The official Childfree on MN bingo card

[ItsNotRocketSalad]

We have 24 squares to fill. What lines get trotted out on every thread that discusses the child free?

My suggestions:

1. You'll need my children to be your carers when you're old
2. Only parents understand real love
3. Childfree people shouldn't take annual leave in school holidays

No doubt this Board will have constant interruptions like this, and it's probably best if we all learn to disengage

Couldn't agree more.

I suspect the poster would get their arse handed back to them if they tried that.

I was told I would have been a great mum because I like crafting and I make the occasional cake. If only parenting was that simple.

Oh look. Now we 'sound angry.' That other attempt to make women shut up and not make their voices heard. Has a klaxon gone off, or something?

@Superfood Can you please go elsewhere? It’s so arrogant to decide that other people are unable to live healthy, happy lives because they’re on one board that you’ve decided is toxic for them.

You don’t think this board is good for people - that’s fine. Please stop using it, and let the rest of us decide for ourselves what helps us and what doesn’t.

Actually people do do it all the time on the Black Mumsnetters' Board. It's cringeworthy on there too.

You could nominate the whole of this thread, frankly, but yup. And ALWAYS as if the poster is the first one to ask it.

"My auntie/cousin/hairdresser's friend had a baby at 49 so you mustn't give up hope"

"You just need to relax".

Our case is rested............

That should have made my DM Supermum. If only....

I agree. Perhaps we could come up with a tactic to deal with ploppers/sealions/derailers like Superfood here. On the feminism board they start sharing recipes or something until the derailing poster gets bored and goes elsewhere. I suggest we post pictures of cute kittens/guinea pigs? Or is that not in line with mumsnet guidelines

Here's a cute dog (waits to be told pets are poor substitutes for children).

Ooh that’s another bingo - “I bet you have a furbaby”.

The only people I’ve heard use that word are people mocking childfree people!

Sadly, he's not mine, he belongs to the local pub where, because I'm childfree I can spend many happy evenings drinking red wine and playing Scrabble.

Pub dogs are the best! Only beaten by the rare pub cat.

He's just adorable, and I'm not even really a dog person.

I’m not great with dogs but I do like admiring them from afar. Cats are definitely my jam and would love to meet a pub cat!

Here's another cute dog, one of my doggy nephews!

Maybe I'm secretly a dog person 😅😍

Not a bingo, but it is really cringe when parents realise they have been talking about their kids for ages, turn to me and say, "So how are your dogs?". I know it's meant well, but it suggests they think I am a delusional dog-lady, who believes her pets are babies - definitely not true: they are so much better than babies 😉

This is my beautiful Sheltie and it is no secret I am a dog person.

Oh my god this is too much cuteness.

@Superfood this is a theme that is discussed a lot in intersectional feminism re other groups of women. It is why, for example, Black women might want a safe space to discuss issues that affect Black women specifically. It isn't undermining feminism and creating divisions. I think the same came be applied here.

These kind of [descriptor]-blind ideologies (e.g., colour-blind in the example of a reaction against a space specifically for Black women) don't really help. Similarly, someone might say to a feminist: "why focus on women's issues? Shouldn't we worry about humanity as a whole?"

We accept that safe spaces and talking about women's issues is important. Why it is so hard to accept the same for subcategories of women, I do not know. Childfree women talking about issues affecting them does not create divisions. Women with children should listen and learn and become allies in looking to change society's behaviour. This is exactly what we hope men will do on a women's forum (rather than, for example, say "defining yourself by your gender is the thing that creates issues").

Cuteness to the max!

FiveShelties, beautiful dog (do you have 5? )

In my yoof shelties were so popular but I rarely see one these days. They are beautiful dogs.