To be envious that Victoria Coren Mitchell has a second baby at 51

[Monetm]

https://www.ok.co.uk/tv/breaking-victoria-coren-mitchell-baby-31338022.amp

Just that, really. I’m sure there will be a lot of posts on here about it’s too old and she should have done it sooner, but given that she didn’t, I am envious that she has the money and the luck and the situation to be able to do it now.

Can you imagine how different women’s lives would be if we just didn’t have to worry so much about the end of our fertility?

Rather her than me. She looks gorgeous, I do envy her that. The baby and pregnancy not so much.

Why is it binary? There are so many children and babies who need adopting … I hope anyone desperate for children who hasn’t conceived would want to help one of them.

I’m in my 40’s with a small child, I’m so tired all the time, so no thank you, definitely wouldn’t be uo for doing it in ten years.

I really struggle with the idea that it’s ‘selfish’ because men become fathers later in life ALL the time with very little disapproval from society but it seems to attract disapprobation when women do it.

Good for her. I think MN is, in general, very down on older mums, and rather too quick to move from “there will be some disadvantages for the child in having older parents” to “it would be better for that child never to have been born”. It’s funny as we don’t tend to say “better never to have been born” about other suboptimal situations.

I think there’s also sometimes a failure of imagination about the circumstances that might lead to someone having a baby when older, which is odd for a site like this- as if VCM woke up one morning aged 51 and thought “let’s have a baby”.

If I had a child at 51, I would have a newborn, 27 years old and 32 year old. It’s not envy from me.

Why Gerard?

I just looked up the meaning and it it means "strong spear" or something.

I can't see a connection to late-in-life baby, unless it's a reference to the husband's manhood

I’m 43 and always thought issues I had with my back, knees etc were related to having 4 kids but on speaking to my friends it turns out no, we’re just headed into a creakier time of life! People can say what they want but naturally there’s a reason your body supports you having a child younger and now in my 40s the help I give my mum is absolutely not something a 20 odd year old should have to take on. I am sorry for people it didn’t happen for x

I'm just envious she has a devoted husband and is incredibly rich and smart. Didnt both go to Oxford/Cambridge plus she's from the very wealthy Coren family. Of course money will buy you the best fertility treatments around too. But it must have been tough along the way.

When I'm 51 my child will be 33. There's absolutely no way I'd want to have a baby at that age no matter how much money and support I had.

Define natural?
If you are asking whether they had any medical intervention?
Is having a child via IVF unnatural?

Another person using the word natural. It’s so offensive. However a woman gets pregnant the pregnancy and childbirth is natural.

When I’m 51 I’ll have a 19 year old and a 17 year old. The thought of having a baby makes me feel exhausted! Can’t imagine having a teenager when im
approaching 70.

I am sure she will have staff to help

Love all the people saying she’s selfish. It’s always selfish to have a child. You’re always absolutely doing it for yourself.

They are intelligent people and surely have thought through the ramifications.

I bet those of you saying “think of the poor child” don’t actually give a shit about the kid, you just want to bash a woman who has done something different to what you would do.

I’m 52 and have a 23 & nearly 20 yr old. Eldest has moved out. Good luck to her but not for me.

For all anyone knows, it could have been a surprise pregnancy. She may have been lax about contraception due to her age and potential previous fertility issues? It wouldn't be my choice by I'm not them. I had my last at 40 so also selfishly late according to some.views. However, historically women would just naturally have babies whilst still fertile. I am.glad that contraception gave me the choice not to have children throughout my fertile life. I would have felt very different about the baby stage etc if I have been doing it for 20 years! Conversely, I'm glad not to be pregnant or with a baby now in my mid 40s. Left to natural causes, I imagine I am.still fertile based on my cycles so not so far off 51! I think people are also.missing the point a bit saying their children are grown up and they couldn't bear it. Having done the parenting journey your energy levels and desires will.be very different to those who didn't start in their 20s. Personally I'm very glad I was off having fun, studying and travelling in my 20s. A baby just wasn't on my agenda. I wouldn't be rude enough to judge another persons choices though.

They're a wealthy couple so won't have to worry about putting a lot of responsibility on their children when they grow old (or even having to spend all of their time looking after this one and getting exhausted!) so good for them if they want another baby.

Personally - no. I wouldn't have wanted a child so late in life, but we are all different, and if people want a child, can have a child, and are able to look after a child, then I wish them well.

I've got a delightful little grandson that I look after one day a week, and while he's gorgeous and a very easy child (MUCH easier than his dad was! 😄), I'm like a wrung out dish rag by the end of the day.

A child in my son's class many years ago had a mam who was one of (IIRC) 8 children who were born over a long period. The mam told me that her mother used to joke about collecting her pension and her child allowance on the same day 😅. (Probably a little exaggeration, but amusing)

EDIT: Just had a look - she had a little girl, and both of their daughters have been given what I would call "normal", if slightly old-fashioned, names - June Violet and Barbara. (My DS would have been "Barbara" had he been a girl). Just nice to see a bit of "ordinariness" in the Savage World of the Sleb.

Thought I read that she has an 8 year old already?

I have a friend who is a second time dad at 52 and not one single person has said or even raised that he's too old

St. Gerard Majella is the patron saint of childbirth, children, pregnant women, mothers, and unborn children.

So if you suddenly find yourself pregnant at 50 and you are RC you start praying.

And naming the child after the saint is a sort of 'thank you'.

Bloody hell @billycat321 - I hope I’m cutting firewood at 81.

Oh god no.....this is my nightmare.

I’m in the ‘can’t think of anything worse’ camp. I’d hate to be decades older than all the other mums at the school gate, always being asked if I’m grandma…

It’s great for them and they’re very wealthy so they have all the options regarding support. But it wouldn’t be for me.

@Monetm Money? There is no one saying she had IVF or any other fertility treatment.

Honestly, these threads annoy me.

Years ago, before reliable contraception, women had babies right into their late 40s or early 50s.

My DH had a former girlfriend whose mum had a final child at 49/50.

I'm more worried about very young, uneducated women who have multiple babies with different men and expect the state to provide for housing and other benefits them . (There's one along the road where I live.)

I also think MN is strangely misogynistic and ageist.
No one has bleated about her husband being 49. Just about her.

Statistically, women are having more late babies than ever (obviously not compared with 200 years ago).

Life expectancy is mid 80s for women and I know many 90 year olds now.