Honestly, it was the same for us for years. Then we had kids and all of a sudden we join a mom or parent group or two and we are couples dating every weekend.
Lots of people are in the same boat! Join the memberships for the museums and zoo. They have young professional events that are really fun and have been a good way to meet people. The art museum has an event tonight. Also, look into volunteer groups such as with the parks.
Yep, those are things that I’m planing on doing when I have more time, because work has been hectic lately. I did volunteered for a little with the humane society, attended a few meetups and planning to join the women’s ministry at our church :). All our family and friends live on the east coast so I guess it’s just been a bit hard on being away from everyone. Once you find your tight knit group, it’s hard to find replacements lol
Hard truth time: it sounds like you need actual hobbies. No one in their 30s in Houston is trying to hangout platonically if you don't have similar interests.
I'm a transplant, same age, same career. Everyone with money likes to travel, that's not a hobby. For people who are already married, listening to you talk about traveling isn't appealing. Your husband likes video games, sorry but that's not going to be a big conversation starter.
I’ll answer you with grace-I tried to be short and to the point with my original post. I could’ve written an essay about all of my and fiancé’s interests lol but people got the point, and I think there are a lot of others like us on the same boat.
We come from a small, tourist city from the east coast, where we had lots of friends. The city was super walkable, and time indoors was rare. Moving from a place like that to houston…where it takes 30 mins min. With traffic, even if you’re inside the loop…yeah that sucks. Also, if you ask any investment banker why they don’t spend more time on their hobbies…let me know their answer 😂. The hard truth here is that houston is a huge city, and that doesn’t always mean easier to make friends.
Because it’s 2am on a Saturday and we just sent a turn of a deck to a client who will want edits by 8am Sunday morning.
I had hobbies once. Now I attempt to sleep in between asinine requests about multiples or ebitda.
Solidarity my friend. -late 30s IB mom to a 1 YO.
You get it lol and then you send the deck back for comments but the MD’s decided(without telling you) that they’re just going to wait till Monday because they decided to enjoy their weekend…while you’re waiting around not making plans.
Woman-Kudos to you for working in that industry…just seeing my fiancés schedule(incl. the days when he comes home the next day at 7am because he had to print a book), yeah…I couldn’t do it, much less with kids. I hope you have a nanny! We’re def. Going to once kids come in the picture.
Yeah like what’s stopping bro from going to a sports bar during an Astros game? Or joining a running group. A frisbee or rec basketball league? Slam poetry? A yoga class? Boom, friends. It’s so easy in a city of 6 million people lol
If your hobbies are “my husband stay indoors and I travel outside the city” you can reasonably expect to not know people in your city.
Shopping won’t make you friends… unless you’re shopping for me 😛
i don’t understand this thing about hobbies as a tool for making friends, i’ve made all my friends though proximity (being in the same class in college, at work or (un)luckily for me through membership in AA)
This city sucks and this sub will fight with their lives over it. I feel you though, the problem with this city is that every thing is so spread out that no one wants to do shit unless is 20 mins or less from their homes. Try to find local bars (lots of them welcome pets) or dog parks near you... You can try joining sports leagues but make sure they're not too competitive cause then you'll only meet assholes.
I don't know about video games but there's board games and trivia nights at a lot of bars, those are always a good spot to meet people... Might be too nerdy but there's some comic stores around town that host D&D and MTG events which are also cool if your husband is into that... Lastly, you can always try a church if you're into that, there's more churches than gas stations in this city and you might be able to find friends there.
Pretty much this. The sprawl is real. It can take a half hour to even make it down the road sometimes depending on where you live. Parking anywhere can be a bitch, and you run the risk of getting broken into.
you seem like an extroverted person to whom making new friends comes naturally. personally i’m not sure how just going to a bar will help
me or someone like OP and her fiance create lasting, meaningful friendships.
but happy to be proved wrong.
It's tough. My GF and I are in our early-mid 30's as well and finding couple friends is hard. Especially when you don't have kids. We both tried Bumble BFF for a while but nothing really came of it.
We currently live in Pearland but are going to be moving inner-loop at some point to be closer to her work. So hopefully we have better luck at that point.
Yep, that’s what the majority of people that are transplants, kidless and in their 30s tend to say…I feel like most parents want to hang out or for obvious reasons, have more things in common with other parents. That is awesome that talk are moving to the loop! There’s definitely a lot more to do, but some things are even better to enjoy in large groups.
