When parents send their last kid off to college, it's generally considered a sad occasion. "Empty nest syndrome" is a struggle for many parents. For Vicky and Jeff Piper, it's an entirely different story.
Last week, Vicky and Jeff sent their youngest son, Cameron, off to Saginaw Valley State University. Their oldest, Caitlyn, left home last year to study in Australia. That leaves Vicky and Jeff with an empty nest.
But they're not lonely. Instead, they're excited to spend more time with each other.
"We're really, really good," Vicky told BuzzFeed News. "Yes, we are sad to see him go, but we had a confidence he will do well, and it's our turn now."
Instead of wallowing in sadness, they're celebrating. To mark the occasion, the Pipers imitated the fancy photo shoots that are popular with millennials these days. But in this case, they held up a chalkboard saying, "Empty Nest, August 2018."
"We’ve always loved each other so much that we have been looking forward to this," Vicky said. “[Jeff] just kept on saying he just wants to date me all over again.”
Everyone, it seems, wants a marriage like Vicky and Jeff's. The photos quickly went viral — they've been liked over 200,000 times.
Vicky wrote in the caption, "20 years ago we didn’t have gender reveal parties, portraits in beautiful fields with baby shoes to announce a pregnancy. 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 !!!!!"
Vicky said her husband came up with the idea for the photos. She got a chalkboard and wrote the date on it to be "reflective of what the young people are doing."
Then they asked a friend to take their photo outside their church to "celebrate the milestone as parents."
"We've raised our kids and still love each other," Vicky said.
Vicky said the whole family has been blown away by the response — including the kids.
"They love it," she said. But the kids jokingly said, "You guys are celebrating too much that we're gone."
For his part, their son Cameron had a humored response to the photos.
Cameron's school captured him with his own photo shoot in his new dorm room, chalkboard message and all.
People can't get enough of Vicky and Jeff's family and marriage.
People left comments wishing the empty nesters well.
Some commenters warned them against getting too comfortable.
Other empty nesters can relate to the joy.
And they're encouraging the couple to enjoy themselves alone for once.
These two are truly "marriage goals." Do you know a couple who would do this?
