Yeeeehawww! We have retired! We've waited for, saved,  planned and dreamed of this for years. And we are young! Both my husband and I are not even 60 yet...close but not quite. :) And we can't wait to start this new chapter. We are on our time! To do whatever we want whenever we want. Our own schedule finally!

    First thing everyone asks you when they hear the news is, "What are you going to do?". Won't you be bored? Won't you miss the kids?  How will you fill your day? I am busting loose and I can hardly contain myself!

Where to start...... all I can say is FREEDOM!

 After being a home daycare provider for 23 years I am not stuck in my house all day anymore! This deserves another Yeehaw! I can go for morning walks without making sure diapers are changed, a first aid kit is supplied and packed, sunscreen and bugspray applied on every kid and bathroom use was done prior. I can walk at a brisk pace without starting and stopping to check out every rock, leaf, pinecone and puppy :)  

I can go thrifting and to estate sales during the day and week  instead of in the evening and on weekends. ( Thrifting is a favorite hobby as you will see in future posts) I will find the first treasures instead of the leftovers.

I am NOT going to clean my house! Well I am,  but on my schedule. I've picked up, dusted  and vacummed almost everyday so when my families came my home was  organized and ready for a new day. My dishes were washed and my floors swept and bathrooms wiped up. To not have to think about this everyday is HUGE ha!

I can go out to lunch! I LOVE lunch! I really really love lunch! Maybe because I could never go. I am so excited for this more than anything! And I won't have to cook lunch if I don't want to.( Cause who can eat out all the time .).  Every day for 23 years I've cooked a hot lunch for my kids.  48 weeks x 5 days = 240 lunches a year x 23 years = 5520 hot lunches approx. Holy Moly! That's a boat load of cooking, meal planning and food purchasing. I used to have a milk man when my boys were home too - added to all these kids, we were running to buy milk everyday so a milk man came in handy.  Not anymore. Grocery shopping once a week - not everyday :)

And finally, I can stay up late! Another Yeeehaww! This is huge! I can read a book as long as I want, watch a tv show or a movie late into the night and not worry about getting to bed so I'm not tired the next day. I can take NAPS! 

I get to do so much! I can work a puzzle on a table and not worry about little hands messing it up. I can plant flowers in places that used to get whacked with balls and stomped by little feet. I get to grow my apples on my apple tree. Kids always pulled off the baby apples on the lower branches. I can have a wastebasket in my bathrooms now! State daycare guidelines don't want any type garbage accessible to kids.  I get  2 more cupboards in my kitchen minus all the crafts, games and puzzles, sippy cups and plastic plates. I get more room in all my bedrooms when I take out all the port-a-cribs. 

I will miss all my kids. I've loved up way over 100 wee ones. My first daycare baby graduated college this year and it's exciting to see where all these children end up in life. My goal was for every child to feel special and cherished  in my home. And I think I accomplished that. I truly loved every child that came through my doors! But I have my own grandkids coming into my near future and we can barely contain ourselves. We retired at the right time!

So here's to being young and healthy ( knock on wood),  free to do whatever whenever , being spontaneous and adventurous and spending all my time with my best friend Husband John and pursuing new interests. This deserves the BIGGEST YEEEEEEHAAAWWWW!