The Perks of Being One and Done

I made the decision to be “one and done” shortly after giving birth. It wasn’t a choice I took lightly. I considered and weighed all my options carefully, and in the end, my husband and I determined that this was the best choice for our family. It’s not for everyone, but it works for us. And while I have been on the receiving end of some critical comments (“Your child needs a sibling!”), for the most part, our friends and family have been very supportive of our decision. And along the way, we have learned that there are benefits to the one-child lifestyle.

Traveling is easy

The older my son gets, the fewer things he needs when we travel, which is awesome. Gone are the days of road trips with a pile of baby gear, his entire wardrobe, and a week’s worth of diapers. Now we only need a few extra changes of clothes in case of accidents or major food spills. And it’s a breeze wrangling one child out the door. On flights, our family can take up one row, which is great. At amusement parks, my husband and I take turns enjoying the rides with our son.

My son gets all of our attention

My kiddo definitely enjoys his “only” status. That’s not to say he doesn’t play well with others; he has friends at daycare and he is learning to share. But he has zero interest in sharing Mommy and Daddy. He loves the attention and relishes having our complete focus. At 3, he likes holding both parents’ hands when we’re out and about. (Mostly, he likes when we swing him by his arms, but I’ll take it.) Yes, we’re that obnoxious family that takes up an entire sidewalk, but I know this won’t last forever so I’m going to keep doing it, thank you very much.

We only have to do the hard stuff once

We survived potty training. But it was no easy feat. There was a lot of resistance and push back for my son to use the toilet at home, despite going at daycare. Through trial and error we learned what methods worked for him versus the many that didn’t. This was over the course of a few months, and tears were shed (mostly from me), but eventually we got there. Much like the newborn stage with night feedings, sleep deprivation, and just trying to survive, I’m very happy knowing I will not have to go through those trying stages again!

Family size is a personal choice that’s different for everyone. We have embraced the one-child life and all of its blessings and perks. And I would not change a thing.