Yes to Open Door! I love that and it is so much more accurate than empty nest, which seems to ignore that WE STILL LIVE HERE! And I love the generous feel of no longer hoarding these amazing creatures all to ourselves. Perfect!
I love Open Door! My mother still grumbles about how I showed up 6 weeks into college at her house with a carload of friends - she was like, I thought you LEFT. She said this in front of my soon-to-be departing for college daughter, and I said: "You are ALWAYS welcome here, with friends, without friends - show up and I'll cook for you." I'm no doormat, but what could be lovelier than your 18+ kid feeling comfortable bringing people home?!
Love Open Door. Always appreciate Gretchen Rubin's insights too...a Gem! I agree that the "bereftness" of empty nest is off & feels misogynist like "hag" does, tryna harsh our well-earned vibe.
BUT my Open Door season coincided with so many brutal life changes-- menopause, betrayal & subsequent death of my presumed best friend (no chance of figuring that shit out!), substantial losses of: friends, job, 2! different beloved dogs, The feckin PANDEMIC! - that it has been hard to suss out which is what. Have managed by compltetely renovating the girls' former rooms so now the Open Door is even Fancy!
A mutual reader pointed me here (thank you, Caroline!). “Open door” and this entire reframing is totally wonderful. I, too, use “empty nest” under protest, and wrote about it here: https://ashadornfest.substack.com/p/emptynest. This transition time is bittersweet and complex (“murky” is a great way to put it), and I'm so glad we're building out a more nuanced story through conversations like this. Catherine Newman also writes beautifully about this stage. Her newsletter, Crone Sandwich, is a favorite, and you were recently a chickpea guest!
Open Door! Open Nest! FKA Empty Nest! The new Open Crib! I am in love with this rebranding. As I do a quick load of sheets following a brief spring break visit 🥰
Open door definitely seems more accurate! I love the quote, particularly the reminder to "cultivate an atmosphere of freedom, welcome, and tenderness." On another note, my cookbooks were hidden in the storage unit (recently downsized) and I dug them out yesterday. Made your honey crusted corn-bread that night and WOW, how did I not make that before? SOOOO good! Yum. (From Weekday Vegetarians).
I didn't like 'empty nest' either. We call it free birding! And that applies to our children and us!
Yes to Open Door! I love that and it is so much more accurate than empty nest, which seems to ignore that WE STILL LIVE HERE! And I love the generous feel of no longer hoarding these amazing creatures all to ourselves. Perfect!
I love Open Door! My mother still grumbles about how I showed up 6 weeks into college at her house with a carload of friends - she was like, I thought you LEFT. She said this in front of my soon-to-be departing for college daughter, and I said: "You are ALWAYS welcome here, with friends, without friends - show up and I'll cook for you." I'm no doormat, but what could be lovelier than your 18+ kid feeling comfortable bringing people home?!
Love Open Door. Always appreciate Gretchen Rubin's insights too...a Gem! I agree that the "bereftness" of empty nest is off & feels misogynist like "hag" does, tryna harsh our well-earned vibe.
BUT my Open Door season coincided with so many brutal life changes-- menopause, betrayal & subsequent death of my presumed best friend (no chance of figuring that shit out!), substantial losses of: friends, job, 2! different beloved dogs, The feckin PANDEMIC! - that it has been hard to suss out which is what. Have managed by compltetely renovating the girls' former rooms so now the Open Door is even Fancy!
We prefer "half full!"
I LOVE the rebranding! Open Door is just so good.
A mutual reader pointed me here (thank you, Caroline!). “Open door” and this entire reframing is totally wonderful. I, too, use “empty nest” under protest, and wrote about it here: https://ashadornfest.substack.com/p/emptynest. This transition time is bittersweet and complex (“murky” is a great way to put it), and I'm so glad we're building out a more nuanced story through conversations like this. Catherine Newman also writes beautifully about this stage. Her newsletter, Crone Sandwich, is a favorite, and you were recently a chickpea guest!
Open Door sounds perfect, as do cheese plates and stretchy pants. I'd say I am becoming my mother but she would never wear stretchy pants.
Thank you for the tempeh recipe, it looks great and so easy. I have also been tempeh-curious, and am looking forward to what you create with it.
Open Door! Open Nest! FKA Empty Nest! The new Open Crib! I am in love with this rebranding. As I do a quick load of sheets following a brief spring break visit 🥰
Yes to open door! became an open door(er) this past September (🥰).
I am loving all the thoughtful and generous reframes here!
“along with James Joyce, understanding tempeh is a huge void in my oversaturated brain.” 😂 So true for me too!
The campari tomatoes that Costco has are reliably good all year long!
I loved that rebranding when I read it in Gretchen's newsletter! Yes!
https://www.newyorker.com/cartoon/a28655
Open door definitely seems more accurate! I love the quote, particularly the reminder to "cultivate an atmosphere of freedom, welcome, and tenderness." On another note, my cookbooks were hidden in the storage unit (recently downsized) and I dug them out yesterday. Made your honey crusted corn-bread that night and WOW, how did I not make that before? SOOOO good! Yum. (From Weekday Vegetarians).