All in a Day: Family Togetherness

You know you have a large family when...

...your children feel sorry for families with only six or seven children.
...people ask if you're competing with the Duggars.
...even your friends aren't sure how many children you have.
...your family no longer fits in a 15 passenger van.
..complete strangers feel welcome to comment on your fertility and contraceptive methods.
...two of your daughters go for a walk...and get asked by a neighbor if they're foster kids.
...you have to carry three health insurance cards in your wallet- because that's how many it takes to fit everyone's name.
...you take the wrong child to the dentist...simply because your handwriting on the calendar was messy and both started with a "j".
...grocery shopping for 30 children and 12 adults for a two day camp constitutes a "small" shopping trip for you.
You find yourself relating some small incident to your husband and starting with the words, "Well, I only boiled twenty-six eggs for breakfast..."
...you buy a 40 pound box of bananas intending to make banana bread and freeze a bunch for smoothies...but your children eat them all first.
...you find an afternoon root canal relaxing.
...it takes you twenty-three minutes on the phone to schedule your children's dental appointments.
...you've given up on using your toaster entirely and make all of your toast under the broiler in you oven.
...you are seriously tempted by the stacking cribs you see at Goodwill for $19.99.
...you find yourself thinking, "Wow, the house is so quiet and peaceful with only nine children".
...you have enough children to constitute not one, but TWO large families.
...you have a laundry basket devoted entirely to lonely socks seeking their mate.
...when you got to buy your children those cool "spin toothbrushes" because you think they get their teeth so much cleaner...but the store doesn't carry enough styles/colors for your children to each have a different toothbrush.
...when you can't take all of your children to the doctor's office at the same time because the waiting room has only 10 seats.
...when you still have seven children that are required by law to sit in a carseat or booster seat.
...you call the doctor to get your children tetnus shots, and they tell you they don't have enough in the office and need to order more from the health department.
...you take up more than one entire pew in church.
...you take only half of your children to the library, and STILL get asked if they're all yours.
...you go to fill your children's flouride prescription at the phamacy and you clean them out of every pill they have...and it's still not enough.
...you spend sixty dollars on socks...and not everyone gets new socks.
...you go shopping at Costco and the cashier asks if you're having a soccer barbecue.

April 27, 2011

Wow, I'm not quite sure what to write on this topic...If Chuck and I ever discussed promoting togetherness, it was a long time ago. The reality is, with homeschooling, we spend nearly twenty-four hours a day together.

Building close relationships.

Learning to get along.

And learning about conflict resolution...

Okay, in all seriousness, this isn't really something we talk about. I think the reality is, we spend plenty of time together. We live in a rural area, so there are no neighbors to play with. Aside from Apollo, our family mascot, my children are very close in age (anywhere from 12-17 months apart) so they naturally hang out together. One of the best things about a large family is there is always someone to play with. Been fighting all day with your brother? Then go find a different sibling to play with.

My kids love to play soccer and volleyball together here in our yard. They (boys included) love to play jump rope games; many of which Kezkiah, Ezra and Boaz taught them from Liberia. They love to read and play board games together...I suppose they just don't know any different.

To see what the other All in a Day moms have to say, check these out:

Carrie @ Our Full House

Christi @ Ants on a Farm

Elizabeth @ Yes They're All Ours

Kathy @ Kathy Mom of Many

Kristy @ Homemaker's Cottage

Lori @ Happy Busy Mama

Monica @ Natural Mama