Hi everyone… Happy May Day
When I was younger, I always loved the first day of May because my best friend Jill and I would get some newspaper, make little cones with a stapled ribbon holder around the top, fill it with flowers, and hang them on our mom’s front doors. It was such a cute little gesture to remind our moms how much we loved them. We would also ring the doorbell and hide behind the bushes that were literally right in front of the front door, thinking they would never catch us… Ah, the good old innocent days, playing outside all day, without a cell phone in site. My mom still talks about those flowers today even though that was 50 years ago. Sometimes it really is the little things in life that matter most.
May is a time of blooming flowers, longer days, and Mother’s Day—a perfect reminder to take some time and celebrate the magical moments we have created for our families over the years. As moms, we spend years pouring love and energy into raising our children. And now, as many of us witness our babies walk across that graduation stage, attend their last prom, and declare their college choice on Decision Day, it’s natural to feel a mix of pride, nostalgia, and a little bit of “Hmmmm. What’s next for me?”
This season marks a beautiful transition—yes one chapter is ending, but a new chapter full of possibilities for YOU is beginning too. It’s a moment to pause and reflect on everything we’ve done over the past two decades, who we’ve become along the way, and what we want for our future.
A Time to Rediscover Your Passions and Purpose
As the active daily duties of motherhood gradually slow down (I thought I wouldn’t miss carpooling, but I do!), I invite you to think about what truly sparks joy and purpose for you beyond being a busy mom. This is your springtime—an opportunity to reconnect with your unique passions, interests, and dreams that might have taken a backseat for years. And I’m here to help you out…
In my book, “The Almost Empty Nester”, each of the 21 chapters contain a set of powerful reflection exercises designed to help you uncover your next best chapter. Two of my favorite chapters are Chapter 3 and 4—where I encourage moms to create a personal “Mom highlight reel” and also get one from their children. As moms, we tend to focus on our child’s accomplishments, but for a moment, I want you to think about what you personally are most proud of since becoming a mom.
When’s the last time you paused and thought about this because it’s important and it matters.
Take a moment to reflect on these questions:
- What are your favorite traditions that you passed down and/or created with your family?
- What do you love most about your mothering style?
- What memories make you laugh out loud?
- What memories pop into your mind that really make you tear up on a soul level?
- What do you most love about each of your children?
When’s the last time you looked back at all those magical mini moments you created for your family? Think back to when you first held your newborn—so much love and hope wrapped up in those tiny hands. You didn’t know then what you know now. Look how far you have come and truly marvel at the tiny humans you have raised into adulthood! It’s amazing when you think about it.
Mother’s Day: A Perfect Time for Reflection and Connection
Mother’s Day is coming soon, and it’s the perfect opportunity to celebrate not just the moms we are now, but the women we’ve been and the one we are becoming as we step into this next chapter. I challenge you to give your children a special assignment for this Mother’s Day—a set of questions that will help them reflect on their favorite mom moments. It’s incredible what they come back with! Some of their answers you might not even remember, but it’s a core memory for them and it’s priceless. (I write more about my answers and my children’s in my book!)
Here are some heartfelt questions you can ask your kids to answer about you:
- What’s one of your favorite planned or unplanned memories of us together?
- What’s one thing I did when you were little that made you feel loved?
- What’s your favorite family tradition?
- What’s one thing I do that makes you laugh?
- What’s your favorite meal I make?
- What’s your favorite thing we have done and continue to do together?
- What’s one thing you loved doing together that you think I might not remember?
- What’s one of the best things I’ve taught you?
- What do you love most about me?
Encourage your children to write down answers to these questions, and feel free to come up with some more on your own. If they don’t like to write, have them email you, or perhaps even better, have them print them out and frame them so you can save it forever. My dear friend and editor, Tracy, did this with her two grown boys. They spent a week taking time to think about every question, framed their responses together, and presented them to her for her Mother’s Day gift. Their answers really surprised her. She said they didn’t focus on the big, huge things she had planned along the way. Their answers made her cry because her boys talked mostly about how they truly valued her presence and when she was just being herself. What a great lesson and priceless gift she will have forever.
Join Our Community and Celebrate Your Journey
If you end up doing this with your children, we would love to hear your stories. Share them with us on all things social at @theemptynesterclub.
And don’t forget—sign up for our email list. We promise to send only one or two heartfelt messages a month to inspire and support you on this journey. Over here at The Empty Nester Club, we are not inbox spammers; we are a tight knit, supportive community of women just like you. And if you haven’t yet, grab a copy of The Almost Empty Nester and its companion journal. Join us for our upcoming Book Club on August 5th—because celebrating your story is what matters most.
Remember, mama…this is your springtime. It’s a season of a lot of change for sure, but it’s also a new beginning filled with love, discovery, and community. You are not alone on this journey, and we’d love to connect you to some other incredible moms going through the same thing. Do your best to embrace it with open arms and a joyful heart. We can help you here at The Empty Nester Club.
Happy Mother’s Day, and here’s to all the magical moments yet to come.
P.S. Struggling a bit with this Empty Nest transition or just want to connect with an amazing community of women?
Starting September 29th, we are releasing our seven-week transformational “Best Empty Nest” course. Together, we will be going through each chapter in the book and the reflection exercises within the book and the journal. It’s a great accountability group, and an awesome way to carve out some time for yourself to truly dig into the material, and design your next best chapter with my proven framework I designed over the last three years. Join the waitlist below where we will share more about this incredible course! We are so excited for you to see what’s in store.
Cheers to this season of life and can’t wait to meet you.
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