Life with the Crazies

I'm often asked how I do it, or why I do it. The answer is simple: I love it. This is my life. The good, the bad, the crazy. As long as I can remember, my joy has been children and animals. I wanted nothing more in life than to be a mommy, and I've been blessed beyond measure.

It's not for everyone. I will be the first to say I don't think every family should have 6 children (or even one for that matter.) Every family has to do what is best for them. You will never hear me pushing anyone to have children. It's not a decision that anyone should make except those who are actually involved in the making of said children!

The question I think I am asked most often is what does my average day look like with 6 children. First off, let me say, I am married to the most amazing man on the face of the earth! He loves to be a dad, just as much as I enjoy being a mom. He gets home and drops his work and takes up the kids, no matter what his day looked like at the office.

So how do I get through a day. I have a lot of help. First off, let me say I DO NOT home school. I realize this is the "norm" for large families, but I am not qualified for that. I was a good student in school, and did great in college, but I don't have a teaching degree. Education is one of the most important things I can give my children while they are under my roof. How can I justify keeping them home with me all the time if I don't feel like I can educate them properly?

So with that said, they do go to school every day. But they also help out when home. They each do chores to help keep this house going, especially when I have little ones that require a little more attention.

Our house is always working. Weather its laundry, dishes, taking care of our animals or taking care of each other. It's a constant effort and everyone is a part of it. In the end, our family is very close and we spend lots of time laughing, even if it's standing side by side washing the dishes from the day. Don't get me wrong, we play hard too. What fun is life with no reward for hard work?

I hope you enjoy this glimpse into our lives, and maybe even grab a tip or two for your own family.

~S

Jacob's Story

Jacob is number 4. His story is one of heartbreak, but hope too. The reason why I want to share this is not to get pity, but to spread awareness, as well as answer the questions before they come up.

So here the backstory:

In 2012 we decided to try for number 4. It would be our last child. We quickly conceived and found out at 7 weeks that it was twins. It was scary and exciting all at once. Unfortunately, at just 12 weeks pregnant, my water broke with Jacob, and we were advised to terminate the pregnancy.we were given a less than .01% chance of survival for either of the babies, and a risk of infection and death for me. This is called PPROM (preterm premature rupture of membranes). Basically its when your water breaks with no known cause before 37 weeks and is not due to contractions. My water broke while sitting on a couch during my church small group.
We chose to carry on and were shocked when we managed to carry the twins for another 13 weeks. At 25 weeks, Jacob and Juliet were born via emergency c-section after Jacob's cord had prolapsed. Jacob weighted 1lb 9oz and Juliet weighted 1lb 13oz. They both did well the first 24 hours, but soon Jacob took a turn for the worse and his body started to shut down. We were able to hold him as he took his last few breaths before passing away in my arms.

Jacob will always be my son, and he will always be counted in our children. Because of him, we now have Juliet to fill our arms and bring smiles to our faces. ( More on her story in another post.) While I may not get to "parent" him, I am still his mom, and he still takes up time and energy ever day. It is different than if I had another 2 year old running around, but still parenting non the less. He is still mentioned in our family and still remembered during all our activities.

In order to keep him memory alive, we have started to include a blue elephant in our activities. "Jake" goes pretty much everywhere with us, and he will be in all our photos. So when you see Jake, just know that is our way to remembering Jacob.

Some may feel I am not truly raising half a dozen, and to them I say I pray you never know the pain of watching your child take their last breath.

I love to talk about Jacob, and I will continue to keep him memory alive the rest of my life. As his mother, that is my job.

How We Got Here

People call me crazy. And to be totally honest, they are right. In a world where women are looked down upon if they are stay at home moms and have more than one boy and one girl, I am crazy for raising all my children. Here is a little back story of how I got to a half dozen kids.

My husband and I met when I was in 7th grade. We started dating when I was 15 and got married right out of high school. He is a software engineer and I am a stay at home mom. We had our first child very young (more on that later) and I have been blessed to be able to stay at home with him since he was born. When Luke (number 1) was 3, we learned we were expecting another little one. Our princess Loralei (number 2) was born in 2010 and we were "done" with our family. In fact, we were so sure, when she was 9 months we were ready to make it permanent. But before we did, we learned we were expecting another bundle. Jackson (number 3) was born in 2011 and after spending 10 days in the NICU for being a month early, we were pretty sure he was our last (again). Well, things changed and I begged hubby for one more to even our our family at 4. (Hubby wanted 2, I wanted 8, so 4 seemed like a good compromise). We tried for number 4 and soon got pregnant. At our 8 week ultrasound we saw Jacob (number 4)... and Juliet (number 5). After a very stressful pregnancy and traumatic birth (more on that in another post) Husband was done! Me, however, knew God had other plans for us. While we tried to figure out the best way forward, we spent a lot of time praying, and waiting on God's timing. When the twins turned 1, we learned we would also be welcoming number 6 in August 2014. Bradley (number 6) was born a few weeks early and also had a NICU stay, but is now healthy and happy! He has been a true gift and is the perfect addition to our half dozen. I'm not sure we are done at 6, but for now, we will live, love and have fun raising a half dozen. I hope you enjoy our antics, tips and everything that goes along with a super-sized family!