Is that all I'm good for?

When I was at the orthodontist's office getting my teeth tortured the other day, the woman who was changing my ligatures asked if my husband and I had any kids. The week before that, my husband and I were in a locally-owned music store that he had frequented for years, when the owner's daughter asked if we "had any bambinos yet". At a party, a friend's sister-in-law, who I had just met that evening, asked if we had any babies. One time, at the hair salon where my husband and I both get our hairs cut, the stylist remarked, "Wow, you both have such thick hair. I can't wait to see what your kids will have!" Hell, even Target thinks I'm preggo, with all the "Stock up on baby clothes. You're gonna need 'em!" emails I've been getting from them.

We've been married for a year and a half, yet everyone assumes that I should have been squeezing out babies left and right all this time. Why? Should it my only goal in life to bear children? Is that all I'm good for?

Ironically enough, my husband and I regularly talk about how much we DON'T want to have kids. Neither of us sees any point in bringing more children into the world. Yes, it may be our biological prerogative to spawn (if there's one thing I learned while getting a biology degree, it's that the meaning of life is to reproduce), but the only way that's going to happen is by accident. As difficult as it may be for people to accept, not all women want to bear children.

Now, that doesn't mean I won't congratulate my friends when they are expecting. It doesn't mean I won't share in your jubilation, nor does it mean I won't come to your baby shower and help you cut the cake. It simply means that I have no interest in getting knocked up. So, please stop asking.