While I think there are certain relationships that do not start out with romantic love but rather friendship and can still function successfully over a longer period of time, I do not think I could stay with or even marry a person I was not in love with for the sake of my children. If I decided to have children, I would then have to find a way to provide for them and ensure their success in life. I would not feel right taking advantage of a man simply for the sake of providing for my (or our) children and I would be deceiving him every second of the day for making him believe that I loved him when truly I did not. What if this man was in love with me and I could not bring myself to feel the same for him? Why would I lead him on like this and create the illusion of a happy marriage when I am clearly unhappy? There are other ways of creating a healthy and secure life for your children. And if the man you do not love but contemplate marrying for money is the children’s father, then the other option would certainly be asking him to contribute financially towards the children’s future.

I think there are worse things than growing up without a lot of money, and growing up with an unhappy parent in a loveless marriage is probably one of those things. I think it would be inevitable that the kids would pick up on it, no matter how carefully the parent tried to hide it. It's a dreary thing helping to live a lie, and knowing you parent is unhappy. I would definitely delay the marriage until I had things sorted out.

Now, if we were going to live in terrible poverty, I might consider it, but I would be doing everything I could to better myself so that we could set out on our own and be stable. I know that means "using" the guy, but if I don't lie to him, and he still wants to go ahead and give it a try, I would give it an honest try.

I learned a long time ago that if you are unhappy, your children will be unhappy. I would not want to set the example that it was ok to settle in life. I want nothing but the best for my son, but more than that, I want to show him that even though life has its obstacles, you can find strength in overcoming them.

Marrying someone for their money is just wrong. If there is not an emotional connection, then you are using them for their bank account. I could not in good conscience take someone for granted like that.

If I could not provide the life that I wanted my children to have, I would find other means to do so. I would hope that by seeing my struggle and desire to give them the best, they would see that sacrifice for those you love can be made with dignity.

What would be the difference between this, and being a prostitute? In both cases you are sacrificing and offering yourself up for money.