Emptying the nest

Memories That Bridge Our Empty Nest Moments Together

Shelley

On a mission out of control, I scrolled through almost every last photo I’ve taken over the years, it’s an understatement to tell you my list of favorites was/is long. When I told Mr. that, he said, “Yeah, I need to upgrade the server space again!”

Yikes, I have to say, I was lost in the flood of memories roaring in as I scrolled and clicked and relived moments – it was tough to pick just 10. Lest I forget to tell you, I thought of you too. You being here to see our family grow over the years remains a joyful presence I’m forever grateful for having in my blogging life. THANK YOU!

On to 10 of my favorite photos.

The first time I captured a Mr. and Mrs. house finch couple photo was in the full-on spring of the year our empty nest began. They were building a new kind of nest too. I remember hearing their chirping as I was walking under the trees and looking up to see who was giving me the what for stink eyes. Except they were cuter than that.

I love the colors and the bokeh in the background.

Fast forward to this past Saturday morning. Mr. and I were driving into town to check on one of our rental properties. I, holding my camera at the ready, glanced at Mr. and said, “One of the prompts for my blog post this week is Bridges.” He slowed down at each bridge and made sure the wipers on the car cleared the window with each click I took. I took a lot of crappy photos which I’ll spare you from seeing. It was a fun adventure though. Spontaneous moments are hard to capture in photos, don’t you agree?

After driving me around in the rainy weather, as I was taking many blurry photos of the bridges in our quaint little town, Mr. slowed down at Irvine Park, stopped the car, and said, “How about a bridge to nowhere?”

Me, jumping out of the car door with camera in hand, “Yes, that works!” Smiling and thinking that he’s so darn clever and thoughtful. And he knew I was happy, but not thrilled with the photos I had taken so far. Until this one. . .

As I stepped onto the short bridge jutting out over the creek running through the park, I heard rustling underneath me. I snapped more than ten photos of these two lovelies who were as curious about me as I was about them. Going out on a limb here, I imagine the fallen tree serves as a bridge to them and other critters. I loved the photo because it was a serendipity moment. ✅ Bridges prompt completed.

Mr. has been a solid rock for me and our family over the years – we’re celebrating 34 of those years and counting for our marriage this coming weekend.

In moments of thinking back to moments that were tough as we entered into our empty nesting stage was the day we found an apartment in Logan Square for our youngest to live in for the final 3 years of her time in SAIC in Chicago. Her and her roommate’s apartment was on the 3rd floor. 6 hours away from us. I’ll never forget this photo I took of Mr. and our daughter – it still tugs at my heartstrings.

As does this one of her standing in her new apartment looking out the window. Hopefully, she was pondering the adventures ahead. She didn’t cry so I wouldn’t cry. I didn’t until we got in the car and headed back to our empty nest home. It’s a mom thing I do.

Three years later, on the day of her graduation, I captured this photo below of our daughters against the skyline of Chicago. They supported each other while they were apart. They were so grown up, oh, so grown up! And brave. While we all enjoyed our adventures in Chicago, discovering the museums, the Bean, and Pizano’s Pizza, the dorm & apartment she stayed in, and the school’s art displays, all of it fascinating, Chicago is a place I didn’t know I had any lust to visit it again. . . until I relooked at the photos.

In 2021, I fed off of their bravery in taking new adventures as they encouraged me to travel with a dear friend to Florida for a week-long girl’s trip. Yeah, I know, shame on us, it was a pandemic for chrissake. Anyhoo, had I not done so, I would’ve missed out on all the fun we had and this moment when I captured a gorgeous photo of the pier at Fort Myers Beach. Sadly, it was destroyed in Hurricane Ian in September of 2022.

I came back from that trip changed in many ways. I was learning to let go of things out of my control. One of those things, a very hard thing indeed, was learning to say goodbye to my faithful companion who filled so much of my heart when the girls moved out of our house. I adore this tender moment I captured with Copper.

Two years have passed since we said goodbye. It’s weird, I’ve had many dreams recently of him and holding him. Is that odd? Is that normal? I dunno, but they do give me a warm comforting feeling.

Our two cats have become extra affectionate. They’ve been less stressed since their dog buddy isn’t around. They’ve lost weight and play a lot more. Other than their messy litter habits we’ve learned to tolerate, we’ve grown to pick them up often to cuddle and look into their eyes and see their love for us. Who could resist these two? Their presence in our empty nest has been a bridge of love for us.

Dessy’s eyes
Tizzie’s eye, nose, and whiskers.

Lest I forget, the last photo on my list of favorites has not been lost. The header photo is a bonus photo for this post for those who know where you’ve seen it before! It’s the original photo I took and used to create the badge for Linda Hill’s Stream of Consciousness Saturday. It will always be a favorite photo of mine and apparently, yours too, since you voted it the winning photo that year. It was taken in the year our nest became 100% empty of kids moving back and forth from our home and theirs. That year, I learned playing like a kid crawling on the ground with my camera was fun!

