Being a mother of 11 beautiful children, 8 of them boys, I am amazed at the repeated behavior I show and sometimes JUST as amazed at new things I find myself doing! I have been jotting down somethings that I have found my self doing for years and other things that I am doing for the first time even after 11 children:
~ I have been changing diapers for 18 years continuously WITHOUT any break! (I was a nanny right before I became a mom) Sometimes having up to 3 in diapers at one time!
~ I used to use disposable diapers and wipes, it is a first for me to use washable with my 11th! I sure wish I would have realized just how easy it is! I would have saved thousands of dollars!
~ potty training was essential by the time they were 2!
~ now, I realize they will not be willing to wear a diaper on thier wedding day! ( However, I might be by the time my last child walks down the isle!) :)
~ preparing meals is a 3 times a day activity! Just after I complete one meal, the next is on my mind!
~ I now have 4 other people to help me! That is so nice!
~ teaching 7 and soon to be 8, how to read! That is such a reward and blessing of homeschooling!
~ I now realize that just giving them an intersest in reading by encouragement is a lot less stressful than hours of sitting and batteling them! It also gives them more of a love for reading if they are not forced into it!
~ I have always been a taxi, BUT...
~ it used to be I would go where I needed to go, now it has changed to asking where everybody else needs to go and I just fit my errands in between!
~ I take a shower daily and cannot start my day without one! (Sometimes end my day with one also!)
~ I am also responsible for making sure many others clean themselves daily! (Believe me, getting 8 boys to shower, change their underwear and socks daily is not an easy thing to keep up on!)
~ been searching for matching socks
~ I am catching on that buying the same kind of socks for each child and marking them with a permanent marker makes matching a snap! They can do it themselves that way!
~ raising boys and raising girls are TOTALLY different! One IS NOT easier than another, just different!
~ I am now raising 3 teenagers and will have 6 teenage boys in the house at one time in a few years! (Thank goodness I love the teenage years!)
~ I have found that boys eat A LOT and seems they are NEVER full!
~ but I have learned that they don't need as much as THEY think they do!
~ Girls do not wear out their clothes as quickly as boys
~ I never threw out girls clothes because they were too worn, I have had to throw out bags of clothes that were even to worn for play clothes!
~ I never realized how fun string, dirt, clothespins, and rubberbands could be!
~ I don't spend much money on toys anymore! They don't play with them anyway!
~ vacuuming a car used to take minutes!
~ cleaning a mini-bus is lots more time consuming! :)
~ in earlier years, I cleaned my house every other day
~ these days, I clean it hourly!
~ bars of soap used to take my husband and I a month or more to use up
~ we are either a really clean family or a really dirty one! A new bar is out every couple of days it seems!
~ I am on my knees daily, sometimes hourly! I realize that is where I need to be if I am to do this job of motherhood His way!
~ That is NEVER going to change!
~ I have been changing diapers for 18 years continuously WITHOUT any break! (I was a nanny right before I became a mom) Sometimes having up to 3 in diapers at one time!
~ I used to use disposable diapers and wipes, it is a first for me to use washable with my 11th! I sure wish I would have realized just how easy it is! I would have saved thousands of dollars!
~ potty training was essential by the time they were 2!
~ now, I realize they will not be willing to wear a diaper on thier wedding day! ( However, I might be by the time my last child walks down the isle!) :)
~ preparing meals is a 3 times a day activity! Just after I complete one meal, the next is on my mind!
~ I now have 4 other people to help me! That is so nice!
~ teaching 7 and soon to be 8, how to read! That is such a reward and blessing of homeschooling!
~ I now realize that just giving them an intersest in reading by encouragement is a lot less stressful than hours of sitting and batteling them! It also gives them more of a love for reading if they are not forced into it!
~ I have always been a taxi, BUT...
~ it used to be I would go where I needed to go, now it has changed to asking where everybody else needs to go and I just fit my errands in between!
~ I take a shower daily and cannot start my day without one! (Sometimes end my day with one also!)
~ I am also responsible for making sure many others clean themselves daily! (Believe me, getting 8 boys to shower, change their underwear and socks daily is not an easy thing to keep up on!)
~ been searching for matching socks
~ I am catching on that buying the same kind of socks for each child and marking them with a permanent marker makes matching a snap! They can do it themselves that way!
~ raising boys and raising girls are TOTALLY different! One IS NOT easier than another, just different!
~ I am now raising 3 teenagers and will have 6 teenage boys in the house at one time in a few years! (Thank goodness I love the teenage years!)
~ I have found that boys eat A LOT and seems they are NEVER full!
~ but I have learned that they don't need as much as THEY think they do!
~ Girls do not wear out their clothes as quickly as boys
~ I never threw out girls clothes because they were too worn, I have had to throw out bags of clothes that were even to worn for play clothes!
~ I never realized how fun string, dirt, clothespins, and rubberbands could be!
~ I don't spend much money on toys anymore! They don't play with them anyway!
~ vacuuming a car used to take minutes!
~ cleaning a mini-bus is lots more time consuming! :)
~ in earlier years, I cleaned my house every other day
~ these days, I clean it hourly!
~ bars of soap used to take my husband and I a month or more to use up
~ we are either a really clean family or a really dirty one! A new bar is out every couple of days it seems!
~ I am on my knees daily, sometimes hourly! I realize that is where I need to be if I am to do this job of motherhood His way!
~ That is NEVER going to change!
1 comment:
Oh Heather, on one's knees is the only way to parent! How can anyone manage without God's guidance? Especially because kids are all so different. The diapers: there will be an end some day, and if you are anything like me, it will be sad. My two year old just potty trained, and wah, I am done with diapers for the first time in over 25 years. (unless my prayers are answered for just one more baby, please!) Straight, sometimes with two or even three in diapers at the same time. (Camille is my 16th child, and is in Pullups right now because she has a cast on her leg, and if she has any accidents, it would be pretty hard to clean up....I am carrying her to the potty several times a day since she cannot walk....I would rather change a diaper! But potty trained she is....with that two year old determination...)
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