Triple B's resident male blogger Cousin Mars gives his three cents on the male baby itch.

So you’re wondering if men get the baby itch? Of course men get The Baby Itch. Why wouldn’t we? The biggest difference relates to when and why our itch arrives. It APPEARS (whether true, or not) to many men that a large percentage of women place having a child on their life’s To Do List. It actually seems as though having a child is part of a hopeful accomplishment list for many women. Conversely, men often attempt to check off all items on the hopeful accomplishment list prior to procreating. There is no possible way for a post with this subject to be written without several generalizations. I am well aware that there are a significant number of men (term used very loosely) that do not give any thought when participating in Grown Folk Behavior…if a child results, so be it — is their philosophy. This post doesn’t apply to that group. Nor does it apply to the women that couldn’t care less about having children (but I still think they should continue reading my post).

I have to be honest and share that I never considered having children until I was in my 30s. All of my friends, male and female, spent ample time and energy attempting to change my view on having children. The closer I got to turning thirty, the more I realized both genders were as interested in being parents. The only difference seemed to be timing. Many of my female friends wanted to check off this item by thirty, whereas the males hoped to be in a position to comfortably handle the responsibilities that accompany starting a family by the age of thirty. Patience, finances, and time management (with respect to work hours) all seemed to play a major part of my male friends decision in delaying the attempt at starting a family. In my opinion, as a man gets closer to accomplishing many of his career goals and/or minimizes the personal importance of these goals he has more time to dedicate to the idea of family. It is actually pretty simple. We may not be capable of thinking about too much all at once (50% joke). However, when we are ready – we GO HARD.

It may surprise you that the male itch can be as strong as our female counterparts. American and Caribbean societies have convinced many of us to view the male as the Family Anchor. I can admit that women traditionally serve as the nuts and bolts that keep the machine operating, but the pressure society has put on the man is noooo joke. My theory is as follows:

If you want to have a child with me at (insert age here), imagine how much a few years of maturity, money management and career ladder climbing can put me in a position to exceed your current expectations.

Basically, be patient with us.

 What do you think of your favorite cousin’s theory on the male baby itch? Let him know in the comments. Is there a topic you want Cousin Mars to tackle that he hasn’t addressed? Send an email to: [email protected] with the deets and he’ll take a stab at it!