Tell me without telling me

[Migrainesandme]

Tell me your child free or an empty nester without telling me.
Just a bit of fun.

I'll start.
I dont have any school dramas.
I sleep in till gone 10 some times later.
I dont have to cook.
I dont have piles of washing.
I can get up and go at any time.

I go on holiday whenever I like.

My clothes do not have sticky fingerprints on them.

I've never searched for a missing cuddly toy.

I've never, ever seen the inside of a nanny.

Forgot to add i can spend my money on myself without regrets.
And watch a series without being disturbed.

I don't have endless tedious conversations about the merits of different private schools and anxiety about passing entrance exams.

I spent all day doing whatever I wanted

@EyesopenwideawakeI do have children but have equally never seen the inside of a nanny - have I missed something?!

I’ve never seen the inside of a nanny either 🤔😳🤣

Jude, is that you?

I've seen inside a nanny. It's mostly spare dummies, cuddly toys, bibs, and lots and lots of tissues.

I mean the contents of a nappy 😱

(Sorry - was talking about the goats while I was typing earlier!!)

🤣love it @Eyesopenwideawake, feeling rather relieved after subsequent posts that I haven't seen inside a nanny! Poor Jo Frost (? Super Nanny) must be quaking at the thought of Mumsnetters demanding X rays 🤣

I do have kids. But my sister doesn’t :
I can go out whenever I want without arranging childcare
I can go on holiday any time if the year
i can spontaneously decide to stay up all night/go to bed at 7.30pm/take an hour long bath.
I can pick any restaurant to eat in
I can drink a bit too much wine at home without worry (she’s teetotal but I often think this)
I can have valuable and fragile ornaments arranged wherever I like.
Christmas is easy with no budget worries
I can have a sports car if I want
I have an under counter fridge which is perfectly adequate.
I do laundry once or twice a week.
I sleep well without interruption.
I can make as much noise as I want (in the bedroom in particular).
I do not have that constant neverending low level anxiety about what could go wrong, what the future will look like, and have I made the right decisions…

My hobbies include, spin class, yoga class, Zumba class, weightlifting, rowing, running, archery, swimming, badminton, morris dancing, yarn crafts and walking. I often go to various workshops at the weekends such as jewellery making, black smithing and resin pouring. Ive recently taken up a spot volunteering and am considering bell ringing again. I’ve lived on a boat for 23 years continuously cruising most of our canals and have owned several dogs and now six cats.

My electric and gas bills never exceed £50 combined in the summer or £90 in the winter per month. I drive a nice car. i choose not to have holidays. Don’t have a tv.

I paid off my mortgage before 40..on my own.
I can have a sofa day whenever I want.
I go on yoga and meditation retreats. I have a week off work next week full of pampering treats like back massage and treatment, pedicure, hair restyle, lunch with the girls, shopping and some lazy stay at home days inbetween.
I watch back to back episodes of series on netflix until 1am on a weekend.
I can let my dishes pile up as who gives a crap when it's just me and ive had a lobg week at work.
I bought a 2 seater soft top sports car.
I do laundry once a week.
I can stretch the hoovering to fortnightly.
I throw stuff in the airfryer for a quick meal.
I can stay in bed until whenever I want on a weekend.
My house is a peaceful oasis.
I worked away for years to earn enough money to pay off my mortgage and came home whenever i wanted.
I can buy whatever I want, whenever I want.
My freezer is always well stocked.
My house has not been decorated for over 15 years and still looks good, no broken furniture or mucky handprints!

I can have valuable and fragile ornaments arranged wherever I like.

I guarantee that my husband is far worse than any child when it comes to breaking stuff. So no child-free advantage on that score!

All the cuddly toys in the house belong to me.
I have never stood on a lego brick.
My money is just that, MY money.
My husband and i can have * at a moments notice whenever (and wherever) we want.

I did the 30 minute walk into town to purchase key rings that can be labelled together with a key rack. Did the return walk home. Organised the spare key pot. Now each key is identifiable. I’m now going to put the key rack onto the wall using proper raw plugs and screws. After I will have a cup of tea and read my book and consider this to have been an excellent productive day because I have a calm mind as the household chaos is brought into order. I no longer have to memorise stuff because I have time to properly organise and label. I feel so much better in my self.

I spent hot Sunday on a bed in the coldest room playing AO2 and drinking various iced drinks. All day... Sorry, no. Watched sharknado in the middle.
My holidays are cheap.
I can start drinking at 4pm and go sleep at 11 or I can start at 8 and be up till 2. It's up to me. (and DH)
I just binge watch Xfiles some evenings.
Fridge and freezer only have what we like. I don't have to sharw my chicken strips when I have them once in a while.

On a negative side, I don't seem to be allowed to say I am nackered...

”I do not have that constant neverending low level anxiety about what could go wrong, what the future will look like, and have I made the right decisions…”

Unfortunately not having children has not relieved me of existential dread. I don’t have the future of my children to worry about obviously but I still have a future as does everyone I love. The pleasure I derive from a childfree life is very much about the present but the future still troubles me!

I go on holiday and to gigs and festivals etc with no forward planning (other than with work!)

I've also only just woken up and am having some leisurely crumpets before I rouse myself sufficiently to watch some music on YouTube 🤣

I don’t have my heart walking around outside of my body. I value the emotional freedom that brings.

I still think of school years in 'old money' - 'third year juniors' 'fifth year' etc. not any of this newfangled 'Year 8' nonsense 😄

It's not that new, I'm my late 30's and it was known as Year 7, 8, 9 etc. in my school right up to year 13/ upper 6th. think it depends on the school.

Several times a year, I am baffled by how the traffic in town seems much lighter than normal this morning, and again mid-afternoon. For no apparent reason. Strange.

It's half one on a Sunday afternoon and I can still taste the toothpaste.

Long before my time!