To have “childish” hobbies?

I love hobbies and hearing about others. I collect various types of out of print books, looking round gardens, reading and chatting about books. I also love fashion and history, hiking, gardening.

I've been doing all these for years, except the gardening. I don't care what anyone else thinks and if you love colouring why not? Years ago it would have been watercolours and line drawing, pens are much more practical and travel friendly:)

Thank you @NeverDropYourMooncup that sounds right up my street. I've tried a couple of apocalyptic / survival games but not quite found one I like.
DS2 grew up playing old school Runescape (still does now he's 27) and I always fancied something similar.

Most hobbies are, by definition, a form of playing. And most neuroscientists would agree that all humans need more opportunities to play. I think screenless hobbies are a lot better for helping us relax, particularly before trying to sleep.

I use my hands - I knit, paint, make miniatures, mosaics, jewellery - not as much as I'd like though. The bloody internet always steals my time. The time spent listening to something on the radio or a podcast while using my hands is golden.

One thing that really boils my piss is when people comment 'you must have a lot of time on your hands then'. You MAKE time for these things. It's not a moral weakness to spend time doing things you love.

Well I’m 44 with 2 children (teen/tween age now) and my hobbies still haven’t really changed since childhood. Like you I enjoy colouring and occasionally playing the sims (I rarely get time for these two, but I make sure I take colouring books and nice pens on holidays every time so my 14 year old and I can colour in as we both love it!). I also have my own pony (horse now) as I did as a child and ride and spend time caring for them, and I still swim (not competitively now), and love going to the beach. I have added vegetable gardening and keeping other animals (dogs, cats, chickens, goats) to my hobby list

If it makes you happy and isn’t hurting anyone then go for it!

All of the hobbies you've listed are brilliant! Colouring books, swimming etc. are hugely popular for 'mindfulness' and help you to disengage from/process the stress of the day. I'm a parent and wish I had more time for hobbies like this, but have recently started crafting in front of the TV in the evening (rather than scrolling on my phone). It's so enjoyable and makes me feel productive (used to do lots of crafting before children).

If you enjoy it, it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks - but I can't imagine people would be critical, given how popular most of these things are now?

I love colouring in.. and love helping my grandaughter make her dollshouse cosy we buy lots of outfits and shoes for her dolls .. furniture etc I love it.

I am 43. I play thebsims, cities skylines, manor lords, boardgames, paint by numbers, cross stitch, embroidery, gardening.
Probabky what folk think of as not worth while. But they amuse me.

Ive never been into grown up hobbies like drinking, smoking, shagging 😂

You're welcome to the first time you see it in the next day at a good enough of a English word with my life in books 📚 😃😄😊😊

I love climbing and Lego, I am a child at heart it seems!

I have do the same thing! I colour on my tablet and i love playing the sims! there is nothing to be ashamed about. You are allowed to have interests outside of your children, sometimes its the only way we keep sane. My daughter also loves to join me when i play the sims and its one of the mutual things we can do together that doesnt cause me pain (i have a thread on here more about that ) and we love doing it, shes not 100% into it all the time but when she wants to have a go we have some fun...im not sure how old your kids are but this could be something you do together...colouring can be the same too.

Look i cant tell you how to feel but can we honestly say that the sims is a childish game? if youu think about it what child should know really what woohoo is a how to get married and pay bills with a house and jobs...honey its not childish at all its an escape from the real world where when we have had enough of whatever is happening we can turn it off. we can control everything in the game that we cant in real life and honestly its cathardic personally.

I dont know if this app has messaging but i am fully here if you would like to chat more or even sims and colouring ideas <3
Please dont judge yourself for finding something that is safe, relatively cheap and makes you happy <3

This is a lovely thread ✨️ Im not sure if this counts or not but I do feel childish about how much a look forward to my birthday every year. It doesnt have to be anything like a big party with loads of friends and big expense but if I wake up and DH has a card ready, bouquet and chocolates and I get to stroll a garden centre then Im thrilled ☺️

Im 59 and find colouring very therapeutic. Nothing wrong with that.

Those are actually all creative hobbies and linked to the same core theme of story telling.

Colouring in is also a creative hobby. Nothing wrong with any of those things!

I’m more than a decade older than you and I still play the Sims. I was playing it last night after the DC went to bed.
One good thing about getting older is that I care far less about whether other people think it’s an unsuitable hobby for an adult!

i don’t do colouring in, but if all the adult colouring books out there are anything to go by, you’re far from the only adult to enjoy that.

Do what you love! Free time is so limited, use it doing something that makes you happy.

I'm 58 and I play video games and stream on Twitch. 🤷‍♂️

So many people I have come across just sit glued to the TV all day - if there's nothing on they will watch utter rubbish rather than get up and do something else - better a "childish" hobby than that (nothing wrong with your hobbies OP - we love The Sims in our house)

I'm mid-30s and I play games (including the Sims - haven't played it in ages though, might redowload!), read and write fanfiction, and play D&D... I don't think they're childish!

(As a PP pointed out though, while it's lovely that this thread has shown plenty of people like gaming, if you mention on here that a man likes gaming it gets a very different crowd responding to say it's childish and ridiculous!)

My hobbies are that of a 14 year old (I am a late 30’s mum of three!)

I play sims, animal crossing, various other computer games. I watch YouTube ABOUT these games, I read literary RPG books, I like to sticker, colour and colour/make my own journal, and I still manage to live a fulfilled life 😊

You sound cool as in my eyes! Off to a comic con with youngest next month. Don't watch anime much anymore but still love it! Will prob come home with lots of geeky merch. Also a boardgamer here...ttrpgs, deck builders or run of the mill modern board games? I work with 2 older ladies and one looks at me like I'm 6 sometimes and I care not lol

Oooh I was a medieval reenactor for 25 years! Now I wanna go to a fancy book ball and dress up like a high Fae or woodland witch lol 😅

I read, play modern boardgames, play cozy grove on switch and I collect Disney traditions. I like the fact that my hobbies let me reignite that childish wonder. I've also done a lot of crafting, gardening, embroidery etc in the past. Sometimes I think my hobby is collecting hobbies lol

I did colouring when I was anxious. I read a lot now.

I wasted far too many years abstaining from hobbies because they weren’t cool enough. Now I sew and wear historical costumes. It’s adult dress-up and I love it!

what kind of workplace is that? its very good! I had psychosis from stress at work