What's your upper age limit for having last baby

I had my third and last at 33. For about 5 years after that I think I would have physically managed another, but emotionally, financially, mentally, etc, I was absolutely done and could not have even considered it.

It does vary so much though. I have a friend who had her first at 42 and seemed to just sail through it!

I had my first at 32 and last at 41. It wasn't what I would have chosen but just how things worked out and I feel fine now (at 46), pregnancy wasn't too different to the first, second DC has no issues. At 37 with 2 children, I'd have had another if I wanted one (personally I never wanted more than 2). I think you just have to decide based on your life, your existing children, how you feel, how your body handles pregnancy etc. There will always be people who have a definite cut off but quite often they seem to have had all the children they personally want by their cut off age (eg " oh, I had 3 kids by 30 so 32 would be my absolute cut off").

40

I had my third shortly before my 39th birthday. It’s been fine. I didn’t feel too old. I really wanted to be done by 40 but if I hadn’t had children by then I expect I would have tried.

It is a balance of biology and practicality (being able to provide a home/financially secure).

That factors in that balance are very individual for most people.

We waited until we had purchased our first house, as we knew once nursery fees were a factor we would have struggled to move from our small flat. So we had dc at 36, from a biology point of view it meant we only had one dc.

While I wish we had two, we were not in the position earlier and life would have been very different if we had dc in our flat. No regrets, just that was how we played the cards we were dealt.

i wouldn’t want the gap between the kids to be too big so that would limit having a third. Otherwise about 40

I was 3 weeks from being 41. It was fine apart from HG, but that is not age related.

Hahahaha, OK. School is in the top 1% of state schools in the country. Over subscribed. Full of children from professional homes.

But your negging attempt is noted.

My personal cut-off was no more once I got to 30, but I already had 3 by the time I turned 30, having them at 22, 24 and 27.

I’m childless and single at 34 so my age limit is late 40’s. But I’d really prefer to be done by early 40’s.

40 is my limit.
My last pregnancy at 34 was hard, compared to my first (28) and second (32). I'm a fit and healthy person but the last one was hard. Not sure I could put my body through it again to be honest.

If children are most important thing in life, why shudder at having more time on earth with them? Even if you drop dead at 50, there is a stark difference between leaves my behind a 25-30 year old than an 8 year old.

You can still travel, party, go out with friends, go to university, have sex or have a career in your 20s with children. You can’t ever get back lost time with children and grandchildren. I’m not saying everyone should crack on at 21, but the idea that having your children is wasting your for is telling to me.

It makes it sound like life becomes shit and small after having children. That is a 100% a choice.

My absolute limit would be 32. I don’t want big age gaps with children. I want them to experience my life with me, not join halfway through. Older parents still bring a lot to the table, having children at any age has its costs and benefits.

I had my last at 30 and loved having my kids in my 20s. After 30, I have travelled with the kids all over, studied and moved countries. I was more worried about getting to my thirties and finding my fertility wasn't what it should be when there was less time to do anything about it.

35

I had my third at 35. Couldn't face another pregnancy. Had it been my first, I might have felt differently.

I had my third (and last) at 35. Pregnancy and birth were all just as straightforward as my first at 29. I did feel more drained by the sleepless nights but I think that was down to having less chance to rest with older kids around rather than my age.

Don't feel remotely old to be dealing with a teenager either as I approach 50. My siblings had kids/grandkids younger and actually they find it hard juggling still working and being an involved grandparent. It's hard to help out as much as you want when you're not retired.

I had mine at (just turned) 33 and 35.
My best friend has just had her 3rd at 41, and I know several school mums who have had babies between 40-43

Im pregnant with number 2 now and will be 37 by the time she is born, would like a third so we will be trying again as soon as my periods return. Would like to be pregnant again by the time she’s one and have third by 39 but I would keep trying into my early 40s. In an ideal world I would have had them between 30-35 but it took 4 years to conceive number 1. Definitely finding this pregnancy hard work!

35 for me

I think finances play a big part. We never wanted DC while we were young. I didn’t even give it a second thought until I was nearly 40. I eventually had DS at 43.

By that point we’d both developed very good careers. We had paid off our mortgage and built up a decent level of investments. It means that we can now work much less and even retire if we want to. DS is in Reception and most other parents are struggling with both working FT and big mortgages. Our biggest struggle is now having to limit family holidays to dates that coincide with school holidays!

Having complete financial security and no need to work again while your kids are still very young is fantastic. Were we still lumbered with a big mortgage and had only small pension contributions and investments I’m pretty sure we might feel a little different about things.

It's not possible to have a cut-off is it, unless you don't really really want children.

It's all well and good saying "I swore I wouldn't have kids after 35", but then what if you don't meet the right person or you have fertility struggles?

Are you actually saying that if you were struggling to conceive you'd stop trying at 35 because you said you would? Or would you keep trying and maybe have a child at 37? If the latter, 35 isn't your cut-off is it. You just happened to get the right set of circumstances to have children sooner than this.

I’m TTC my 1st for a few years now, and I’m turning 40 this year so it might not happen. I’ve been trying to decide when I’ll give up. Im
fit and healthy, regular periods etc all tests came back fine.

Maybe if you lived in a more prosperous area with better-educated women, you’d experience a wider age range of school parents.

My personal limit was 30. I had my 5th child when I was 30.

Old parents is the reason the term 'the sandwich generation' was coined. If you have babies late, you are then facing the possibility of both childcare and elderly care at the same time.

Or 50s. AND have one friend who will be 60 before her child moves out of middle school. Not great for the child having a mum the age of other kids grandparents.