133 Ways to Avoid Going Cuckoo When the Kids Fly the Nest: A Parent's Guide for Surviving Empty Nest Syndrome

By Lauren Schaffer and Sandy Fleischl Wasserman

The Perfect Graduation Gift-for Parents! What's a parent to do when the kids leave home? Mixing humor with practical advice, Lauren Schaffer and Sandy Fleischl Wasserman's 133 Ways to Avoid Going Cuckoo When the Kids Fly the Nest is a good friend to laugh with, a shoulder to cry on, and a manual of sound advice to help those in need keep their sense of humor while riding the emotional roller coaster of Empty Nest Syndrome. Their essential, indispensable tips and strategies encompass everything from the painful first days to return visits to expressing your new empty-nester self, including: * Why you shouldn't immediately convert your kid's room into a studio, bordello, or workshop * The right movies for a good laugh or cry * How to keep the lines of communication open (use good old- fashioned guilt to keep the phone calls coming) * How to stuff a wild care package * Return visit diplomacy (do not take personally her overwhelming desire to reconnect with friends instead of cozying up to you for a long pajama-clad chat) * How to fight maudlin memories (go to Toys "R" Us between Thanksgiving and Christmas and eavesdrop on some tantrums)

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0609807005
• ISBN13: 9780609807002
• Release Date: July 2001
• Publisher: Three Rivers Press
• Length: 112 Pages
• Weight: 0.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 7.9" x 0.3" x 5.2"

Customer Reviews

Wise and Whimsical

This book is a must to have around as you cope with the departure of a young loved one. The advice exudes affection for those who are off to meet their fates and yet provides practical advice about how to enjoy the new freedom the absence of daily parenting gives to a baby boomer's life. Total "joie de vivre" is in order for the parent who is brave enough to seize the day.I love the "Nun Study" (page 36), which correlates nicely with item #46. These wise and whimsical authors have found the key to achieving a balance between nostalgia for the joys and foibles of parenting (especially parenting the adolescent) while appreciating a separate "life of one's own." As a parent in Stage 2 of ENS, I confess that I did indeed fall into many of the landmines described in items #1-8. I can report, however, I did survive and that year 2 will be infinitely saner because of the advice provided by this book.Rush out and buy multiple copies as holiday gifts for friends who will be coping for the first time with the return of college students or "The Nest is Full Again--Sort Of". They will appreciate the humor and grace of the chapter devoted to that situation and who knows, you may even be led to start a support group (Item # 15).Enjoy, and remember, in the words of these clever authors:"...hindsight assures us that this, too, shall pass."

Ch-ch-ch-changes

Changes is what life and what this how-do-book are all about. The lively writing and nuggets of do's and don'ts reflect the mid-life exuberance of parents starting a new phase of their lives without children at home. The advice rings bells for anyone going through changes. Anyone alive in the society of modern transience will find useful suggestions in thoughts like: Do not immediately go into the room of someone who has just moved away. Do not expect a returnee to behave like a resident. Appropriate activities for stress given by the authors include lists for the left- and right-brained, and how to discover your category. Left brainers, for example, should take a watch apart. My reason for reading the book was the category of distant relative and contemporary; my reason for finishing the book in two readings was enjoyment and applicability to a lifestyle that doesn't include children of my own. Thanks, literary mothers, for a short, fun book of changes.

Required Reading for Parents

An indispensable survival guide for every parent. The authors' mixture of practical wisdom and side-splitting humor makes it read like fireside advice from a wise Aunt. Do a favor for all the parents you know (and their kids) by making sure they have this book on their bedside table.

I really needed this book

My one and only daughter flew the nest this last year. I kind of knew I had spent the year in a funk, but didn't really see a way to chuckle my way out of it until I read this book. With brilliant and humorous observations, the authors have touched a nerve. What great suggestions they offered for getting rid of the "my baby is gone" blues! This book makes you feel like you are part of a bigger family that understands your happy/sad feelings about your child's independence. Read it! Buy a copy for your dear friends. Eat and enjoy some chocolate!

What a great book and Gift!

I was recently given this wonderful little book by a friend because she knew I was suffering over the fact that my children were now all living on their own. What a treat! This book is well written, informative, clever, and utterly entertaining. I laughed myself silly and no longer felt alone in my 'empty nest.' I am going to purchase it for everyone I know who has kids who have left home or are soon going to be. It's a special little gem. Thanks to the authors for such a bit of heaven.