i understand your pain, i am almost ashamed to say it but i was glad when my son-in-law left my oldest daughter because she came home with her babies so i have them around all the time, plus i have "adopted" friends of all of my children. i don't know what i would do without "my kids", but i have a never ending stream of kids who i unofficially foster. they have parents of their own who for whatever reason they don't get along with, but they come to me for love and understanding. i have even gotten a few of them to realize that their problems with their parents arent as bad as they thought. then they have extra love and understanding. can you volunteer somewhere for tweens and teens, you would be amazed how much some of these kids need an adult who they can truly trust and talk to, and someone who will just listen and not try to tell them what to do.

last year i had 4 "kids" between 18 and 20 sleeping in every available corner of my house. not counting my 3 daughters and 2 grandkids. now i am down to 2 daughters and 2 grandkids, but the other kids still come to see me weekly or so, and they are my kids. just because they reached a magic age doesn't mean they don't need mothering anymore. hope this helps give you an idea to fill that void.

hugs,
lost