Hello girlfriends!

My name is Jill Baltzer and I’m on a mission to take the “Sad” out of Empty Nesting!  

I’ve met so many amazing women, just like you and me, who feel sad and directionless after their kids fly the coop!

To be clear, this blog is less about, “Whoa is me, I’m so sad. I miss my kids,” and more about finding ways to entertain ourselves and have some fun. My aim is to rally my fellow empty nesters to grab life with gusto, reframe what it means to have an empty nest and rediscover our zest for life. We still matter!

I plan to keep this blog positive, but I have to admit I have struggled and plan to share how I dug myself out of the doldrums. After divorcing at 48, remarrying at 49, changing careers and moving out of state at 50, gaining a step-child and having both my kids fly the coop, all at around the same time, you’d think I’d be hit with Empty Nest Syndrome right then and there!

It wasn’t until my sweet 91 year old mom passed away this past July 4th that the sadness hit me like a ton of bricks.  I cared for her in my home for 15 years and she was pure joy. She was the last little birdie who really needed me and that was the kicker.

It overwhelmed me…what the heck do I do with myself now? My passion for anything and everything was gone.  Intellectually I knew what to do, but I couldn’t muster the desire to pull myself out of this depression.  It was scary.  Paralyzing.

It took some self -help books, yoga, a mindfulness practice, and some soul searching (not to mention 2 kittens and 2 puppies) to help me discover that I DO matter.  I have a lot to contribute and I have many years of life to live.

And, So do you!  We all have an important story to tell and we have loving arms that we can wrap around each other… in this sisterhood of Empty Nesters.

What will we do for fun, you ask? 

Well…Creative is my thing! I live on 20 breath taking acres in Oregon where I throw rip-roaring parties, care for a crazy menagerie of animals and tend to a beautiful cottage garden that we built for my mom.  I can’t wait to take you on a walk through my garden, share party ideas, make beautiful desserts, share great party food recipes, travel about town and take you along as I travel with my group of girlfriends. You know…All the stuff we do as Empty Nesters. I also want to create a safe and loving place where we can discuss and “get real” about the lessons learned in this crazy life we’ve lived.

I love art and creating anything, really! You will see my creations throughout my site. I hope they make you smile.

These gals remind me of us in our Empty Nest stage of life. .. Still sassy and cute but a little quirky…just like us!

I call them Grace, Gratitude and Gusto!

So, let’s do this friends.  Let’s love and support each other. Let’s rediscover who we are. Let’s share Ideas. We are free!

Let’s reclaim our bounce-outta-bed energy through love, support and creative adventures.

Let’s embrace this new stage of life with Grace, Gratitude and Gusto!

 Empty Nest with me! xo Jill

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