A Single Girl Surrounded by Newlyweds and Newborns

I always hesitate to complain about the fact that most of my friends have gotten married and are starting to have (or talk about having) babies. No matter what I say or how I put it, some of you are going to think that I'm just jealous. Well maybe I am... but probably not in the way you suspect.

I've put a lot of thought into this lately. I'm 26 and single. But a little over a year ago I was 25 and on my way to the altar... or I least I thought I was. My bf J. and I had been together for about 4 years, and known each other since jr. high. I guess I was so caught up in my white-dress-followed-by-white-picket-fence kinda dream, that I lost track of the fact that J. was not my prince on a white horse. We had a cute enough story on paper... But in reality I had decided to settle. And eventually the relationship began to wear on both of us.

In the meantime most of my friends saw their white dress dreams come true. (And I hope with all of my heart that they weren't settling... however, I'll leave this topic for another day.) Now that they've celebrated 1st and 2nd anniversaries, the topic of conversation has moved onto babies. And the first of them is due in September. And yes its exciting. I was more than happy to volunteer to help with the baby shower. I bought decorations, sent a hundred emails, baked a zillion cookies (and frosted them, too). The shower was a blast... until the other guests left and I found myself with 4 of my closest friends. It should have been a great time for girl talk. It'd been forever since we'd all been together and had the chance to just sit and talk. But I soon found out that not only was I the only unmarried friend, but now I'd become the only one not baby-planning. So I sat, and listened to them talk about too short maternity leaves, and whether or not their mother-in-laws will be allowed to babysit. But what could I contribute to the conversation? Oh I tried... But I guess what hurt the most was that no one seemed curious about what my life is like, or what my plans are... And I wasn't going to interrupt baby-talk with a story about my latest internet dating dilema. I guess I'll save those stories for someone who cares.

So yeah it sucked when my friends only wanted to talk about weddings, and it sucks now that they only want to talk about babies. And I'll admit... I'm jealous. I'm jealous that they get to go through these things together, and I'm jealous that they have each other to talk to. But I can't say that I'm jealous that they're having babies or even that their married. Being 26 and single isnt so bad after all... While they're changing diapers I can still be out having drinks. Diaper changing can wait... I just wish they'd feel the same way.