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DINK couple bragging about the joys of being child-free has people divided

Some folks didn't like the lighthearted joke.

via LillyAnne_/TikTok

Lilly and Evan share the joys of having 2 incomes and no kids.

The DINK phase of life is as carefree as can be. You’re with the love of your life. You have few responsibilities and that means more disposable income and time. So many people love the double income, no kids lifestyle that they are one of America's fastest-growing populations.

As of 2022, 43% of U.S. households were childless, a 12% increase over the past 10 years. Another study found that a majority of DINKs (51%) enjoy the lifestyle and say they have no plans for having any children.

This major change could be attributed to the attractiveness of having more money and time, but it also has a lot to do with the cost of raising children these days. A recent report from Lending Tree found that it now takes over $230,000 to raise a child over 18 years.

A Utah couple, Lilly Anne, 21, and her husband Evan, 21, created a video on TikTok that celebrates the DINK lifestyle and it’s gone viral, attracting over 3.4 million views. In the video, the happy couple shares all of the things they enjoy about having two incomes and no children.

@lillyanne_

Living the best life, the D.I.N.K life 😎 #dink #nokids #couple #fyp

“We're DINKs. We are going to get asked daily when we plan on having kids,” Lilly opens the video. “We're DINKs, of course, we are going to go out to eat every night after work,” Evan responds.

The couple then lists every thing they love about being DINKS including, never missing a football game, playing 18 holes of golf without worry, not having to hire a babysitter, or ask for financial help from parents. Most importantly, they get to spend money on themselves, not a kid.

“We are DINKs. We are going to get asked at every family event what we are doing with our life,” Lilly concludes the video.

The video appears to be very lighthearted and tongue-in-cheek, especially given that Lilly and Evan — like many others of their ilk — are often badgered by family members about having kids. The video is their gentle pushback to those who think they need to have children.

The video received a lot of angry responses from parents who didn’t get the joke.

"Likely to be together and maybe married then soon divorced,” Raymond wrote in the comments. "Life without kids is so vapious," D33g0 added.

"You also will die scared, alone and no one will care and no one will remember you. Good luck with that." FordFairlane wrote.

It was clear from the comments that many people missed the video's lighthearted humor. "Until I read these comments, I didn’t realize once you have kids, you lose all ability to recognize satire," a user wrote. "I will never understand people who get so upset about other people's choice to not have kids. so weird," Ash added.

The negative comments inspired Evan and Lilly to create a follow-up video: “Evan and I are watching you guys blow up my comment section over some lighthearted joke.”

@lillyanne_

The caption says enough..🫣 #dink #couple #fyp

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Identity

Utah Republican risks political career by speaking out against party's transgender sports bill

Robert Gehrke/YouTube

Utah state senator Daniel Thatcher voted against overriding the governor's veto of an anti-trans bill.

We live in an era of hyperpartisanship in the U.S., one that is shaking the very foundations of our democratic experiment. It's exactly the scenario George Washington tried to warn us about in his farewell address when he called "the Spirit of Party" our "worst enemy," which would eventually lead to "the ruins of public liberty."

Politicians are so entrenched in partisanship that it's rare to see an elected official take a moral stand that goes against the party line. When we do see it, it's often from a politician who doesn't have much to lose—someone who is retiring or isn't up for reelection soon enough for their going against the grain to impact their career.

But every once in a while we see an elected official truly take a risk to do what they believe is right. Such is the case with Utah state senator Daniel Thatcher, who is up for reelection this year and who spoke out against a state bill banning transgender kids from playing sports that align with their gender identity.

The bill, which did not receive any public input or debate, was amended in the final hours of the legislative session to create the all-out ban on transgender girls competing in girls' sports, and was passed in the Utah House and Senate earlier in March. However, it hit a road bump when Utah's Republican governor Spencer Cox vetoed it, citing multiple issues with the bill, including the fact that out of the 75,000 high school athletes in Utah, four are transgender—and only one is a trans girl.

"Four kids and only one of them playing girls sports," Governor Cox wrote. "That’s what all of this is about. Four kids who aren’t dominating or winning trophies or taking scholarships. Four kids who are just trying to find some friends and feel like they are a part of something. Four kids trying to get through each day. Rarely has so much fear and anger been directed at so few."

He also pointed out that 86% of trans youth report suicidality and 56% of trans youth have attempted suicide.

"I am not an expert on transgenderism," he wrote. "I struggle to understand so much of it and the science is conflicting. When in doubt however, I always try to err on the side of kindness, mercy and compassion. I also try to get proximate and I am learning so much from our transgender community. They are great kids who face enormous struggles … I don’t understand what they are going through or why they feel the way they do. But I want them to live."

Supporters of transgender rights praised Governor Cox for vetoing the bill, despite knowing the veto would most likely be overridden by the legislature. Four out of Utah's 74 Republican legislators voted against overriding the veto, but of those four, only Daniel Thatcher is up for reelection. He already has three opponents from his own party lined up to run against him in the primaries, according to the Salt Lake Tribune, so going against the party line—especially on a highly visible issue—poses a real political risk for him.

But Thatcher shared that he was willing to take that risk and explained his reasons for opposing the veto on several grounds. For one, he said, it's unconstitutional. He pointed out that the conservative-weighted Supreme Court, in a 6-3 decision written by Neil Gorsuch, ruled that sex includes gender identity. Second, he said it would be a waste of money, especially since there's no way it would stand. Third, it harms the transgender community—people he has worked closely with and has grown to love in his work as a suicide prevention advocate. Fourth, despite attempting to protect girls and competition integrity, this bill actually harms girls, putting them in a position to constantly have their femininity called into question and their bodies put under more scrutiny than they already are.

