Hold onto your hats, folks, because this is a real doozy! Picture this: my husband and I, both 45, basking in the glory of early retirement. Sounds idyllic, right? Well, not if you ask our three kids. Here’s the lowdown on how we booted our youngest son out at 19 and ignited a family feud of Shakespearean proportions.

Let’s rewind a bit. Our adorable little nest once housed three kids—a daughter, now 25, and two sons, 22 and 19. The atmosphere was always harmonious, a picturesque family life if you will. Our grand plan? To work hard while we were young and enjoy an early retirement. With a bit of luck and good fortune, we’ve managed to set ourselves up nicely. The two older birds have already flown the coop, leaving just our 19-year-old son still under our roof.

Now, here’s the kicker: we want to sell our four-bedroom rural home and downsize to a cozy city apartment. Why? Because we envision ourselves jet-setting around the world, not lounging around a vacant mansion. Sounds fair, right? Well, not to our youngest. He flipped his lid when we broke the news. The audacity! He argued that it wasn’t fair because his siblings got to stay until after college.

We tried to be the cool parents—offered to cover his first, last, and security deposit for an apartment of his choosing. But was that enough for our dear son? Nope! He claimed a few months’ notice was too short and that we were basically abandoning him. Talk about melodrama.

In response, we reminded him of his privileged upbringing, which fell on deaf ears. He went nuclear, accusing us of prioritizing our retirement over his well-being and even roped in his siblings and other family members. Oh, the humanity!

And what did his siblings say? They did a full-on loyalty dispatch, suggesting either we wait a few years or take him with us. Our daughter, bless her sociable soul, even offered her cramped one-bedroom apartment, shared with her partner and our granddaughter, as his new living quarters. Now that’s family love!

So here we are, the alleged villains of the family saga. Our kids are collectively giving us the cold shoulder, our eldest son threatening to ban us from his future home. Even our parents have chimed in, labeling us selfish for “depriving” our youngest of a home. Imagine that!

So, dear readers, here we stand, ostracized and judged by our nearest and dearest. Our vision of early retirement muddied by budding family drama. What’s the solution? That’s the million-dollar question. Do we stick to our plans, or yield to the familial guilt trip?

Feel free to weigh in, folks. Until then, we’ll be here, sipping on some iced coffee, plotting our getaway to somewhere serene—if only in our minds! Cheers to laid-back living (hopefully) and navigating the bumpy road of family dynamics.