While attending a luncheon for Good Housekeeping in New York City, Kelly Clarkson admitted that she dealt with criticism for not being married and having children when she was younger—so much so that people apparently assumed she was gay.

"I'm from a small town in the South," Clarkson said, via Entertainment Tonight. "Everyone thought I was gay because I wasn't married with kids already! And I was like, 'That's kind of insulting to the gay community!' But, especially in this day and age, I had a very high bar."

Unfortunately, for many women of "a certain age"—i.e. basically any woman who looks like she's older than 21—the pressure to get married and make babies isn't brought upon by some biological clock countdown, but rather the gendered social expectations enforced by society.

Luckily, Clarkson didn't allow other people's assumptions and expectations to dictate her life for her, and she's glad she waited until the right moment for her, as an autonomous individual, to pursue a family.

"I think the biggest thing is just getting married later in life," the singer continued. "You change so much in your twenties. I mean, [my husband] got married at 21 in his first marriage, and they both went, 'What?!' It can be very hard to grow in the same way. Your 20s are all about growth and giant [mistakes]."

Regardless of being married, however, Clarkson maintains that she is, indeed, "Miss Independent," adding, "I have an awesome life, and I can hold this down on my own. I learned that from my mother. She depended a lot, financially, on a man. I don’t depend on him, and he doesn't depend on me. We made our own way in our own right, and I think that’s what really helps too."

Clarkson married her husband Brandon Blackstock in 2013, when she was 31 years old. They currently have two children together—2-year-old daughter Rive Rose and 6-month-old son Remington Alexander—but that seems to be more than enough for the Piece By Piece performer.

Speaking with Entertainment Tonight on October 11, Clarkson revealed that she has no intentions to have more children.

"We are not having any more kids," she quipped when asked about growing her family. "I mean, there's no time for more kids! Just like fitting everything in is hard enough, and I hate pregnancy. Like, with a capital H!"

25 Things You Never Knew About Kelly Clarkson:

More From The New 96.1 WTSS