Watch him speak on the bill to his colleagues in the Senate:


“And if I lose my race, I lose my race standing for what I believe in, like I always have,” he said. “In my world, conservative doesn’t mean turning your back on your principles.”

Thatcher knew his vote wasn't going to change the outcome, and he could easily have voted along with his party or even simply abstained. But he chose the path of integrity. With multiple states proposing and passing legislation specifically targeting transgender people in various ways, we need to see more of this kind of open-heartedness and moral courage. Imagine how different our country would be with more politicians who stand for principle before political party, and more elected officials willing to put what's right ahead of their own political ambitions.

The Utah bill goes into effect July 1.

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Three brave girls took action after their teacher berated a classmate for having two dads

via OD Action / Twitter

This article originally appeared on 12.02.19


Just imagine being an 11-year-old boy who's been shuffled through the foster care system. No forever home. No forever family. No idea where you'll be living or who will take care of you in the near future.

Then, a loving couple takes you under their care and chooses to love you forever.

What could one be more thankful for?

That's why when a fifth grader at Deerfield Elementary School in Cedar Hills, Utah was asked by his substitute teacher what he's thankful for this Thanksgiving, he said finally being adopted by his two dads.

via OD Action / Twitter

To the child's shock, the teacher replied, "that's nothing to be thankful for," and then went on a rant in front of 30 students saying that "two men living together is a sin" and "homosexuality is wrong."

While the boy sat there embarrassed, three girls in the class stood up for him by walking out of the room to tell the principal. Shortly after, the substitute was then escorted out of the building.

While on her way out she scolded the boy, saying it was his fault she was removed.

RELATED: A gay couple's pride flag helped give a young teen the courage to come out to their family

One of the boy's parents-to-be is Louis van Amstel, is a former dancer on ABC's "Dancing with the Stars." "It's absolutely ridiculous and horrible what she did," he told The Salt Lake Tribune. "We were livid. It's 2019 and this is a public school."

The boy told his parents-to-be he didn't speak up in the classroom because their final adoption hearing is December 19 and he didn't want to do anything that would interfere.

He had already been through two failed adoptions and didn't want it to happen again.

via Loren Javier / Flickr

A spokesperson for the Alpine School District didn't go into detail about the situation but praised the students who spoke out.

"Fellow students saw a need, and they were able to offer support," David Stephenson said. "It's awesome what happened as far as those girls coming forward."

RELATED: A homophobic ad was placed next to a pizza shop. They messed with the wrong place.

He also said that "appropriate action has been taken" with the substitute teacher.

"We are concerned about any reports of inappropriate behavior and take these matters very seriously," Kelly Services, the school the contracts out substitute teachers for the district, said in a statement. "We conduct business based on the highest standards of integrity, quality, and professional excellence. We're looking into this situation."

After the incident made the news, the soon-to-be adoptive parents' home was covered in paper hearts that said, "We love you" and "We support you."

Religion is supposed to make us better people.

But what have here is clearly a situation where a woman's judgement about what is good and right was clouded by bigoted dogma. She was more bothered by the idea of two men loving each other than the act of pure love they committed when choosing to adopt a child.

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Nature

A woman fainted in Arches National Park. She woke up to actress Julie Bowen helping her.

Minnie John/Facebook

Minnie John thought she heard a familiar voice before she opened her eyes and wondered if she'd fallen asleep watching TV. But she wasn't at home, she was in the middle of Arches National Park in Moab, Utah. The voice was indeed familiar, though, which she discovered once she finally came to.

John had been hiking a difficult trail in the park with her family over the weekend when she became too fatigued to continue. She didn't want her family members to miss out on the site they had been hiking towards, which was still 15 minutes away, so she insisted that they continue on while she rested on the side of the trail. It wasn't terribly hot and there was a cool breeze, so she figured she'd be fine.

The last thing she remembered was sitting down on a rock with her head in her hands.

John told the story on Facebook in three parts, but the final post is where it gets fun.

"Next thing I hear someone with a familiar voice kept asking me questions," she wrote. "I wondered if I might be watching TV. My eyes were closed and they said I will be fine and they were cleaning my face and bandaging me up."

She continued:

"I heard that familiar voice saying I am going to be ok, a doctor is cleaning me up. After so many more questions and sticking gooey things in my mouth, giving me electrolytes, they lifted me up as I opened my eyes and set me back on that rock, that face looked so familiar again and I asked her again if I knew her or was she famous and the doctor said yes. As my eyes started to focus more, she smiled and took her hair tie off and shook her hair for me to figure out. Her sister the doctor asked me to guess and I told her I just hit my head, I can't remember. She said smiling 'Modern Family' and I said of course!"

John said she told Bowen she was "so beautiful," then Bowen introduced her to her sister, Annie, who happened to be a doctor. The guide they were with had seen John fall from the rock, and they had everything on hand to clean up her wounds. The group also used John's phone to call her family and some ran ahead to find them.

"Such wonderful men and women, selflessly giving of themselves!" wrote John. "God bless them!"

No one expects to pass out while they're on vacation, much less wake up to a famous actress and her sister giving them medical care. John told CNN that Bowen and her sister "were so down to earth, so genuine, so sweet: Not at all how you might expect a big actor or a big doctor to be -- which they are. They were just so humble, so loving."

She asked if she could have her picture taken with them, and Bowen said, "Of course," before giving John a hug and posing for a photo.

"I knew I'd never meet them again but I appreciated and admired the human part of what they did -- selfless, not selfish," John told CNN. "We tend to forget the daily kindnesses we encounter. We're blind to everything around us and don't imagine that people will be so good, kind and caring."

John is okay, but battered a bit from where she fell and hit her face and glasses. Despite ending up with a fractured nose and five stitches at Moab Regional Hospital, doctors say she was lucky.

What a delightful ending to a potentially tragic event.


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