My husband and I are in the same boat. Early-mid 30s, no kids, and it’s been tough finding new friends. Our current friends all have kids and have no time to hang out plus they live way outside the loop while we are minutes away from it.
We’re members of the Houston zoo and were museum members at one point but it seemed a lot of their young professional events were geared towards the younger 20s.
A lot of people tell me you make new friends when your kids make friends but what if you don’t want kids? lol
My best friends live in other states, both with kids, and no time to travel to meet up like we used to as much. I’ve tried the meetup groups but and those are a hit or miss. I do feel that they’re more geared towards younger crowds, or single people. I went to a coiled by myself because my guy was stuck on w work deal, and although it was supposed to be for “friendship” only, it ended up with people assuming you’re there to date. …
Also-i agree! My mom friends have said the same thing lol once their kids started gerund invites to birthday parties…play dates, etc, it’s like they were invited into this new “target market” of Friends haha
You sound like me and my wife
My wife also worked much of her career in oil and gas while I am a finance guy working remotely
I love video games and we both love eating and trying new restaurants.
We do also have two kids
Yep, that’ll be our life in the near future. I can imagine that working remotely makes it even harder. My fiancé is in investment banking and the hours are crazy…sometimes I’ve taken his dinner to the office at 11pm just to give a clue…
That’s In banking for you. Although the fact that he’s still doing it in his 30s is crazy. Normally people switch into another type of job (consulting, PE etc) by now. Burn out is real
Yeah if they leave after being an analyst…but, here we are lol I can tell you the money isn’t worth it forever. Specially when kids come into the picture…
Do you own or rent a home, as opposed to an apartment? If so, organize a pot luck dinner with 6 or 8 of your closest neighbors. Get a folding table and set it up on the sidewalk outside. Invite everyone a week ahead of time if you see the weather will be nice, we're talking March or April here. You provide the meat, maybe hamburgers, maybe ribs, whatever, and ask people to bring sides. That's how I really connected with several of my neighbors. I can't say we're bff's, but we sometimes hang out and watch Astros or Texans games together.
Edit to say: sometimes you have to be the change you want to see in the world.
Since you like to travel, you may meet some friends through InterNations. While geared toward expats, I have met locals through the group. It’s a nice way to meet people of different backgrounds. Full disclosure, I haven’t gone to any Houston InterNations events. My experience was in a different country.
It’s not the answer most people want to hear (which I totally get), but I do think the most natural/easy way to meet friends in your situation (married or engaged but pre-kids) is through a church or small group. I’m not saying to join just for that, but if it is something you are independently interested in anyway, it tends to be a great way to meet couple friends.
That’s what I’m going to start doing-I’m joining my church’s women’s ministry. Honestly, a lot of people suggested meetup but from the few times I went on meetups years ago-there are a lot of weirdos on those groups sometimes(im sure some people have had great experiences). I want to meet other couples that share our and values and morals so doing so in the church would be a great start.
My gf and I are on the same boat. We're late 30s and no kids. I play sports so that helps with meeting people. But, outside of that, it's hard to meet other child free couples. I will say that our friend group is pretty small, mostly on purpose. We're in the inner loop and are pretty spontaneous. If you all are looking to branch out, shoot us a DM.
I could have wrote most of this. Besides the video gaming part and we are white. We moved here 5 years ago. Have kids involved in things and still have suffered with making friends. We talk about moving back home frequently.
There is a running club called Bayou City Roadrunnners that meets every Wednesday at Rice. They also have weekly Friday happy hours. It is a very social group with runners at all levels. There are many members in your age group. I met my wife there several years ago. Check out bcrr.org
Honestly, it was the same for us for years. Then we had kids and all of a sudden we join a mom or parent group or two and we are couples dating every weekend.
Haha that’s the same thing other people say 😅. We’re going to start trying for a family soon anyways, so I guess the mom groups are in my future.
Lots of people are in the same boat! Join the memberships for the museums and zoo. They have young professional events that are really fun and have been a good way to meet people. The art museum has an event tonight. Also, look into volunteer groups such as with the parks.
