I see a lot of commentary, especially on Lemmy and Reddit, about how awful children are and how wonderful adulthood without kids is. And if you don’t want them, more power to you.
On the other hand, many people are parents and love having children! I want to hear some of the positive stories. What about being a parent makes your life better? What’s your favorite thing about your kids?


I have a preschooler. I love watching her grow and learn. I like sharing in her successes. Ever since she was little when she would do something she was proud of, she would look to us for our smiles and claps. She’s become so much more independent lately: picking out her clothes and getting dressed herself, doing small chores like feeding the dogs and cleaning up her toys, and buckling herself in her car seat. She’s started doing activities/classes/sports on her own so it’s been great to watch her develop her personality without mom or dad being right with her. She started reading in the past few months and I like sitting with her and hearing her read. I like the ridiculous things she says, especially when she doesn’t have the proper vocabulary (like calling ankles “feet-wrists” and saying her “shirt is trying to be a hood” when she couldn’t get it over her head). I like when she wants to sit and cuddle or when she asks me to play with her.