Parents Go Viral With 'Empty Nest' Photo Shoot

Parents hilarious photo shoot goes viral after becoming empty nesters when they dropped their youngest child off at college.

Vicky Piper, 48, agreed to do the photo shoot with her husband, Jeff, 50, after he made the suggestion, shared Daily Mail.

He found an empty birds nest in their backyard in Ohio, so the couple could cleverly announce they dropped their youngest off at college to all their friends and family.

’20 years ago we didn’t have gender reveal parties, portraits in beautiful fields with baby shoes to announce a pregnancy,’ Vicky wrote in a Facebook post that has since gone viral.

She continued: ‘Nor did we have baby photos on a blanket with a circle around a number showing how old they were. We drove our babies to sears or Olan Mills to get their photo.

‘So in honor of our next chapter… here you go.’

After Vicky posted the clever pictures on Facebook, more than 36,000 people shared her post.

Mrs Piper spoke to TODAY Parents and said, “We had just dropped off our son at college — our daughter went to college last year, and our son is starting this year — and we came home, and so many people were so concerned, like, ‘Are you guys going to be okay?’” she recalled.

“We just had a different perspective about the whole thing: both kids are doing great, and they’re in college, and that’s awesome! So the bottom line is that we had a different view of that ‘empty nest.’”

“If you’re in your 40s or 50s, when you had your kids, you missed all these beautiful photo opportunities kids do now,” she laughed. “So there was definitely an element of ‘Let’s join those whippersnappers!’”

“For the last twenty years, we’ve been focused on the kids and trying to take care of ourselves too,” Mrs Piper said. “And now we can focus on us.”

“I think that people celebrate so many things in the beginning, and then we forget to celebrate things later on,”she said, noting that graduations and changes in the lives of children are often unnoticed and unhonored changes in the lives of parents as well. “Let’s capture the moment not just for the kid that’s leaving the home, but for Mom and Dad too.”

Nawww I dread the day my children leave home.

How do you feel about it?

Share your comments below

20 Comments

- - meedee said
  - 22 Oct 2022
    9:11 am
Thats awesome. I loved having a home filled with kids and when my last child left home it was an adjustment and then less then a year later my husband passed away and I was then really on my own.

- - welshmummy said
  - 01 Oct 2018
    8:07 am
I think that is so great. They seem like a fun couple. When my youngster left home he was so concerned about me not having someone to fuss over he got me a cat. Never wanted a cat but now she is the best thing, love her loads. Trouble is he’s now moved back home again LOL!

- - Blossom said
  - 01 Sep 2018
    10:39 pm
Tessie, I am saddened by the news of the death of your husband / your son’s father.
I hope both of you receive all the support you need for as long as you need it.

- - tessie said
  - 28 Aug 2018
    11:00 am
I was looking forward to the day there was only the two of us, even if only for a week. My husband passed away 12 days ago now I hope that my son never leaves home.

- - rovermum said
  - 20 Aug 2018
    10:09 am
Our job is to raise independent children who can leave home and work on successfully navigating life. Whilst I left home at 20, none of my extended family will be leaving home in the near future – youngest 16, eldest 22. I love my son to bits, and he said he’ll be living with us forever!!! I love my hubby too and look forward to the day when we can embark on the next phase of our life, nowing we did a great job with our son.
- mom93821 replied
  
  21 Aug 2018 , 7:10 am
  I think current ‘nests’ will see a lot of comings and goings.
- - mom93821 said
  - 20 Aug 2018
    6:17 am
All events need to be celebrated – another step along the way of being a family – our children will always be welcome back to the nest (when they leave!) 🙂

- - curlytops said
  - 18 Aug 2018
    8:00 pm
never seen this celebrated before!

- - mom71495 said
  - 17 Aug 2018
    9:20 pm
How beautiful. I hope the rest of your years together are blessed with happiness, fun and good health. All the best to the both of you.

- - mom81879 said
  - 16 Aug 2018
    10:30 am
Both my kids were doing great after leaving home, although they were younger then this couples kids. But I wasn’t happy about becoming an empty nester. It definitely took some time to adjust to it. I’m fine now and look forward to the kids and grandkids visiting, and I’m fine when they leave again.

- - BellaB said
  - 16 Aug 2018
    8:44 am
This is a great attitude – I’m sure they have some sad moments too.

- - Ellen said
  - 16 Aug 2018
    3:52 am
Beautiful, love it !
My hub and I talk sometimes about how we traveled before kids and hopefully will do after kids. But with my youngest having Down syndrome, we don’t know if she’ll be able to ever live independently. Never mind, we’ll take here with us, she’ll be part of our nest forever 🙂

- - nealsq said
  - 15 Aug 2018
    11:09 pm
this is so cool!

- - jools41 said
  - 15 Aug 2018
    10:33 pm
Genius, love it ????

- - becstalou said
  - 15 Aug 2018
    9:16 pm
Haha I love it very clever and original.

- - ashna9 said
  - 15 Aug 2018
    7:40 pm
Haha, what a great idea!

- - mom114371 said
  - 15 Aug 2018
    7:18 pm
Hilarious! Good for them tho. I wonder if their kids see the funny side?

- - mom90758 said
  - 15 Aug 2018
    5:58 pm
Beautiful idea. Oh, I am quite scared thinking about that. Slowly I will have to get prepared. For now I enjoy having my daughter home. 🙂

- - mom74005 said
  - 15 Aug 2018
    5:33 pm
Such a cool idea to celebrate a new chapter together.

- - Lizzie23 said
  - 15 Aug 2018
    12:50 pm
Hahaha I love this idea. I’m a long way off from my kids leaving the nest but it’s creative