The Empty Nest Chronicles

two friends. two coasts. two cozy homes.

Two months left (of 2023)

 150 150 Frances
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Dear Kristin– I’m writing this on October 25th, a date that’s significant for two reasons. First, it’s the anniversary of the day I met Clifton in 1991. He’s now been my boyfriend for 32 years! Second, October 25th means we have two months before Christmas. Eight weeks. 56 days.  Once upon a time, the idea…

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Fall Break

 150 150 Kristin
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We’re taking a little break this week while Frances enjoys a much needed vacation. Here is a little glimpse of the slice of heaven she’s enjoying. See you back here next week! xo,Kristin

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5 Fall Meals We’re Excited to Make

 150 150 Kristin
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Dear Frances, We’re starting to see a change in the weather here (hopefully the 90 degree days are behind us) and it has me thinking about changing up the menu plan. It still might not be “sweater weather,” here, but it is definitely “soup weather”! Out are main dish salads and in are soups and…

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Tempus fugit

 150 150 Frances
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Dear Kristin, I’m always shocked when autumn finally arrives–I mean, really arrives. When the chirps of the crickets and the cicadas grow few and far between, when it’s cold in the morning no matter how high the temperatures get later in the day, when I look outside at 7PM and realize it’s already dark. I…

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[Re] Feathering the Nest

 150 150 Kristin
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Dear Frances, One of the things that I didn’t spend much time thinking about before the kids moved out was how we were going to use those empty rooms. To be sure, there have been lots of suggestions—sewing room, home office, and exercise room, to name a few. And I went all in on the…

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[Old] Puppy love

 150 150 Frances
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Dear Kristin, I’m writing this on the couch in the front room, Travis snuggled by my side, his hind feet resting against my leg. This has been our habit for nearly sixteen years, me writing, Travis napping, the two of us always attached. Travis is an old guy now and it shows. He’s still eager…

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Libraries

 150 150 Kristin
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Dear Frances, I went to the library this week to pick up a couple of books I had put on hold (one of them, Weekday Vegetarians, which you recommended last week). Because I read mostly e-books these days, I don’t get to the library as often as I used to. The library is one of…

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September

 150 150 Frances
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Dear Kristin, I’ve never been a foodie, but sometimes I taste something that makes me so happy I want to change my life. Take the Caesar dressing I just made. It was the simplest recipe in the world, from The Weekday Vegetarians by Jenny Rosenstrach, made with mayo instead of eggs, and perfectly balanced in…

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What Are You Working On?

 150 150 Kristin
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Dear Frances, Sometimes I feel like I don’t use my time as well as I should–especially in the evening. My mornings are pretty set: coffee, workout, tidy up, and work. But I’ve got about three hours after dinner before I go to bed and sometimes I just…waste it. I’ve been aware lately of how easy…

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5 Things We’re Loving Right Now: Summer Edition 

 150 150 Frances
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Dear Kristin, It’s time for a list of our favorite things–or at least five of them! I looked back at my Five Favorite Things list from late March and saw that my number one thing was central heating. Here we are in mid-August, and my Number One Favorite Thing is electricity, having just spent the…

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