It's not for everyone, and it sounds kind of rude towards people who can't have/don't want them. But yeah, I found having kids opened up a lot of doors for me that may well have remained closed, and also, I have got to do things I wouldn't have done if I hadn't had them. Would my life have been better and more full without them? No. I don't think it would.
I mean I had a life without them before, and did go partying, nightclubbing, on holiday with mates, and also travelling, but you can only do this carefree 'young person' stuff for so long. I have done so much more stuff since having kids, that I didn't do before. Like learning a foreign language with my daughter, ice-skating, going to concerts, going to rock festivals, getting involved in several sports, getting involved in a drama group, going camping, discovering much more to watch than I would have if the kids hadn't suggested it, hitch-hiking across Europe, becoming a vegetarian, going on thrill rides in theme parks, getting involved in various causes and charities, and being able to communicate well with people 30 years younger than me, and understand them and their issues.
I saw a thread on here the other day about things people had never done (that people generally say is a rite of passage.) And I was shocked at the amount of people on there who had SO many things that they have never done in their lives. I mean, not like scaling Kilimanjaro, but they had never learned to swim, never learned to ride a bike, never rode a skateboard, never been out of the country, never played a video game, never been to a theme park, never been camping, never had a driving lesson.. And many more things that I thought everyone had done.
And in almost ALL of the cases where people had done virtually nothing, other than exist (eat, sleep, and go to work,) these same people had never had children. So although I am sure some people lead full lives without having children, they do improve and enhance the lives of some people, because many new doors are opened for you. I am going on holiday with DD in June to Canada, just me and her, just a mom and daughter trip, where we are going to do so many exciting things. DH is going on a ski-ing trip with our son (to the alps) next week. In September, we are all going to spend a week in a cabin in North Wales - me, DH, DD, DS, and their partners. All 6 of us.
I just can't imagine not having children. Neither can DH, and I agree that they do enhance your life.