To think as you age, you really are satisfied by the simple things

[Supergirlscousin]

Im 46 and honestly, I just feel like the last couple of years, all I want (and what makes me happy) is the simple things in life.

Enjoy being home with DH and the kids, cooking amazing food.
A cup of tea with cake and a book
Something good on the tv
A walk on the beach (even better with a coffee and a bacon sarnie)

I have zero desire for “stuff” (cars, handbags, clothes, shoes, jewels etc).

Kinda wish I’d felt like this in my 20’s and 30’s.

What changes when we get older, or maybe I’m just really boring!

Definitely and I really lean into it these days.

Browse round a garden centre and have a pot of tea and a scone - heaven! 😂

I feel like i no longer desire "success' and just want enough money for me and dd not to struggle snd to enjoy our lives

I wouldn't say no to a saint lsurent handbag though 😅🤭🤭

Yanbu at all, life is for enjoying and for peace

I also love nothing more than going to asda and there being a bargain in the reduced to clear so that sums up my life right now 😅

I love this! Honestly a potter, plus tea and cake is just wonderful

Yes this too - absolutely. So much of my 20’s and 30’s I was chasing money, status and promotion. Now I’m happier to have the time and a not very stressful role!

Yes definitely.

And a bargain find is also satisfying!

Yeah girl, it's just not worth the stress at all. Better to enjoy life 😌

I wholeheartedly agree with this. I’ve felt it increasingly over the last few years. I’m currently going through the HR process to demote myself at work as I don’t want any form of responsibility (outside the home), putting it simply, I can no longer be assed. I like winter walks, reading, drinking tea, sitting next to fairy lights drinking wine. Simple things that make me happy.

I'm in my early 50s but I think I've always been a bit like that tbh. Chasing money, status and promotion? No thanks! I'm a teacher - it's not exactly a glam, high-powered sector Stress, yes. Status? Not so much!

I went to meet family and friends in a large city a few weeks ago and the most enjoyable part of it was wandering around an art museum and ending with tea and cake, and then the next day chatting for two hours over breakfast in the M&S cafe.

The young me would've been all about the nightlife and what the latest hotspots were. I got excited by how comfy the bed was in the hotel and the extra pillow options ha ha!

Yes, but I had to go through that 'everything all at once' phase to get here. I would have have fomo otherwise.

I think nothing I did in my 20s and 30s with clubbing and parties and holidays and pubs and friends and booze and laughs can compare to the bone deep pleasure I now get in my 50s from a new matching tea towel and oven gloves set. Especially if they've got cats on.

Oooh fairy lights and wine. Yes yes yes. DH is out next Friday and I think I’ll steal this idea

Omg yes - I’d have been the same! Comfort is the most exciting thing!!

I think we might be the same person 😂. Ten years ago the thought of that would have brought me out in a rash but now it's one of my all time treats. And a trip to the library followed by a Costas is to me what a month in the Bahamas is to other people!

I think we need pictures of your kitchen accoutrements to enhance our excitement.

I have been enjoying the MN thread "show me your butter dish" way more than I should have. 😄

I have had the ultimate day out today. Lunch and a walk around ikea to buy lots of organisational stuff for my art studio.

Absolutely. Who wants world fame and fortune when they can drink a cup of tea with a purring cat in their lap without agents/press constantly hassling them .

Is it okay to feel like this 100% and still be in my 30s??!

With 2 young kids, a stressful FT job, and all the household management stresses that comes with this life... all I ever want is to chill out in my clean, cosy house with the fire on, a great book, a freshly brewed teapot of tea and some excellent biscuits. Anything else just doesn't compare!

I fear I may have leant in to this life too early and too hard! I now find holidays taxing as I secretly just want to get home to my cosy house, my books and my teapot!

I'm about to be 49 and couldn't agree more - was talking to a same-aged friend about this last night as we did our 8km run in the dark and wind (and enjoyed it, something 20yo me would have died rather than do).

We agreed that day to day, we're contented. Healthy kids, partners and jobs we like (both can be stressful at times, mind), a reasonable amount of money, health, friends. Don't need anything more.

You might like this thread though, it's gorgeous: https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/style_and_beauty/3954110-Old-ladies-are-actually-experts-at-life-and-we-are-fools-continued

That butter dish thread was a joy 💕. Loved seeing all the different designs and patterns.

I am the opposite. Not overly interested in “stuff” (never have been) but want to travel significantly more and engage far more in social and cultural activities.

Definitely. The older I get, the less stuff I want and need and 'making do and mending ' makes me happy. I'm currently challenging myself to spend as little as possible January to March and I'm rather enjoying it. Friends and family are far better than things.

I couldn't agree more with this. DH and I are both 50 but we have felt like this for a few years now. The simple things in life make me happy.

Opening a bottle of Pinot Grigio on a Saturday evening to share with my DH while we cook a curry for dinner and chat about our days. Sipping coffee on a cold day with the wood burner blaring watching an episode of Vera or a movie, Facetiming our daughters for a 'family chat' on Sunday evenings, walking on the beach with our 2 whippets, relaxing in a hot bath with my latest trashy novel, heading to the local cosy cafe with my best friends for lunch, the several holidays we take in Anglesey each year in a holiday cottage with the dogs exploring new areas, walking beaches and having a drink in the local pub. The list goes on. All totally inexpensive and all utterly enjoyable.

In fact, when we had a nice day on Saturday we jumped in the car and head to our local beach with the dogs. We walked the length of the beach while our dogs chased one another, we chatted and laughed and I thought how happy I felt in that moment. The sun was warm and the waves were crashing and I felt blessed to be here. Its weird but the older I become the more 'present' I find myself in the moment when this kind of thing happens and the more I appreciate my life and feel gratitude for the little things. 😊

Isn't part of this the fact that you now have what you need?

You strive more for money and goods when you need to get your house, get the job role that makes you feel happy, when you have young children to get set up in the world

Once you have achieved this, then you can relax and focus on what you enjoy