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!
