Susan, 34, works in the Tourism & IT industry in Adelaide, South Australia. She blogs about her life as an expat on her blog Suzerblog. She and her husband Steve, 36, have been married for 3 years.
I was an only child, raised around a large, extended family, including close friends in addition to aunts, uncles, grandparents, and cousins. This taught me that family has many definitions. As my family was spread out across the country, and we traveled to visit them all, my fantasies about having my own family in adulthood included having a partner to travel the world with, expanding the list of places I wanted to see and experience.
I wouldn’t consider it a matter requiring influence from anyone aside from myself. I simply never had any desire to have children, therefore it was a given decision. There was no time at which I made it official, as it was always the path I planned to take. Family, friends and acquaintances have always known that my family would not include children of my own.
About half of my friends have children. We also have 6, soon to be 8, nieces & nephews, so there is no shortage of children in our lives. I interact with my friends the same way, regardless of whether they have children or not. Sometimes we have get-togethers including the children, and sometimes we don’t.
My husband and I spend a lot of time traveling, both overseas and within Australia. We also have more time to spend on our individual hobbies and time together.
As an expat in Australia, one of the many ways in which I spend my extra time giving back to the community is by organizing an expat/international social group in Adelaide. We have over 400 members, and monthly meet ups that are constantly bringing new people together.
