell into the unexpected for me. I don’t know why, but it was not something that I thought of before the clearing out of the nest… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged baby boomers, being a carnivore, covert actions, Decibel, empty nest, food, gypsy nester, holy crap, killing and eating ramen, meat avoiding, munchies, The Boy, The Piglet, yard apes

16 Boxes

Almost everyday we hear somebody say “I live vicariously through you” or “ I wish we could do what you’re doing.” As inviting as it may seem, it’s probably not the lifestyle for everybody. There is actually quite a commitment to chucking it all and becoming a gypsy. It takes a dash of nerve and a pinch of intestinal fortitude to get rid of everything you own except a handful of personal items that can be fit into a few boxes.

16 boxes to be exact. Close to 30 years of marriage and 3 kids later, we’re whittled down to 16 boxes, most them in storage. Many of these boxes are tagged to go directly to the kids… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged change, Decibel, empty nest, fear conquering, gypsy nester, out-of-the-box memories, packing, planning, sell the nest, semifictitious characters, The Boy, The Piglet, Veronica crying

2012. A Year for Smiles

My New Year resolution is to make everyone I come in contact with smile. You are forewarned. I WILL crack you.

Sharing smiles with strangers has long been a personal philosophy of mine, at times to the occasional chagrin of David and the embarrassment of my former teenaged kids, but this year I want to… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged baby boomers, belief system, big ideas, change, charmed life, comedy, Decibel, gypsy nester, holidays, international sign language, laughter, milestones, smiles, The Piglet, urbanite offspring

No Home for the Holidays

Selling the nest and becoming GypsyNesters has given our adult chicks the joy of being the hosts in their homes for the holidays.

Christmas is the one time we allow ourselves to hands-down spoil our kids – and, boy, do we ever! As thrifty as we are during the non-Jesus-being-born part of the year, we let loose the coffers when we visit The Spawn during that “most wonderful time of the year.”

Oh, the anticipation! The joy!… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged baby boomers, change, Decibel, empty nest, food, ground level travel, gypsy nester, holidays, new york, out-of-the-box memories, sell the nest, The Boy, The Piglet, urbanite offspring

Adventures in Nest Swapping

One of the many advantages to having an “empty” nest is the freedom to swap your nest with other adventurous types. We decided that before we sold our house, we would try using it as bait for a cheap month in New York City.

Being in the habit of Googling at the drop of a hat, we took the online approach to finding suitable exchanges. We looked at several different sites, and chose a well known one for its ease of use and abundant choices from all over the globe. For a small annual fee, one can peruse homes, set up destinations to visit and… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged cheesy tourist diversions, Decibel, empty nest, food, GN Guides, googling at the drop of a hat, gypsy nester, hotel alternatives, new york, The Piglet, travel, urbanite offspring

9 Things We Told Our Girls in the Event of the Manhattan Hurricane

We have two daughters, The Piglet and Decibel, planning to ride out Hurricane Irene on Manhattan. Having lived in the Caribbean, here is the advice we gave them. Please share this with loved ones as being over prepared can make you feel stupid, it can also save your life.

1. Fill up your bathtub with water. Water supplies get contaminated with flooding. You will want to bathe and cook. If you don’t have a bathtub, buckets, pots & pans work as well.

2. Buy food. I called it “The Week of Living Amishly.” Canned food, canned food, canned food.

3. It’s gross, but your toilet will only… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged baby boomers, caribbean, Decibel, drunken college kids, electronics, empty nest, GN Guides, gypsy nester, new york, panic, The Piglet, things going terribly awry, top ten lists, urbanite offspring

When Hurricanes Blow

Our daughter, Decibel, spent a whopping twenty minutes at the college of her choice, Tulane University. She never attended a single class. It has to be the shortest college career in history.

There was a storm a brewin‘. And it was a whopper.

