We thought we'd be empty nesters at 50. Instead, 3 of our adult kids are living at home, and one's moving back in soon.

Three of our kids live at home, and our fourth plans to move back after graduation.

Kevin Payne We always thought that when our youngest son graduated from high school, we'd become empty nesters.

Instead, all four of our kids are living at home or plan to do so, at least temporarily.

We've had to put some of our own plans on hold, but we've been able to get a head start on others.

The past 10 months have brought several milestones for our family.

My wife, Barb, and I both turned 50.

Our oldest daughter finished her graduate coursework and started fieldwork, and our youngest son graduated from high school this spring.

For the first time, all four of our kids, ages 18 to 23, were either in college or preparing to start.

Barb and I thought we had reached the point when we could exhale and look back on years of school, activities, and raising four kids into young adults.

We assumed our noisy, crowded house would soon become much quieter.

Instead, a series of decisions and circumstances have kept three of our kids home, with our oldest son planning to return after graduation.

The empty nest we expected at 50 suddenly looks much further away.

All 4 of our kids have different reasons for living at home Living at home makes sense for our kids right now.

Kevin Payne Our youngest son was accepted to several colleges, but he chose the closest school and decided to commute.