A 35-year-old Mom of 10 Shares Why She Can’t Imagine Her Life Without Such a Big Family

In today’s world, a big family is a rare thing. Courtney Rogers is 35 years old and she has 10 kids. Those around her always have a lot of questions and some of them are not very nice at all.

For Bright Side readers, Courtney answered many questions and told us why having a big family is happiness for her and something supernatural for many others.

My husband and I have 10 kids and they all have a small age gap. We also have normal twins and so-called “Irish” twins, when babies are born with a difference of less than 12 months or in the same year.

My husband and I are the oldest in our multi-kids families (10 and 6 children, respectively). We discussed having kids before our marriage, but I don’t think that I ever wanted to have a certain amount of babies. I remember my husband saying 10 because his mother had the same amount. I laughed and said I was too old for that. Eventually, my oldest kid was born almost before I turned 26.

The universe probably heard my conversation with my husband and within 10 years of marriage, we had 10 kids, the last of which was born pretty recently (it’s a baby girl, by the way!). I am often asked, “Is it exhausting to be constantly pregnant?” Fortunately, my body copes with pregnancy very well and believe it or not, I still feel excited when I see a positive pregnancy test. However, our family and friends don’t get surprised anymore, because they have already gotten used to it. My husband also doesn’t get surprised, because it’s a normal part of our entire marriage. I am sure this will sound strange to most people, but several years without a pregnancy felt unusual for us.

Of course, there are certain difficulties in trying to manage this many kids. Even though they sometimes make me go crazy, I can’t imagine myself being happy doing something different in my life. Apart from the constant changing of diapers, searching for more than one babysitter for one visit, or booking more than one hotel room, we also need to drive a van that has 15 seats, wash piles of clothing, and constantly clean the house.

Oh, and I get tons of comments from different people every day! Many situations in our life are like anecdotes. The comments like, “You must have so many things to do,” when I am walking with 2 or 3 kids always seem funny to me. If they only knew! Once, I was walking with my 2 daughters and someone told me, “It’s time to give birth to a boy now!” They were extremely surprised when I told them I already have 6 boys. Sometimes I experience some very unpleasant moments because everyone has a different reaction. Once I was asked, “Do all your kids have the same father?” and someone else said: “So many kids! It’s terrible!”

One of the biggest advantages of the small age difference between the kids is that they are at approximately the same level of their development and interests. Thanks to this, they usually play together well and do the same things together with pleasure. Another thing that I like a lot is the unbelievable excitement that we feel at Christmas, on birthdays, and during family trips. I hope my kids will grow up remembering all the fun and chaos that we are swimming in together.

Sometimes we are asked whether we plan to have more kids. Honestly, I don’t know. Due to a complete placenta previa and problems with the umbilical cord during my double pregnancy, I had to do 2 Cesarean sections. Fortunately, I found an excellent team of midwives at the university hospital near us. I am sure that now, I am one of their regular customers, and the employees even recognize me and my medical card.

Some people express their worries about my health. Generally, all my pregnancies went without complications. However, I know that anything can happen in the future and if any complications occur, we will consider the options of planning our family with a wise approach.

Until then I think we will continue accepting them when they are born and celebrate every positive pregnancy test and unique little life that it brings. Kids are a real blessing!

How do you relate to families with a lot of kids? Would you yourself dare to take such a step?