Really enjoy your healthy knees!!

1. Teach your children discipline, more difficult to practice than it seems, but it makes the later years so much easier when your children are honest, self reliant, and have a good moral compass, because the trouble they can get into is so much more serious when they are older.

2. Save save save - they still cost a mint in the later years when you are trying to save for retirement!

About the "best" age to have kids all I can say is that our oops baby (#3) in our 40s has been the surprise of our lives. Sometimes it does work out

Anonymous wrote:
Some 55 year olds in this area also have young kids (like my husband). They're in the thick of it too!

And yes, it does get better fro a sleep deprivation standpoint. And worse (cancer, teen angst, etc).

Basically you should tell your 35 year old self, have kids asap

Anonymous wrote:It was a good choice to quit your job you hated.

Really? Can you expand on this? How did you do it, and what happened? Did you quit without a new job lined up? How did you pay for things?

Signed, 34 again (who hates her job)

Anonymous wrote:My 21 yr old self got this advice from a 75 yr old man in the grocery store line: "Don't wish away time."
That actually stayed with me -- for good effect -- for 30 years.
So, here's my take: enjoy every phase of your kids. It will be easier and a more complicated 6 months from now.
And I'll take one from pp: have more sex.

Oh, yeah, and make sure you max out your retirement investing and have a savings plan.

My 21 yr old self got this advice from a 75 yr old man in the grocery store line: "Don't wish away time."
That actually stayed with me -- for good effect -- for 30 years.
So, here's my take: enjoy every phase of your kids. It will be easier and a more complicated 6 months from now.
And I'll take one from pp: have more sex.

What would I tell my younger self?

You don't love him enough to have a child with him.

Having a kid is harder than you think, but it will get better.

Relax, the kid will be alright. It's a phase and you will all get through in good shape.

Have more sex.

You will emerge and rediscover yourself eventually.

be careful with investment

It was a good choice to quit your job you hated.

(34 here again -- I already am dealing with preteen angst and had cancer already. Am I just ahead of the curve or do I have terrible luck and should expect it to continue?)

I would also like the answer to this.

Signed, 34.

Some 55 year olds in this area also have young kids (like my husband). They're in the thick of it too!

And yes, it does get better fro a sleep deprivation standpoint. And worse (cancer, teen angst, etc).

I'm pretty much in same boat as OP. I can't wait to be 50!

I'm 35 and realized between working, dealing with two small children (an infant and toddler), dealing with money stress that involves the massive cost of a growing family and living in the DC area and just thought I'd love to have a conversation with my 55 year old empty nested self. Since time travel is impossible, I'm asking you all. What would you tell your younger self, who is mired in the small children, sleep deprived phase of life about life?

Does it get better?