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@Synchronicity: Agreed!! I get sick of the assumptions either way!! Just on these threads people tends to focus on the negatives of being older so that's what I focused my post on.

I wasn't insulted and I'm on the other side of 40. I think until you have perspective, you just don't know. Like when I was 10 and I thought 16 was so old... Or when I was 20 and thought life was over at 40.

I just want people to know that just because someone is having their kids over 40 doesn't make them crazy. And just as I don't judge younger moms, I would prefer if people didn't judge older moms.

Look, when I was 35, I thought "oh I'm too old to have babies" because that's what society and even my doctors said. Imagine my surprise when we ended up with a honeymoon baby at 38. I wasn't ready for a second until I was 40. At that time I probably could have conceived, but for a variety if reasons, we chose to adopt. The thing is, I didn't feel any different at 40 then I did at 38 or 35. You just feel like you.

Now at 43, I still get pregnant easily but still definitely see the toll of older eggs. But that's the only problem. I feel just fine. My partner who is 32 works to keep up with me. I do most of the nighttime awakenings in our house because he doesn't do well without sleep.

If you look back at your family tree like I have, you'll see many if the women having their last child at 45. So the older mom thing is a bit overhyped in my estimation. Fertility docs have a very vested interest in having us feel insecure about babies at older ages.

I also spent time in some TTC over 40 boards. Lots of successful pregnancies (and some heartache to be sure)... But we all feel just the same as every other mama. We do yoga, hike, ski, travel, run. We're not hobbling around with walkers in nursing homes.

And so while I respect the desire to want to be done by 35, I implore folks to respect the desire of moms to be moms after 35. We're not crazy or weird. We're just mamas... And for me, I didn't discover the love and desire to be a mama until my late 30's. I'm so glad I did figure it out though as I have fully enjoyed my amazing life both before and after my babies.

@Mrs. Jacks:

@Synchronicity: I don't think anyone's intent was to make younger moms feel bad. However, I think the way the question was posted in the thread it made it seem like "older" moms needed to justify why they would have kids over 35.

@Synchronicity: Agree, everyone is different.. And at different stages of life.. Some people don't want kids at all.. Of course they are not on this site

I'm hoping I'll be 32 when we have our miracle baby or babies. If we want LO 2, I will most likely be 35 or older.

I thought I would be 33 and be finished having babies but then IF happened. Oh, well.

@GoGoSnoGirl: Big hug! It's going to be awesome! I hope the rest of your pregnancy is smooth sailing. You are going to love being a mama so much.

It looks like you are a snowboarder? I am too

@GoGoSnoGirl: Now I've got two little rippers! It's so fun to see them loving the snow as much as we do.

The worst part of being pregnant was missing a season. My OB only allowed me to snowboard until 15 weeks. As soon as baby was out of the pelvis, she asked me to stop.

It was amazing, but on my 35th birthday, my ovaries fell out and wrinkled up in front of me.

We will be done by 35, but I would absolutely TTC if that's where our life plans took us. I have two dear friends who are pg at or near 40, and they make it look easy!

No and not because of age. If all had gone as childhood me planned, I'd be married at 25, have kids out of the way by 30. Most of that is so we have energy for our kids. It has nothing to do with medical reasons for us.

I mean, I'll be 35 when we start to TTC number 2 in a few months, so I guess I'm ok with it This is an odd question for me to answer because I never had a timeline of when I wanted to have kids -- so it never occurred to me to disappointed that I won't be finished having kids by 35. There was a lot that I wanted to do before I had kids (law school and achieving a certain amount of professional success mainly) and those things take time. Plus I really really enjoyed my 20s and early 30s (both single and with DH), and feel like if I'd had children earlier, I would have missed out on some really great experiences. That said, because the clock is undeniably ticking, I do feel a tiny twinge of jealously for those of you that are younger and don't have to take your own age in account when spacing future siblings.

Absolutely not. I want to be done by 29 at the max.

Before I had H, I wanted two kids and I wanted to be done by the time I was 30. But then I had her, and things changed. I'll be 30 in October, and we are not close to starting to TTC. So, We still want two kids, but I'll be in my 30's and that's okay.

I had my first at 32 and would like to have our second and be done at 35, but that's really for spacing reasons. I'm almost 34 now and I feel great so I don't think that will change much in a year. I'm definitely healthier now than when I was in my 20s!

I'm going to ignore the fact that people were/weren't offended by this thread and just answer the question!

I was 32 when I had #1 and will be very close to 35 when we start TTC #2. I'm not worried about all my eggs drying up or anything (!) but I really think it would have been better for me to have had my children earlier. Ten years ago, I could go out until 3am and still get up for work in the morning, several nights a week. Now, at almost 34, I need 9 full hours of quality sleep per night to even function. Ten years ago, I was a lot more flexible; I used to leave washing up on the side overnight and dump laundry on the bedroom floor. Now I'm totally set in my ways, I like things just so and am stressed out by all the mess and the noise. Unlike pps, I earn slightly more than I did in my twenties but not much and I'm possibly facing redundancy this year.

Of course, the other side of that is I had a damn good time in my twenties and I wouldn't take a minute of it back!

@shortcake: lol!

I really am surprised at how many are so vehemently opposed to children after. 35.

Add me to the list of people who are healthier and in better shape than they ever were in their 20's. My twenties were for bad decisions, lol. The sleep deprivation, on the other hand, would have been a lot easier on me had I given birth ten years ago.

@looch: thank you. So true.

@meredithNYC: "my 20s were for bad decisions" - yes, exactly!