Just this week, when I told someone my 15-yr-old daughter was an only child, I got that look. That "poor thing" look. I've seen it several times over the course of her life. I've even had people say weird things. "Oh, she must be so lonely." "When you die, she'll be alone." "When you die, she'll have to handle everything herself." "When you get sick, she'll have to take care of you." "She's stuck in an adult world."

Really?

First of all, I believe our only child is pretty well-adjusted. I spent her early years making sure she was well-socialized...and many of her peers were/are only children too. Her preschool teacher once told me, "If I didn't know she is an only child, I'd never guess it." If we go on vacation and she wants to take a friend, she can. She can invite people over whenever she wants. We have an open door policy at our house...all friends are welcome. Getting ready for a school dance? Come on over! Snow? Come on over! Bored? Come on over! No invitation necessary...

She has never told me she is lonely. I know people who have lots of siblings who are way more "lonely" than she is.

She has never seemed jealous of her friends who have siblings.

She plays well with others.

She is happy most of the time, but she is a teenager, so she has her moments.

She relates to girls and boys well.

And no one can convince me that having siblings would make her life any better than the life she has right now.

My mother was an only child. My husband is an only child. Mother was a happy person. My husband seems fine with it.

Did we intend for her to be an only child? I don't know. At one point, we considered having another child. I was 38. But then my daddy was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and I knew I would need to help Mother as his illness progressed. I decided being pregnant while helping them wouldn't be a good idea. The first three months of pregnancy had not been easy for me...migraines, nausea...I knew I couldn't help them if I were sick.

And honestly, I didn't want to push my luck.

We knew we were fortunate to have her, and we said, "One and done."

Has she ever said she wished she had siblings? When she was about four, she mentioned it. I told her, "You'll need to share your toys." She was OK with that. "You'll have to share your mommy." No dice. That was a dealbreaker for her. She said, "I don't want a brother or sister." Of course, we had already decided she would be an only child, so she wasn't actually making the decision. I was 40. We were having the time of our lives!

As for her having to take care of us when we're old and dying, well, we can "get busy living or get busy dying." I can't sit around all the time thinking about that. I choose to live life to its fullest. Hopefully, we will all live a long time, and hopefully, my husband and I will have the wherewithal to know if we need to go to assisted living.

But till then, we are going to enjoy her, and hopefully, she enjoys us. We know the world doesn't revolve around her, but our little family is important to us. Providing her with the tools she needs to naviage the world is important to us. She's growing up, and we want to enjoy our time with her. She will be off to college in three years. Three years...hard to believe. We have plans to enjoy her while she still lives with us full time. We have vacations to take. We have colleges to visit. We have people to meet with her. We have new things to experience with her. We have things to teach her. We have memories to make.

And no matter what...she always knows she's our favorite.

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