I Dont Believe In Dating Just For the Sake of Dating

I used to work with a woman who said she liked to come to work because it was like going on vacation compared to taking care of her kids. I once met another woman with five kids; I asked her if it was hard taking care of them, and she said no, because the older kids take care of the younger ones. I know another woman who was the oldest of eight kids; she never had children of her own because she said she had already raised a family and had no interest in doing it a second time.

So yeah, the 1950s ideal of the happy housewife at home sounds good, but is also very stressful unless you basically opt out of it. A lot of parents don't find it difficult because they don't put any effort into it. One difference today is that young couples are more isolated while in the past they were in a community with neighbors and relatives helping with the kids. Now a young mother is on her own, by herself, so it's no surprise that the birth rate is falling, at least for more responsible people.