Do you wish you’d stuck at 2 DC?

[Goostacean]

Just that really. Mulling over a third. Do you wish you’d stuck with two? Ignoring the fact that of course everyone loves their children and (I assume!) you’d not want to get rid of them now, that is.

I'm a third child so always feel a bit sad about this sort of post! We were reasonably spaced out so I never felt a lack of love or attention. Given my parents are now very elderly and I'm the one sorting everything out for them I doubt they regret their decision.

We have 2 with a reasonably close gap (2y2m between them), and now that they're 5 and 7 we're talking about having a third. We couldn't have done it while they were both pre-school but we think now it would be a lot more like having our firstborn again - in the sense that the other two would be much older and at very different stages to a baby/toddler/pre-schooler.

But then we think that we may not want to go back to the sleepless nights of the baby stage or the monotony of the toddler stage. And we have daydreams of being able to pack the four of us in the (reasonably sized) car with our bikes and just head off camping for the weekend, whereas if we had another it would be a car that neither DH nor I would want to drive (as people who enjoy cars/driving) but can fit 3 car seats in it, baby stuff, frequent stops, probably not camping because camping in Scotland is cold most of the time, no mountain biking for whoever has to have a baby seat on their bike etc.

But babies are lovely....

Interesting thread! We’re also torn about a third but our youngest now is nearly 8 so big age gap with their being a very small age gap between the first 2.

My main worry is finances. Would worry we wouldn’t be able to provide the two we have now with the same life if we introduced a third but then babies/toddlers are cheap - it’s when they start going to all these different clubs etc that they cost the real money

No regrets! Guilt sometimes, at the extra environmental load he and his progeny will create. He is the best thing that happened to me, my number three.

LunaWuna we are an active family but have found that biking with three is pretty tough. When number three was small we had loads of adventures on foot with a Macpac Vamoose child carrier.
7 seater is essential with three kids in my opinion.

Oh no please don’t be saddened @singswithitsfingers

The truth of the matter boils down to environmental guilt and concern from me about how my marriage may suffer, tbh. But those are both for another thread, really, and when I see my two playing together (as much as a 5mo can join in so far!) I do wonder how a third would change that. I’m one of two but my much-younger sibling has special needs so I’ve never had a “normal” sibling relationship, and it’s interesting to hear from those who have them in their families. No offence intended for third or later children!

The environmental impact should be a significant consideration. But it’s down to each person to decide how much they care about that versus how much they desire a bigger family. There will be major challenges ahead for the next generation that make CV19 look like a (socially distanced) stroll in the park.

Guineapigbridge yes that's our concern. We're an active family and now that DD is 5 and has finally taken to cycling without stabilisers, I'm finally starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel, as it were, for us being able to go out together without one of us (me) being stuck at a ridiculously slow pace, or walking beside her. When we're walking, I quite like that we can now walk for a couple of hours without having to stop for lots of breaks for a wee one. Also not having to take nap schedules into account when driving further afield!