ADVICE NEEDED - "adults" telling me that what I want to do i

I am so pissed. So incredibly mad that I want nothing more than to tell all the people I’m mad at to go to hell, slam a door, punch a hole in a wall… That kind of mad. So here’s some back story for you. I am 22 years old, totally in love with my boyfriend (who is 23 almost 24) of over a year (who is a great guy, my parents and friends all think I’ve found a keeper, and they’re usually pretty honest with me), and as his lease is up at the end of summer, and I need to move out of my mother’s house, we are thinking we should move in together. Please note, NOT GET MARRIED; just get a place together. He is the one who suggested it, and he has also asked me a few times to move into the house he and his roommates are in right now, and then when the lease is up we’ll get our own place. I am not moving in with his roommates (whole other story, not important), but I am excited about Fall and getting a place with him then.

So I knew I had one coworker who totally disagrees and thinks we shouldn’t move in together. But today I found out that a good number of my coworkers agree with her. They all think that I should get my own place, go travelling, make new friends, and basically do all the wild crazy things people are supposed to want to do when they’re in their 20’s. According to my coworkers, we shouldn’t move in together until we’re 30. So I’m supposed to spend the next 8 YEARS living on my own, continuing to do sleepovers with him, because we won’t be mature enough to get a place together until we’re 30.

I know it’s hard to comment because you don’t really know me, or him. But I have always been one of those women who want to get married and have kids young… In life, what I want most is love and a family of my own. I know I am too young for all that right now, but by the time I’m 30 I’d like to at least be married and hopefully thinking about kids. My parents love my boyfriend, his parents love me, his sisters like me and think it’s great. All my friends really like him, and keep telling me he’s awesome (the guy I dated before was a real loser and it took me over 2 years to see it, despite all my friends and family telling me so; even my ex’s parents told me I was too good for their son), everyone who knows me personally and is part of my personal/social life thinks it’s a good decision. We’re not rushing into it, we’re going to sit down (once I get a job) and figure out our budget, what we can and can’t afford… We’re trying to do this as maturely as possible.

So what do you think? In the end, it’s my life. Just because my one coworker married her horrid ex-husband (her words, not mine) and ended up miserable and divorced doesn’t mean I’m going to. And if I go through this relationship I’m in for the next 8 years NOT moving in together because we might break up… I just think that’s the wrong attitude all around. You can’t go through life thinking everything you do is going to fail. And what my coworkers were doing in their 20’s 20 or so years ago is NOT what people are doing today in their 20’s.

A note: I know I might get some comments that my coworkers just see that I’m all about my boyfriend, that I do nothing for myself and my whole life revolves around him. It doesn’t. I have started working out, for myself, eating healthier, for myself, I started a book club to make new friends, for myself, I am learning German because I feel like it, I plan evenings with my friends to hang out and do girl’s night, or let’s all (boyfriends included) go bowling night. In short, I have tons of things I do without my boyfriend that I do for myself, by myself or with friends.

And another note: I agree that my coworkers can have their own opinion and can voice it because they care about me, but they just keep bringing it up and they keep trying to convince me that they’re right. At first I said “I hear you, I will take your advice into consideration”, but they won’t leave it alone.

Sorry for the rant everyone. Anyone who has ever had a group of people try to tell you how to live your life knows where I’m coming from. Looking forward to seeing what you all have to say! And thanks again!

PS: I have lived on my own before, I'm just at home now because I went back to the school in my hometown, and it was easier to live at home than find another place and spend tons and tons of money. So I'm not going straight from parent's house to boyfriend's house. I have done the roommate thing.