Oh I don't even want to think about the empty nest time... my kids have promised never to move out, or to live next door, haha! We'll see ;)

As for the kitten, I'm sorry to hear that. We adopted my husband's cat when she was 18 and he'd had her since he was 11, and when she died 3 years later at a magnificent 21 years, he was crushed. He was in his early 30s and it had been his family cat, I totally get it. Cats are magical.