Can AI save you $1,400? It did for Rick. This week, Rick and Clancy talk about how AI is showing up in real life for empty nesters, including stories from The Loud Quiet community. From planning dinners for two and simplifying home maintenance to creating custom workouts and even preparing for job interviews, listeners shared how they’re using these tools in practical, everyday ways. They also talk about boundaries and common sense... what’s safe to share, how to keep your thinking shar...

Every podcast starts somewhere… and this week, we’re sharing exactly how The Loud Quiet - Empty Nest Living came to be. It all goes back to one late-night drive, a little vodka honesty, and a question from Clancy that stopped Rick cold. That moment caught us off guard and led to discussions on how we saw our relationship, our future, and eventually led to creating this show. In this episode, we talk through the real story behind that night, how it led to our first recording in what used to...

How Do We Reinvent Ourselves? What does it really mean to reinvent yourself once the house goes quiet? In this episode, Rick and Clancy talk about what reinvention has looked like for them since becoming empty nesters... how it’s less about one big change and more about staying curious, open, and willing to keep learning. They share stories from their recent trip to the Empowered Podcaster Conference in Charlotte, NC, what it taught them about community and confidence, and how this phase o...

Parenting doesn’t come with a guidebook... but sometimes it comes with text messages. In this episode, we sit down with Tammy Cohen, author of Text Messages To My Sons, to talk about the lessons, reminders, and heart-to-hearts she’s been sending her boys for years. Tammy shares why she started capturing her wisdom in text form, how her sons have received it, and what it looks like to parent adult kids with honesty and love. This conversation isn’t just about moms and sons—it’s about communica...

What started as “just a quick drive” turned into a full-on Baylor game day adventure… complete with tailgates, rivalries, bugs that wouldn’t quit, and a whole lot of laughs with friends. In this episode, we talk about navigating friendships in the empty nest… especially when your kids are dating each other… plus what it’s like to step into traditions that weren’t originally ours but now feel pretty special. From Waco eats to a last-second field goal to realizing game days can be mini-adventur...

What happens when you visit your kids in their own space? We share the funny, surprising, and eye-opening moments of stepping into their world while on the road between Phoenix and Tucson. Visiting your kids on their turf brings a mix of surprises, laughs, and those little reminders that they’re building lives outside of your roof. This week’s episode was recorded while we were literally on the road between Phoenix and Tucson… headed to spend the weekend with our daughter. We talk about wh...

Some signs of fall are comforting. Some are kind of annoying. And some, like the flashing yellow school zone lights, just make you groan. In this episode, Rick and Clancy share the little markers that tell them fall has arrived. Childhood soccer uniforms, back-to-school shopping trips, college football weekends, the first cool front fake-out, and pumpkin scented candles all make the list. They also talk about how fall still feels like a reset, even when you’re not chasing kids to Friday night g...

Retirement isn’t just about 401(k)s and Social Security. It’s also about your identity, your routines, your relationship, and that strange feeling of waking up with nowhere to be. In this episode, Rick and Clancy sit down with retirement coach Wendy Leggett to talk about the non-financial side of retirement: what makes it hard, what makes it meaningful, and how to approach it with curiosity instead of fear. Wendy shares thoughtful advice for individuals and couples navigating this transiti...

The house is quiet again... and we’re back in the studio. The return of the empty nest, even for the 3rd time, stirs up a wide range of feelings. In this milestone 100th episode, we reflect on how much has changed... since starting the podcast, since our first round of empty nest living, and even just since last summer. From Iceland inside jokes to unexpected museum noises to the rediscovery of personal space (and skinny dipping), we talk through the return of the quiet, what we’ve learned, a...