On a beautiful August day, Decibel landed in New Orleans ready to take on the world. She was especially giddy since she had been chosen from the pool of incoming freshman in the Musical Theater program to sing at orientation — a high honor indeed. Not to mention instant… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged baby boomers, caribbean, college, Decibel, empty nest, gypsy nester, holy crap, irony bus, louisiana, New Orleans, panic, pitfalls, storms, thanksgiving, The Piglet, things going terribly awry, urbanite offspring

Mama Loves a Ball of Paint

It’s Mother’s Day. This one is a milestone for me. It’s my first without chicks in the nest. I’d received phone calls from all three of my children — the fast-walking, subway-chasing, black-wearing, taxi-flagging NYC urbanite daughters, The Piglet and Decibel, and The Boy, sending their love and best wishes. Each expressed their undying gratitude for spawning them and shared all the wonderful things going on in their busy lives. Absolutely lovely, everyone remembered me, and no guilt calls would be needed for at least a week.

Now the rest of the day loomed menacingly. This GypsyNesting Mama needed a diversion. It had to be a well established diversion, something so spectacular that… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged Americana, baseball, cheesy tourist diversions, Decibel, empty nest, ginormous stuff, ground level travel, gypsy nester, Indiana, The Boy, The Piglet, travel, urbanite offspring

Love and Spit-takes

Have you noticed that the older we get, the less we laugh? As a mother and someone who has worked in academic settings, I find myself envious of teenaged girls who can work themselves into hiccup-inducing hysterics over the slightest thing. Admittedly, the tears come just as fast, and I have to say I’m glad I’m past THAT nonsense but just witnessing a spontaneous giggle-fest sets my heart a-singing.

As a society, we unfortunately chalk uncontrollable laughter up to immaturity. How sad is that? I feel blessed anytime I’m with someone who can find humor in… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged baby boomers, Decibel, empty nest, flying spew, gauntlet dropping, googling at the drop of a hat, gypsy nester, laughter, new york, out-of-the-box memories, spit-take, The Piglet, urbanite offspring, wine

T-Rex and the City

There’s passion on Manhattan. I felt it as soon as I arrived on the island. For me, a major part of this enthusiasm radiates from my fast-walking, subway-chasing, black-wearing, taxi-flagging urbanite daughters, The Piglet and Decibel. The New York I know is viewed through their eyes and it is a very youthful place. The Piglet recently moved in to her first studio apartment (all by herself!), so it was decided I’d stay with her. Between work and school, Decibel is fitting me in where she can.

I’m on my own during the day (as a matter of fact, I’m sitting in a Starbucks with my laptop, just for the experience. Very civilized.) and at night, we go out. I have to say I’m a bit flattered that The Piglet feels she can drag this old T-Rex around everywhere she goes. But, apparently, this dinosaur can… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged baby boomers, bang-up people watching, cheesy tourist diversions, comedy, Decibel, dinosaurs, drunken college kids, empty nest, gypsy nester, new york, out-of-the-box memories, rushes, The Piglet, travel, urbanite offspring, walking, wine

Graduation A Go-Go

“Graduation speeches were invented largely in the belief that college students should never be released into the world until they have been properly sedated.” – Garry Trudeau

Between our brood of three and my brother’s trio we have six kids within a ten year age span. That used to mean some hilarious… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged baby boomers, boomerang kids, college, Decibel, empty nest, get a job, graduation, gypsy nester, in-laws, The Boy, The Piglet, urbanite offspring, yard apes

French Canadian Kiss

It’s a six hour transatlantic flight from New York City to get a French fix in Paris or, if you’re more Chevrolet set than jet set, you can hop in the car and drive six hours to get your Franco fill right here in North America.

Having seen much of the USA in a Chevrolet, we decided to swing by New York City to grab our daughters, The Piglet and Decibel, and head north for a whirlwind… CONTINUE READING >>

Tagged art, bang-up people watching, Canada, churches, Decibel, effed up food, festivals, food, France, motorsports, music, no plans, Ooh la la, The Boy, The Piglet, travel, urbanite offspring