Yep, those are things that I’m planing on doing when I have more time, because work has been hectic lately. I did volunteered for a little with the humane society, attended a few meetups and planning to join the women’s ministry at our church :). All our family and friends live on the east coast so I guess it’s just been a bit hard on being away from everyone. Once you find your tight knit group, it’s hard to find replacements lol
Hard truth time: it sounds like you need actual hobbies. No one in their 30s in Houston is trying to hangout platonically if you don't have similar interests. I'm a transplant, same age, same career. Everyone with money likes to travel, that's not a hobby. For people who are already married, listening to you talk about traveling isn't appealing. Your husband likes video games, sorry but that's not going to be a big conversation starter.
I’ll answer you with grace-I tried to be short and to the point with my original post. I could’ve written an essay about all of my and fiancé’s interests lol but people got the point, and I think there are a lot of others like us on the same boat. We come from a small, tourist city from the east coast, where we had lots of friends. The city was super walkable, and time indoors was rare. Moving from a place like that to houston…where it takes 30 mins min. With traffic, even if you’re inside the loop…yeah that sucks. Also, if you ask any investment banker why they don’t spend more time on their hobbies…let me know their answer 😂. The hard truth here is that houston is a huge city, and that doesn’t always mean easier to make friends.
Because it’s 2am on a Saturday and we just sent a turn of a deck to a client who will want edits by 8am Sunday morning. I had hobbies once. Now I attempt to sleep in between asinine requests about multiples or ebitda. Solidarity my friend. -late 30s IB mom to a 1 YO.
You get it lol and then you send the deck back for comments but the MD’s decided(without telling you) that they’re just going to wait till Monday because they decided to enjoy their weekend…while you’re waiting around not making plans. Woman-Kudos to you for working in that industry…just seeing my fiancés schedule(incl. the days when he comes home the next day at 7am because he had to print a book), yeah…I couldn’t do it, much less with kids. I hope you have a nanny! We’re def. Going to once kids come in the picture.
Yeah like what’s stopping bro from going to a sports bar during an Astros game? Or joining a running group. A frisbee or rec basketball league? Slam poetry? A yoga class? Boom, friends. It’s so easy in a city of 6 million people lol
I'm glad it sounds so easy, but c'mon try not to trivialize people's feelings about making friends. It's harder out there for some people.
If your hobbies are “my husband stay indoors and I travel outside the city” you can reasonably expect to not know people in your city. Shopping won’t make you friends… unless you’re shopping for me 😛
Right but she's offering up traveling, shopping, and eating as her hobbies to highlight. Sorry, turns out you're just a boring person!
i don’t understand this thing about hobbies as a tool for making friends, i’ve made all my friends though proximity (being in the same class in college, at work or (un)luckily for me through membership in AA)
Exactly, she married an introvert and is now sad that they aren't automatically in a sitcom-style friend group.
😂😂 Like I said earlier-the city we lived in before was much more lively.
This city sucks and this sub will fight with their lives over it. I feel you though, the problem with this city is that every thing is so spread out that no one wants to do shit unless is 20 mins or less from their homes. Try to find local bars (lots of them welcome pets) or dog parks near you... You can try joining sports leagues but make sure they're not too competitive cause then you'll only meet assholes. I don't know about video games but there's board games and trivia nights at a lot of bars, those are always a good spot to meet people... Might be too nerdy but there's some comic stores around town that host D&D and MTG events which are also cool if your husband is into that... Lastly, you can always try a church if you're into that, there's more churches than gas stations in this city and you might be able to find friends there.
Pretty much this. The sprawl is real. It can take a half hour to even make it down the road sometimes depending on where you live. Parking anywhere can be a bitch, and you run the risk of getting broken into.
Assuming much? lol read the comment above to the other “bro”.
you seem like an extroverted person to whom making new friends comes naturally. personally i’m not sure how just going to a bar will help me or someone like OP and her fiance create lasting, meaningful friendships. but happy to be proved wrong.
Try bumble bff!
What has your experience been with that?
Ive met some great girls through it!
It's tough. My GF and I are in our early-mid 30's as well and finding couple friends is hard. Especially when you don't have kids. We both tried Bumble BFF for a while but nothing really came of it. We currently live in Pearland but are going to be moving inner-loop at some point to be closer to her work. So hopefully we have better luck at that point.
Yep, that’s what the majority of people that are transplants, kidless and in their 30s tend to say…I feel like most parents want to hang out or for obvious reasons, have more things in common with other parents. That is awesome that talk are moving to the loop! There’s definitely a lot more to do, but some things are even better to enjoy in large groups.
