To be devastated about this minor thing...

I'd be more surprised that a 29 year old was still living at home tbh.

Nothing you can do to stop the passing of time OP, need to embrace it and try not to let it bother you.

Op I get you, I've always been told I look too young to have a daughter of my DDS age (she's almost 18 now) and I still love it when people say it, I'll be gutted when it stops!

Exactly!

I got IDd in a shop once when I was about 31 and I was too excited to have got IDd 😂
I went skipping into work telling my work friends and all

lol yeah it's stopped here too- I'm finding it inwardly quite funny really. Especially as I'm just about to turn 50 and working with 20 year olds who say things like 'I can't imagine having sex after 50'
Got to laugh really.

Blimey! Where do you live? Most reception mums where I am are 35-45. A few youngsters but not the majority

But what is so out there about having a child at 26? It’s a perfectly reasonable age to have a baby, you are not a teenager and nor are you in your late 40s/early 50s when you had a baby. At your age I would have a 25 year old and a 20 year old. The vast majority of my friends have babies in roughly the same age range. I don’t see why it’s so noteworthy?

(Unless the OP thinks she looks a decade younger and therefore expects people to be surprised?!)

So you are at a book club with one assumes similarly aged people between 40-60 and you are surprised that they don’t show any sign of being surprised you are the age you are?

the thing with looking younger (and clearly I am not and do not want to be your people) than your age it is based on previous generations and perceptions of that age. I have no doubt you look nothing like the 55 year olds we had in the 80s at all but aging is inevitable and no amount of intervention will stop it

you were amongst peers who one assumes get that so unless you are basically saying you look so much better than everyone else of course they didn’t gasp

Oh lovely. I feel your pain. For the past 10 years everyone has said how shocked they are at my age - that I look 35/40. This past year (Ive just turned 50) and now NO-ONE says it. The comments stopped almost overnight. I was lucky to look a decade younger than I was for a bit, and now ive caught up. Im gutted but there we are. I hate myself that I enjoyed those compliments so much and I miss them - it really did used to give me a boost. Ah well.

Nothing to do with looks but I remember feeling old when a friend I was at school with's last 'child' graduated. It hit home that she didn't have children any more instead was mother to three adults.

When DD was in reception I was shocked when two of her friends asked if I was her DGM (I was only 40 and always looked young for my age). I found out later I was older than both of their DGMs!

I went out with a group for a birthday recently. In line for a club (already a bad idea at my age) they were telling people to get ID’s ready. Didn’t even glance at mine, just ushered my in. Ouch 🙃.

"Eh? You do know that 55 minus 29 is 21?"

No it's not. It's 26.

As others have kindly pointed out on my behalf, I was responding to someone else who had their child at 16 and found people were surprised she had an adult son at 38. I quoted her post.

Honestly, reading comprehension on here is worrying.

I get it OP. I'm not devastated but I do notice that the days are gone when people would say I looked young for my age and I'm pretty amazed I've got fully grown children ( how did 25 years pass by) and notice a bit whisfully when people just take the information on board. I'm hoping it's because they see me as a fully functioning, mature adult perfectly capable of raising a family. I think there comes a time for most people when your age just catches up looks wise.

We have become a society where no one dare mention anything at all about anyone’s appearance, age, behaviour, family dynamics, hair colour, children, state of drunkenness, choice of car, dog, etc….😎

How bizarre. For you to care so much.
Surely most adults are aware that women are capable of producing children from the age of about 12 to about 45. I presume you don't want them to think you had a baby when you were 12?!
Do you make judgements about how old other people look? If so maybe you should try and think about people's personalities rather than their appearance. And not being do self absorbed and desperate for reassurance.

Apart from the members in the Book Club!!

Good grief.

You've probably just aged and now look your age. It happens to everyone.

Look I am sure you look lovely. But there is an age where most women start to age a lot faster. I certainly look my age now whereas before I was mid 40s I didn’t.

Why are you so worried about it anyway- who cares how old they think you are? Or are you planning on turning into one of those lunatics who want people to think that their son is their boyfriend (see also Alan Bennett plays).

I get what you mean OP

I was peeved at everyone assuming my granddaughter was my granddaughter and I'm in my 60s 🤣

My eldest is 31 and I’m 51 and definitely look it! No fucks given. I’ve got a healthy daughter. Who cares?