Six reasons why SOME people should have kids

If you read my post from yesterday, this post will make a lot more sense.

Six reasons why some people should have kids

1) Kids give you a new perspective on life
The world looks differently to a parent I think that in does to non-parents. It's a little bit of a scarier place with lots of sharp corners, it's a place that there are a lot more things to do than just having fun and going to work and you can watch your kids grow while seeing the world through their eyes. Everyone interprets things differently and sees things differently. So far my kid has reminded me how beautiful the world is, that everyone is a person and I should be less judgmental and that each second that passes is a precious one.

2) It helps bring purpose to your marriage
What is the point of marriage if not to raise a family? Some might say to have a life companion, but then, why not have a lifelong roommate who is also your best friend. I personally think you have a purpose in marriage without kids only for the first few years and then the last few years. The first years it is happy and you learn a lot by the trials you do have. You feel new and invigorated. Then the next step is owning your own home, having a job and having kids. Then what? Being old and dying. So, you definitely want someone with you then. Other than that, what are you doing with your in between as a couple? Nothing really, if you think about it, besides having fights and then having a good time. Kids give you a reason to grow and to work together towards a grand purpose.

3) If everyone decided they didn't want kids, we would be extinct
I don't know about you, but I don't want to be a dinosaur. That would be really sad if we all ceased to exist because some people thought they rather not go to the trouble of being a parent.

4) Children make you want to be a better person
I am not saying that everyone who doesn't have a kids is less of a person than someone who does, but they do make you want to be better than the person you were. You feel a sense of responsibility (at least most people do) and so you try to make the best decisions you can and be the best person you can.

5) You become a stronger person, always striving to overcome challenges by being a better problem solver
- My kid won't eat his veggies, so I make homemade pasta sauce where I hide the veggies via blender
- My kid has trouble sleeping so I use trial and error to help him rest better
-My kid comes home, saying he got drunk and crashed the car into a tree (well, I will give you the answer if that ever happens, hopefully it never will and I have raised him to know better)

6) You learn to work as a team
I don't care what anyone says, no one raises a child alone. Even a single mom might have help from a neighbor, a babysitter, a friends or a family member. You and your spouse, significant other, friend or babysitter will learn how to help raise that child together, regardless of the level of commitment each person has. My husband has learned not to give in to my child's demands so much and I have learned to be a better disciplinarian than I have ever imagined. We aren't perfect, but we work together to do the best we can, as a team.

Of course, these might not apply to everyone.

Kids: Why to have them? This guy got it wrong.

People have some pretty messed up ideas when it comes to having children. Of course, that is just my personal opinion.

I decided to do a bit of research on what other people think about having kids. I read an article titled "6 reasons why everyone should have kids." 

First, I have to say, I don't agree with this title. Not everyone should have kids. I know people will probably disagree with my philosophizes (and there will be exceptions to the rule), but I think that statement is wrong. 

It takes two to make a baby and both parents should be in agreement to do it and know that they can handle it. Of course, this is not a perfect world so we will have single mothers and fathers, couples who are not married having children and people who are torn apart because of disagreeing over born and unborn children. 

However, there is not a perfect time for everything and I will be honest, I didn't know if I could handle a child when my son was born. Now I can't imagine life without him and love him more than anything in the world. 

The reasons people should have kids according to the article and my thoughts as religious mother: 

1. Kids change your perspective on the world

Well that's true. Can't argue with that. 

2. Children can regulate your diet well

Maybe it worked for the guy who wrote that article, but I think that is a bunch of crap. My kid has made my diet worse. First, I gained weight during pregnancy and believed the myth that breastfeeding would solve all my weight problems because I would be burning extra calories. When my child was born I had gained 10 lbs. Since my child, I have gained a total of 40 lbs. Yeah, that is a LOT. I of course, am not a bad enough parent to blame this all on my child, but he was a factor in it. Other factors include stress from various sources, bad eating habits and slacking on exercise habits. Of course, child birth can cause someone who already has bad self image to have worse self image, which then leads to stress which sometimes causes overeating. 

Not to mention, that if you give some children any choice on food, they will walk all over you. My child hates vegetables and now he is at the age that he is still too young to understand threats of "not getting dessert" and too old to be able to make those kind of decisions. Thus, more snacks are available in the house, which means more temptations for a parent to snack on their kids' snacks. 

3. Children can build your muscles

Maybe, but not enough to counteract the bad eating habits you may gain. This guy must have been the kind of guy to sit around at home all day or something to use this as a reason to have a kid. Also- It will make women lose their stomach muscles...so there!

4. Babies make you more flexible

Ha! Speak for yourself. They take up so much time it makes it harder to do other things besides spend time with them and go to work. Not that spending time with them is a bad thing, in fact, it's pretty nice. But, they definitely don't make you more flexible. 

5. Your children can make you more concerned about the future

I guess they can. If you didn't care anything about the future to begin with. Maybe I am selfish, but I am not only concerned about the future for my children, but for myself. I learned to handle a tough world and I will raise my kids to do the same. If the planet explodes, well there may not be anything we can do about it, so I am not going to worry any more about that because we have kids. Speaking politically, being concerned about the future isn't about being a responsible parent, it's about being a responsible ADULT. 

6. Kids make you happier

That's a relative statement. For most people that is true, but not for everyone. 

This blogger was making his own rebuttal to an article in Time Magazine  which I don't think is a good example either. It's glorifying the idea that people who don't have kids can have more success in life. I don't think that's true either. It just depends on how you define success. If to you success means only world travel, lots of money and doing whatever you want whenever you want, well the kid route is not for you. 

If you are religious and believe bearing children is a commandment of God and that's part of our mission here on earth, that is a reason to have kids. 

I think both are okay, even if I don't agree. I have no room to tell anyone they should or should not be a parent. I just think that guy didn't make an argument very well. Tomorrow: Why I think Having Kids is great (hopefully my points are better than his).