Post Inspiration: Linda G. Hill’s Stream of Consciousness Saturday – Guest host Dan Antion with this prompt: Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “Last/Lest/List/Lost.” Use them in any form you like. Use one, use two, or use them all. Bonus points if you use all four. I’ll chip in extra bonus points if you use the word formed from the missing vowel in a well-mannered way, but behave yourselves lest you lose all your bonus points… Enjoy! Terri Webster Schrandt’s Sunday Stills: Sept 24 Bridges; and Tina Schell for Lens-Artists #268 Tell Us Why with the following clarification: This week, we challenge you to choose up to a MAXIMUM OF TEN images that are your all-time favorites. No matter the subject or how long ago they were taken, you need to TELL US WHY you chose them. If you select images for their sentimental value they should still be strong from a technical perspective.

PS – I was MIA from the blogosphere last week. Mr. and I took a 24-hour whirlwind trip to the Southern part of our state for a wedding and then an overnight stay with our youngest and her husband. It’s so fun to see them doing so well and our cats survived 24 hours without us! What’s new with you? Do you remember the photos I shared? Which one is your favorite? Do you ever dream about pets you no longer have in your life? What is your favorite city to visit? Do you use ‘lest’ often in your normal daily conversations, if so or not, why?

Published by Shelley

Letting my quirk out one post at a time.

38 thoughts on “Memories That Bridge Our Empty Nest Moments Together”

  1. It is fun looking through old photos. I feel your pain at the realization that additional storage space is necessary. I do remember some of these, or a least I think I do. I don’t think it’s odd to think and dream of Copper. We think of Maddie all the time. One odd thing today is that I couldn’t get your photos to load. I got empty rectangles. I clicked “Reload Image” and it worked for all of them, but it was weird.

    1. When you take a lot of photos, it’s hard for me to not feel attached to the potential to use them someday factor. 🤣
      I think I’ve used a few of these multiple times. I should move them to a folder that is called (You’ve used these already!).
      Aw, I’m glad to read that it’s okay to think and dream of our furry friends that have passed on. I’m sure you’re still missing Maddie too.
      Wow…yikes, that’s interesting. I’m glad the Reload Image worked. I wonder what the heck happened. Dang WP strikes again. Thank you for letting me know! And thanks for hosting the SoCS challenge this week – that was a clever prompt indeed. Oh, and, your book arrived in the mail this week, I can’t wait to get started reading it!

  2. Wow Shelley, you have taken so many beautiful photos that retain so many beautiful memories over the years! You are a great photographer. The cat’s eyes are very beautiful. It’s been two years already since Copper passed? Where do the hours and days slip away to? My sister’s home took a beating in Fort Myers, but it was easily repaired. She sold it and is done with Florida…

    1. Aw, thank you, John, I appreciate your feedback and your support all these years! Yes, the cats’ eyes are beautiful, especially in the natural lighting.
      Yes, it’s been 2 years since Copper passed. Time has flown by that’s for sure.
      I remember you telling me about your sister’s home. I’m glad she was able to repair it easily and has moved on from there. Did she go back to MI?

      1. You are welcome! The home was sold very quickly which was great. She’s at her home in Michigan, the same home I lived in when I was in high school. She will stay with my dad in Tarpon Springs this winter. They are escaping the deep freeze like me! 🤙🏻🌴🌞

        1. That’s great – and I’d be surprised if it hadn’t sold quickly. My nephew lives in FL and has been trying to buy a house and they go so fast and so quick by those paying cash above and beyond the asking prices before anyone looking to take out a loan can get a chance.
          Yay, I’m glad your family will all be enjoying warmth for the winter. 😎😊

  3. A lovely walk down memory lane Shelley. Loved the images of your girls, especially the one with the Mr and daughter looking at her building. Also love that he’s the one who found the perfect bridge! My favorite images are the 2 cats (love that you took only their eyes, very creative) and of course the droplets 😊

    1. Thank you for walking along with me, Tina. I appreciate your feedback. As soon as I read the prompt from you I knew it would be a challenge for me to stick to just 10. And I also knew that your photo choices for your post would be absolutely stunning, which they are. I’m leaving a link here as I don’t think my pingback worked and when I tried to retry adding it something glitched. Dan mentioned that he had issues with seeing my photos when he first read it, so it must’ve been WP acting wonky. Anyhoo…I hope others will find their way to your blog to see your prompt photo choices! https://travelsandtrifles.wordpress.com/2023/09/23/lens-artists-challenge-268-tell-us-why/

  4. Your top 10 photos are gorgeous and I can see how much they mean to you. Some really wonderful moments you’ve captured, Shelley. Those precious moments with Copper and your daughters are poignant, and part of life. Glad you took a break last week. It was hectic for us but we got ‘er done. Just an FYI, no email and no pingback. But I found you through the comment you left. I would have hated to miss this, my friend.

