How many children is the perfect number? People started asking if my partner and I were planning on having a third child minutes after I gave birth to my second child. While I was irritated, I wasn’t surprised: discussing the optimal number of children isn’t new, and everyone appears to have their own, typically firm viewpoint when it comes to family size and what’s “ideal.”
How many children is the perfect number?
“While I’m firmly in the “you do you” camp, now that I’m a mother of two, I have to acknowledge that I believe two children is the ideal amount of children to have.
Yes, I’m prejudiced, but after four months as a mother of two, I’ve quickly discovered how advantageous it is to have two children, and only two children.
We can divide and conquer since I’m parenting with a partner; a parenting approach that, believe me, works wonderfully and has helped me feel like we’re evenly distributing parenting responsibilities. After my first kid was born, there were times when I felt like the entire parenting burden rested exclusively on my fatigued shoulders.
However, with the addition of another child, we’ve been forced to openly speak about who needs to do what, and as a consequence, the division of work has become more equal. I also get to see my older brother grow into his position as a big brother while knowing that my younger brother will never feel left out since he’s “the baby,” and no one forgets the family’s baby.
Sure, being a mother of two is challenging, and there are times when I question why my partner and I opted to uproot our lives and start a family. We were having a nice time with baby number one, had just begun getting a solid eight hours of sleep every night, and had even sent our child to pre-k, which allowed us a bit more free time to appreciate each other.
But, in the end, I realise that our family would be incomplete without our newest member. And now that I have two children, I know that we have the ideal amount of children in our family and can stop reproducing. This is why:
For the sake of science
No, seriously. According to a 2007 research, the majority of Americans still feel that 2.5 children is the optimal number of children to have, and six out of ten Americans feel that “smaller” families — those with two or fewer children — are the way to go.
Because they have the ability to entertain each other
I now have a four-year-old and a four-month-old, and you can bet I’m counting down the days until my youngest can play with my eldest. Not only will my “big kid” have someone to play with (he’s naturally gregarious and enjoys having an adventure buddy with him at all times), but he’ll also get some exercise.
However, I will be relied on to amuse both of my children significantly less frequently than I am now. That, my friends, is what I call a parenting victory.
Due to the fact that you are not outnumbered
You may still employ your typical man-to-man defence when parenting if you’re parenting with a partner. One parent can take on one child, the other can take on the other, and you may rotate as required.
However, if you have three kids, you’re outnumbered. If you just have one child, you’ll be in a zone defence, and someone will most likely wind up shouldering more of the parenting responsibilities. (Hint: due patriarchy, that person will be the mother.)
Because You’ll Get a Better Night’s Sleep
Look I’m not a scientist or a researcher, but I can assure you that having fewer children means getting better sleep. That is just a truth of science. Will you be sleeping on a regular basis with two children? Nope. Have faith in me. You will, however, sleep more than if you had three or more children.
Because “Middle Kid Syndrome” Doesn’t Exist
Middle child syndrome exists, and children who aren’t the eldest but aren’t the youngest are said to feel neglected, disregarded, and pushed to the side. As a result, kids may become resentful and rebellious in order to get their parents’ attention. However, if you have two children, you won’t have to be concerned about this! The issue has been resolved!
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