This sub is full of people being “childfree” because of the kids they interact with at work. Being a teacher has not changed my desire to have children, it just solidified the kind of parents we will be.

I love kids. I have a dream job working with kids. I can’t wait to have kids of my own.<br><br>Granted we’re not ready to have kids yet, but the thought of being parents one day is still something my fiancé and I are very much looking forward to.<br><br>We’ve been together for a decade and have worked with kids for the last 7 years. We’ve seen all kinds of kids, from the ones you could confuse for being adults, to the ones that make you question whether you’re actually ready to be parents.<br><br>And you know what? We’re still both very excited. <br><br>We know that our kids won’t be perfect little angels (Disclaimer: If you want perfect little angels, you shouldn’t become a parent. Go adopt an older dog or a cat or something if you want an animal to do what you say all the time).<br><br>We know our kids will irritate us to no end, make us tired, make messes, and test our patience.<br><br>We just have to figure out what kind of parents we will be. <br><br>We will be the parents that doesn’t make their kids finish their food. <br><br>I HATE finishing food on my plate. I’m 28 years old and still find myself having to finish food I grew sick of halfway through the first bite. There’s been countless times when I had to finish my entire meal before leaving the table, and I’m still making myself finish my food when I’m no longer hungry. <br><br>I remember as a kid, I had to finish my Oatmeal and Banana for breakfast every morning. It was my least favorite breakfast. I was usually full after finishing half, but I always had to finish it all. In middle school, I was eating a huge bowl of spaghetti with meatballs and was brought a second plate full because I didn’t finish the first. I puked in front of my father after eating too much and him telling me to finish it all. <br><br>If my kid isn’t hungry anymore, but the food is good and we can save the leftovers, I’ll let them stop eating and save it for later. <br><br>We will be the parents that don’t care about prom.<br><br>I didn’t go to either my Junior or Senior proms and it never once bothered me. If our kids want to go to prom, we’ll find them a dress or suit, but we won’t make them go because “It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity.” <br><br>If they prefer to spend that evening with friends doing something else, cool. We might even join if they want us to.<br><br>We will be the parents that let our kids quit extracurricular activities.<br><br>I switched schools in the middle of my freshman year because my dad moved us to a new state. I decided to join the basketball team, but realized during the first practice that it wasn’t for me. I told him I didn’t like it and he made me finish out the season before I could quit.<br><br>If my kid tries something and doesn’t like it, they can quit without finishing the season. We just won’t ever force them to try something in the first place.<br><br>We will be the parents whose kids can come to talk to us about anything at any time.<br><br>I was always afraid of my parents growing up. They didn’t hug much and didn’t like talking about difficult subjects. There was one instance where I had to explain why I was wet and smelled of alcohol. (It ended up making me nausesous). My friends and I were at a park and the liquor store across the street sold us a bottle of Blue Hypnotiq. We sipped it while hiding behind the bathrooms. I was 14. It was a stupid thing to do, but I learned my lesson. How did my parents handle it? Telling me I smelled like booze and making me take a shower. I was terrified to tell them I had actually tried alcohol because they yelled at me for simply having the odor of liquor on me. I never wanted to bring home a bigger issue because I was afraid of the reaction.<br><br>If my kids want to come to me about anything sensitive, I want them to feel comfortable talking about it at 10pm on a Tuesday evening. I want them to know that we’ll listen, and then talk, and then figure out a solution. I don’t want them to ever be afraid of bringing something to our attention because they’re afraid of being yelled at. <br><br>We will be the parents that let our kids make their own decisions.<br><br>This one is a bit harder for me because I know there are consequences to making the wrong decision. But, if my kid wants to spend all their money on something stupid for a dumb reason, I’m not going to stop them. If they want to buy something expensive when the cheaper alternative is the same, I’m not going to argue. <br><br>We’ll give our opinion and advice, but I want them to know it’s their choice and they should do what they think is right. There’s a difference between giving guidance and giving orders. We’ll guide, not order.<br><br>Obviously these are just things I don’t want to do as a parent, and we’ll definitely do things our parents did that we liked. And obviously this is all in addition to providing for our kids, teaching them important life skills, and showing them love.<br><br>We’ll change our minds about things later on, but as of right now, this is what we know.