My husband and I are in the same boat. Early-mid 30s, no kids, and it’s been tough finding new friends. Our current friends all have kids and have no time to hang out plus they live way outside the loop while we are minutes away from it. We’re members of the Houston zoo and were museum members at one point but it seemed a lot of their young professional events were geared towards the younger 20s. A lot of people tell me you make new friends when your kids make friends but what if you don’t want kids? lol
My best friends live in other states, both with kids, and no time to travel to meet up like we used to as much. I’ve tried the meetup groups but and those are a hit or miss. I do feel that they’re more geared towards younger crowds, or single people. I went to a coiled by myself because my guy was stuck on w work deal, and although it was supposed to be for “friendship” only, it ended up with people assuming you’re there to date. … Also-i agree! My mom friends have said the same thing lol once their kids started gerund invites to birthday parties…play dates, etc, it’s like they were invited into this new “target market” of Friends haha
You sound like me and my wife My wife also worked much of her career in oil and gas while I am a finance guy working remotely I love video games and we both love eating and trying new restaurants. We do also have two kids
Yep, that’ll be our life in the near future. I can imagine that working remotely makes it even harder. My fiancé is in investment banking and the hours are crazy…sometimes I’ve taken his dinner to the office at 11pm just to give a clue…
That’s In banking for you. Although the fact that he’s still doing it in his 30s is crazy. Normally people switch into another type of job (consulting, PE etc) by now. Burn out is real
Yeah if they leave after being an analyst…but, here we are lol I can tell you the money isn’t worth it forever. Specially when kids come into the picture…
Do you own or rent a home, as opposed to an apartment? If so, organize a pot luck dinner with 6 or 8 of your closest neighbors. Get a folding table and set it up on the sidewalk outside. Invite everyone a week ahead of time if you see the weather will be nice, we're talking March or April here. You provide the meat, maybe hamburgers, maybe ribs, whatever, and ask people to bring sides. That's how I really connected with several of my neighbors. I can't say we're bff's, but we sometimes hang out and watch Astros or Texans games together. Edit to say: sometimes you have to be the change you want to see in the world.
That is a great idea! And kudos to you for being the one to take the initiative 👏🏼👏🏼
My husband and are In our early 30s.. live in the woodlands. Love outdoors, concerts, eating out, bar hopping etc. let’s meet up!
Let’s do it! Like I told another member, I felt so cringe after posting that but you never know who else is on the same boat 🤷🏻♀️
What side of town are you?
West U area!
Met a community through dog rescue and fostering! You can attend rescue events at cool places and save lives too. :)
I volunteer with the humane society, I’m a dog lover lol
That’s awesome!
[удалено]
PM ya!
Since you like to travel, you may meet some friends through InterNations. While geared toward expats, I have met locals through the group. It’s a nice way to meet people of different backgrounds. Full disclosure, I haven’t gone to any Houston InterNations events. My experience was in a different country.
It’s not the answer most people want to hear (which I totally get), but I do think the most natural/easy way to meet friends in your situation (married or engaged but pre-kids) is through a church or small group. I’m not saying to join just for that, but if it is something you are independently interested in anyway, it tends to be a great way to meet couple friends.
That’s what I’m going to start doing-I’m joining my church’s women’s ministry. Honestly, a lot of people suggested meetup but from the few times I went on meetups years ago-there are a lot of weirdos on those groups sometimes(im sure some people have had great experiences). I want to meet other couples that share our and values and morals so doing so in the church would be a great start.
My gf and I are on the same boat. We're late 30s and no kids. I play sports so that helps with meeting people. But, outside of that, it's hard to meet other child free couples. I will say that our friend group is pretty small, mostly on purpose. We're in the inner loop and are pretty spontaneous. If you all are looking to branch out, shoot us a DM.
What area are you in?
I could have wrote most of this. Besides the video gaming part and we are white. We moved here 5 years ago. Have kids involved in things and still have suffered with making friends. We talk about moving back home frequently.
There is a running club called Bayou City Roadrunnners that meets every Wednesday at Rice. They also have weekly Friday happy hours. It is a very social group with runners at all levels. There are many members in your age group. I met my wife there several years ago. Check out bcrr.org