    1. Aw, thank you, Terri, your feedback means so much to me.
      I’m glad to read you got the move done and that all is well.
      Hmm…dang, thanks for letting me know. There were 3 separate issues going on according to the feedback from you, Dan, and my discovery that the pingback to Tina’s blog didn’t work too. I guess I better put on a research hat and figure this out! 🤔😣

    1. Thank you, Brian – I’m thankful you’ve been here for many years encouraging us along! Yes, me too, and I have SO many photos that are my favorites of him, this one just meant a lot in the recent years. 🥰

  6. The photo of Tizzie is so very cat that I almost can’t stand it. Old photos can sweep you away instantly, tugging at your emotions. Thanks for sharing these here.

    1. Aw, thank you, Ally – yes, Tizzie is our ALL cat cat. The old photos also reminded me that I really should spend some time clearing out the ones I don’t need or want. But that’s a BIG project!

  7. A couple of great pictures from Chicago. Your daughter’s apartment building is quintessential Chicago; I knew in an instant we were there, even though I don’t know exactly where the building is. And you can have the Bean, Buckingham Fountain is far more representative of Grant Park than anything. Brings back a ton of memories of driving north from visiting family in South Shore and seeing it all lit up. And there ain’t another city in the world that has the variety of architecture that Chicago does.

    By the way, I thought that picture of your daughter in her apartment was you…

    1. Aw, John, I remember you’re from that area. The apartment is in Logan Square on N Albany. Conveniently close to the train station. We have a lot of happy memories of that place. When she lived right in the loop in the dorms we spent a lot of time by Grant Park. You’re right, the architecture in Chicago is fascinating. We stayed at a few of the really old hotels too – which were very interesting.
      Yes, she does look like me somedays. Both of our girls do. They’re both taller than me though. 😉

      1. Where did she go to school? I’m thinking Columbia? Loyola just added dorms to their downtown campus (at Michigan Av and Chicago Av, at the north end of the Magnificent Mile).

        1. She went to SAIC. The dorm she stayed at was across the street from the CHICAGO theater. We were able to walk down the Magnificent Mile once, we did take the bus/trains all over too. I’m glad she was our tour guide.

          1. Across the street from the Chicago Theater? That’s where ABC7 has its studios and where the State-Lake Theater used to be (maybe still is, I dunno). Quite an interesting block, that…

          2. We could see the theater from her dorm window (looking down and to the left), so it wasn’t directly across, but it was on State Street. It is an interesting block indeed!

  8. What a great trip down memory lane with you, Shelley. Happy Anniversary! I am glad you picked the raindrop photo as a favorite, because whenever it comes through my reader, it is a reminder of you. I am not a stream of consciousness writer, lol, so I don’t participate, but the photo is so reflective of you, and your journeys. My faves ,of your faves, are your daughters in front of the Chicago skyline, Dessey’s eyes, and the pier at Ft. Meyers. We enjoyed many visits there back in the day. A beautiful tribute to your family and stunning images for the challenge. It WAS hard to pick! Have a good week.

    1. Aw, thank you, Donna, I’m glad you enjoyed the photos. And thanks for the anniversary wishes. 🥰 I agree with you it WAS hard to pick just 10 photos. I enjoyed the ones you chose for your reply too. They feature how you frame each scene so thoughtfully. Since we don’t travel like you two do, I’m always in awe at the scenes you’ve captured and share with us on your blog. 😍🤩
      I hope you have a great week too! See you again soon!!

  9. Shelley – well I like the “bridge to nowhere” and how thoughtful of Mister to point it out and stop for the photo op. I like the deer – how convenient of them to be there when you were looking for photos for this post. It would excite me to see them as well.

    Happy 34th anniversary! That is a touching photo of your husband and daughter together as she embarked on a new life and your daughter looking out the window of the new apartment. I remember the picture of both daughters in Chicago and a few others shared in your blog since I began following you. What a shame to have that pretty pier destroyed by Hurricane Ian the following year.

    It’s nice to see your pal Copper in your blog again … the time has passed quickly but it’s nice to remember your old friend. The cats are glad for the extra attention and have thrived. I remember the photo with the drops and I also voted for it.

    1. Thank you, Linda, I can’t tell you enough about how much I appreciate your encouragement over the years. I’m glad you enjoyed the photos even though I’m sure you’ve seen them before 😉😊 A stroll down memory lane wouldn’t be the same without remembering you have been here virtually cheering us on!

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