What’s something you’ve always wanted to do/get as a child but only managed to do as an adult? Even things considered “trivial”.

50 comments

  2. One thing I always wanted as a child was a really nice camera to take pictures with. I loved the idea of capturing moments and memories, but we couldn’t afford a good camera. As an adult, I finally invested in a good phone with great camera and I love taking pictures with it. It’s like I’m able to freeze time and keep those memories forever.

  4. Married another woman. I never thought it would be legal in my lifetime.

  5. I always dreamed of seeing the world outside of my country. I finally got to when I was 22. I remember flying at night time over the city lights of Singapore and it was the first thing I ever saw that wasn’t in my country and I happy cried because I was so overwhelmed.

  6. When I was a kid, I always wi-, more like dreamt of petting a horse. That wish-like dream came true back in 2015 when -while at the state fair- I got to actually pet a horse.

  7. The freedom of being able to do what I wanted by myself as opposed to being restricted because my parents weren’t interested/hated it/refused to go etc. So for me that includes live theatre, traveling, and other fun experiences 🙂

  8. Living alone. As an introverted child, I was looking forward to being independent and financially stable enough to live by myself and have a place where I can truly appreciate the quietude and alone time.

  9. Getting braces once I could pay for them. My parents couldn’t afford them for me growing up. I had awful teeth and rarely smiled as a child because I was so self conscious. Braces were my first big investment when I got a job. It feels nice to smile these days and not worry about covering my mouth.

  11. I got to study wild monkeys for a month in Ghana for my bachelor’s degree. Lived out little me’s Jane Goodall dreams 🐒

  13. Reading late into the night/early hours.

    I would always read before bed but had the kind of parents where lights out really meant lights out. Obviously life means I can’t always run on no sleep but occasionally, if I have little to do the following day, I will read until I fall asleep. I still feel like such a rebel doing so.

  16. Trailblazing. I became an entrepreneur young, bought houses and cars I loved, traveled/explored, and have our work-life schedule on our terms. Love my folks but they’re the kind who are afraid of their own shadows so I’m really proud I did the complete opposite.

  17. Actually able to say “no” when my parents asked me to do things / make decisions that I don’t want to do / make. As a kid, I’d get death sentence for saying no to them, lol.

  18. Painting a room in my flat purple. I always wanted a purple bedroom but with a controlling parent it never happened. Now I have a beautiful bold living room in my favourite colour 💜

  19. 1) Travel. We never did because my family didn’t have the time or money for it. As soon as I got out of university and got some money, I booked a tour to Europe.

    2) Get a cute pet that wasn’t a fish. My mom and brother have allergies, so we weren’t allowed to get furry pets. Shortly after graduating university and moving into my own place, I adopted a cat.

    3) Buy stuff from random hobbies and interests. For example, my parents refused to buy me Pokemon trading cards when I was a kid and I didn’t get an allowance, so I had no way to buy them myself. Now in my 30’s, I recently bought my first pack of Pokemon cards and it was really fun!

  20. 1. Buying the [“ugly” doll](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blythe_(doll)) my mother would allow.

    2. Walking away from my toxic family (nothing to do with the doll) and breaking away from intergenerational emotional abuse.

    3. Finally starting the career I wanted but avoided because I was told that it wasn’t for women and would be too much of a burden if I married because of the odd hours.

  22. When I was five I was dying to work as a street caricature artist. I got to do this for the first time when I was 15 at a children’s entertainment center, and was so exhausted I left after one day. I’m 27 and I do this at parties as a gig sometimes, and I in fact enjoy it but wouldn’t do that as a full-time job.

  28. Buying a house. My family always lived in rental properties. I never had a stable home that I lived in for more than a few years.

  29. Buying a cake from the bakery section of the grocery store on a whim and eating it all by myself!

    Child me would ogle at the beautiful baked goods but we could never have them. They are like $7! I can just have a whole fancy cake for the same cost as an overpriced latte. Incredible!

  30. Traveling out of the country. I haven’t been able to do it as much as I’d like to (work, school, now a baby) but I’m glad I did it at least once.

  31. I am now drawing professionally! And I can pretty much draw whatever the hell i want without being held back by lack of drawing skills! Its so much work and so worth it! Woohoo!

  32. Bought myself a pair of Doc Martens! My mom wouldn’t let me have them in the 90s because they were too expensive

  33. Staying up as late I was want to.

    With great power comes great responsibility, and I am not responsible enough yet.

  34. Have pets. My parents weren’t really ‘animal people’ so I always wanted a pet but never got one until I moved out on my own and was able to adopt kittens.

  37. I have never as an adult (so far) been without electricity or hot water due to being unable to afford it.

  39. Buy books! When I was a kid, the only books I owned were hand-me-downs from my wealthier cousins. My family was not rich, so we couldn’t afford to buy books aside from the books we use in school (even then, we had to buy them second-hand). When I was in university, I skipped meals so that I could afford to buy books. I’m still not wealthy, but my job gives me the financial freedom to buy one or two books a months and build my personal library (the dream).

  40. One that has come true: working with horses (body gave out though, so just ride in my sparetime now)

    One that i am now working hard on: getting over my fear of swimming, so that i someday will be able to swim in a mermaid tail (source of inspiration: H2O: Just Add Water)

  42. Wanted to go picnicking with my partner (when I’d have one and be older) on a specific beach dear to me. Ended up going with my SO and it was perfect!

  43. Okay this one is out there, but I got stuff to swim as a mermaid. I was *obsessed* with H2O Just Add Water as a kid/tween and I dreamt of being a mermaid. I got dumped by my long term gf at the end of 2021, and in my moping I was watching childhood shows to comfort myself. As I was watching H2O I was thinking how dope it would be to have a tail, because I’m an adult and I do whatever I want, and sure enough, fabric mermaid tails are a thing. It’s magical and amazing but very weird so I don’t share that very often. I own like 10ish tails now and I’m working to make a silicone tail.

    (One of my coworkers doxxed my Reddit and doesn’t know this and would definitely make fun of this hobby, so if you’re reading this, fuck you B, you’re a major creep and an ass, and I am not being sarcastic when I say this, also stop invading my privacy)

  44. This is a funny one – when I was 5 I decided I wanted to wear a white coat, learn English to perfection and marry Bill Clinton.

    I wear white, a lab coat because I am a pharmacist.

    I am a polyglot and speak several languages, English is my forte.

    I am not willing to marry Bill Clinton anymore 😂😂😂

  46. Living abroad. It was a dream for me since before I can remember. I have no idea why, none of my family are big travellers or adventurers but I’ve always know I wanted to live somewhere completely new and have adventures. 4 years into doing this and it’s everything I had hoped for.

  47. I grew up broke so once I got older. I moved out. Moved to a nice place. Had my own room and bought some of the things I always wanted as a kid but couldn’t afford.

  48. this is kinda simple compared to everyone else’s but mine has got to be getting a pair of jordan’s. i was an extremely poor child living and going to school with rich kids who all had the popular stuff at the time. and buying my first pair was a lil like hell yeah i can finally finically buy whatever i want (with some limitations). it was a very proud moment for me. oh and dropping 20 lbs and not being that fat kid.

  49. Getting the butter that spreads easily even when cold. My family always bought the blocks of butter 🧈 and so whenever I wanted toast it was a hassle. Now, I live a more simple life. I have toast whenever I want, and spreadable butter whenever I need it. Life is good

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