re: Older folks that never had kids

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Load up on stray animals. And make sure everyone knows it with as many stickers on your Suburu as possible.

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This is spot on for some I know.

If you're not too old, maybe some kind of mentorship program?

I'm 37. Got an 18 month old and a 3 month old girl.

Kids change you for the better IMO.

The grass is always greener.

I’m at a stage where I’d love to have the free time and extra money not having kids allows. All you can do is enjoy what you have and make the best of it, whatever side you’re on.

use the extra money hosting crawfish boils with free beer for everyone else to bring their rugrats to.

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For whatever reason (relationship troubles, not fertile, etc). Do you sometimes wonder what the next step is? Do you get to an age and wonder what you’re supposed to do next?

Struggling with this. Vacations, extra money, and free time can only go so far.

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You can be one of these people over invested in their pets

I’m getting close to 40, but the possibility of a family is certainly still there. Even if I was a woman, I would be okay on that front, but certainly in more of a hurry.

I respect people who adopt, and I’m sure it’s rewarding even as a single parent, but that’s never something I considered. Even if I was married and my wife couldn’t have kids, I don’t think I could go that route, but props to those who do.

About 6-7 years ago, I thought I would be married soon and expecting to start a small family a few years later.

For the first time in my life, around 2016 if you asked me where I would see myself in a decade, I would have said happily married with a 3 or 4 year old kid and possibly a baby.

After several years together, my gf and I broke up. There was nothing scandalous and if I started an OT thread, it would probably be only 2 pages, with nothing memorable. We are still on good terms and speak regularly.

We never got married or got to the point where we thought about kids. However, I have to say that finding something meaningful has become more challenging.

I have no desire to move to the suburbs and help parent someone else’s child, I’m also not remotely interested in dating someone who is in their early 20s.

I still weigh pretty much the same as I did when I graduated college, am in good health, kept my hair, and am in a good financial spot. I suppose I’m in a bit of a middle ground where I’m not desperate for any woman to look my way, but I’m also not having women on Raya hitting me up because I’m such a catch.

If I’m going to be alone and never have kids, I’m fine with that. I suppose my preference would to be married without children but would also be open to being married and having a child. I have some faults, but I am certainly flexible on that.

Overall, I’m luckily a happy person by nature. I’ve gotten into my hobbies, continue to work out to keep cardiovascular health, spend a good bit of time with my family, keep in touch with friends around the country, and try to travel the world.

I’m at 36 states and 17 countries and am hoping to hit all 50 states and 25 more countries in the next 15 years, which will coincide with my early 50s.

If I’m single, I suspect I will not have much trouble getting there, as the money won’t be an issue, and the time commitment shouldn’t be too much of a challenge. If I have a kid, that fun goal will definitely be pushed back maybe a decade or so but I’m sure having a family will be quite rewarding.

Aside from my job, I’m also trying to a couple of creative pursuits, like writing a screenplay. I have no expectations anything will come from it, but it keeps my mind active and is enjoyable on its own.

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You can be one of these people over invested in their pets

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If reincarnation is a thing, then the best people in the world were all rewarded living their next life as cats or dogs living with an upper middle class single woman in her late 30s or early 40s.

Having kids is awesome. The only drawback is the haunting thought in the back of your mind that something could happen to one of them. I cannot fathom how someone overcomes it or is even able to function after losing a child. It has to be the most heart wrenching pain anyone could imagine. I think it would be worse than even losing your spouse.

I feel bad for adults who have no kids and/or have no spouse. It's just my opinion but I think their lives are missing integral pieces. I've generally found them to be overall sad and it becomes apparent around the late 30s early 40s. Friend and family gatherings and everyone attends with the kids and there's the one guy or girl solo.