Personally, I want children. One day. But what pissess me off is when people tell me, I owe it to my parents to have them. And that I'm being disrespectful by not having children, since they've had me. I don't quite remember asking them to?

I was told when I was 15, that because of health conditions (I'm not sickly, just have things wrong with me) I'm a high risk pregnancy. It upset me at first, but as I got older, I decided I didn't want kids-for many reasons. I've since gotten married & my husband got a vasectomy in order to not risk getting me pregnant. Luckily, my parents have never pressed kids on me, but other people...my god. They act as though my lack of desire for children means I'm murdering all children everywhere. Even after I tell them I or the child could die, I get the "adopt" suggestion. Sure, if I really wanted to, but financially that's not a viable option right now. I just wish people understood that some people don't want to become parents.

This son and his wife are the essence of patience and restraint because I would have told those prying in-laws off years ago, especially that old biddy of a mother-in-law. Even better, this man should have put his foot down and told his parents to stop butting in and badgering his wife. They're HIS parents. I realize that different families have different standards of intimacy and boundaries, but I still don't understand how any civilized person thinks it's okay to ask a couple when they are having children. Just congratulate a couple when they make a pregnancy announcement and if it never comes, then so be it. Also, since this man's parents wants little children around so badly and are also financially well off, they might consider becoming foster parents. There are kids out there without homes who could really benefit from the slavering devotion of two parents. If they would find ways to fill their own lives, they wouldn't feel a need to put pressure on their son and daughter-in-law.

Not everyone wants kids. The fact that the MIL told the DIL 'you don't have to work" tells me everything there, basically she thinks the role of women is to reproduce, and nothing else. Very offensive because many women aspired to be more than just a stay at home mother.

That last comment about children being like cats is spot on. In regards to the subject matter, when your kids turn into adults, they make their own decisions. You job is done. My mum asked when we were having number three to the point where when I did get pregnant again, I didn't want to tell her.

Nobody in my family bothers me about having children because they know how much I utterly despise babies and have too little patience for young children. Basically, I would make a bad parent, and there's no good in forcing unwanted children into the world. I don't understand parents who ask their kids to have grandchildren. I can be a very brutally honest person, and I would legitimately tell a pushy parent that they should just hang around a playground if they wanted to see people's kids without having to deal with the responsibility.

My mom's on my case for a granddaughter. I already have a 7yo old son and I don't know how to tell her that I do not want more kids.

My mom wanted us kids to wait as long as possible to have our own. She didnt want to be grandma. My younger bro and sis have given her grandkids. I the eldest simply have no desire for crib midgets ,and my mom respected that choice. Love ya mom

I thought the unexpected response would have been the overpopulating crisis we're in. That's one of my main reasons.

Too many people have kids they don't want/need/love. They are breeders and usually leave it to 'the system' to fund their "mistakes." I vote for spaying/neutering your partners! I never had kids, never wanted them. I refuse to. Don't need them. I wish more people were more responsible. And for those that want, maybe consider only having one, two at the most. NO MORE. These people who keep pumping them out, saying "god" told them to have more and more should be shot!

"So when are you having another?" "-- I'm basically infertile between all the various health conditions I have. But thanks for rubbing salt in that wound." Over-reacting? Maybe. But I got asked this so many times I became bitter and started telling people I couldn't have more kids. Because as far as doctors were concerned, I would need a vast amount of expensive fertility treatments to conceive. Most people didn't believe me. They kept asking. It was mean.

I decided young I didn't want children. My mother made sure to tell me repeatedly I was a nightmare to raise and she hoped my kids were just like me. Then I got married and found out I had too many "female irregularites" to get pregnant. (Ovarian cysts, endometriosis, misaligned uterus?) So I won the no child lottery. And she whines she wanted so many more children but I ruined everything. And now she moans how she will never have grandchildren. #1, it serves her right that karma is a b***h. #2 You reap what you sow.l

My son just got married. I asked about their future plans and that's IT. He wants to get established, she wants to pay off her student loans. They have plans! Their reproductive choices are THEIRS.

Wow that is some pretty atrocious behavior, especially approaching the DIL and telling her what to do. My husband and I were married for 9 years before we decided to have kids. My MIL never said anything, but my great grandpa in law and my own mom were constantly badgering us. The rich part? Now that we have kids my mom acts like I am horribly inconveniencing her when I ask her to watch the kids for 10 minutes (we live together). So DON'T have kids unless you want to, because people who push excessively may not want to actually help when the time comes. Oh, and we are very happy we decided to have kids. They turned out to be a lot more work than we anticipated but find they have truly enriched our lives :)

Now seriously: How much does it take (=how thick can be people be) to not realize that their children live different lives? On the other hand, what wrong with these two young people who won't stand up for what they want? The worst thing you can do is arrange your life around the life of others, especially if they are your parents. No need to do any talking, there is no possibility to not accept this.

These kind of pressuring gestures create unhappy people, families and kids. What’s the fun of having kids anyway?

you think having kids will make them happy? or you happy? because it doesnt seem like youre acting in their best interest rather then yours

What do I think? I think parents who have children so that they can have grandchildren shouldn't have had children to begin with.

My mother never pressured any of us kids to have kids of our own so she could have grandchildren to dote on, and at the age of 35 my sister was ready emotionally, relationally and professionally to have children, so they had one and the manufacture closed after that one since her pregnancy was difficult. But it was ok with my mom. She had one grandson and she was perfectly happy with that. Since we all live within 5 miles or so of her place, my mom gave the boy plenty of attention as he grew up, going so far as to pick him up from daycare on Wednesdays and taking him to her place where we gathered for supper. She continued that practice through his elementary and high school education, and now that he's in Junior College and within a five-minute walk of her place he walks to her place for supper once a week. I'm sure that Nicolas would go through fire for his Mamie--that,s what he calls her--and will be very sad when she dies.

I'm not sure if anyone else mentioned this yet, but this couple may be struggling to conceive. Fertility is a private matter, and not one most share with even their parents- especially if those parents are extremely insensitive. Maybe the daughter-in-law has PCOS or another condition that makes it difficult to conceive. Maybe she has a non-fertility issue that would make pregnancy dangerous for her. Perhaps they are in the process of having a child through surrogacy or adoption. A lot of women, even young ones, struggle to become pregnant/maintain a pregnancy, and men do too! They may be dealing with the pain of miscarriage and decided to put off trying to conceive again until their hearts are ready. They may be blaming themselves and feeling guilt already. When you suffer loss, whether it is an inability to conceive or miscarriage, it is heart-breaking and not something most couples want to broadcast.