mum of 2 with 1 on the way...but wanting 5

[the_original_duchess]

i was just wondering how all of you mums of 4 children or more find juggling your everyday lives with the responsabilitis of being a mum. do you find it easy with a routine, or is it hard having such a big family. im asking because i have 2 beautiful children with number 3 on the way. altho it is probably 4 (waiting for an untrasound to see if im having twins) and i want atleast 5 children, but i haev to convince my hubby of this, so any advce would be great!! DAnielle:hugs:

[AimeeB]

:wave: Hi I have 3 and 1 on the way.My Ds is nearly 5,DD1 just 3 and DD2 13 months,I am due in March.It's a bit more hectic and just little things like Christmas shopping,I would have already done it usually but even with 3 it's difficult.I didn't have a great day today,had to do groceries and the were all little monkeys!!I can only imagine 4 will be harder but DS starts school next year,so will have to see what that is like.I would love another one after this one,cos I love babies but after days like today,no we will be stopping at 4!

[the_original_duchess]

hi AimeeB
thanx for your reply and for letting me know what its like on one of your days as a mum of a large family. i love being a mum, there is nothing more important to me than my children, and helping them to grow up to be wonderful people. i know that it must be so hard for you to have 3 so young and another on the way, when are you due by the way? i'll be waiting between pregnancies this time, maybe 2 years till i have the next one. that way my older two will be in school and preschool by then. again thanks for your reply and hope all is well with you and your family, Danielle

[AimeeB]

:wave: Hi again,I'm due on March 22,so I'm just 22 weeks.I guess I just had one of those days but they have all settled down now!(doesn't help that I'm just starting to get fatter and finding jobs that were easy to do before that little bit harder:laughing: )I love being home with them too and I love it when people get blown away that you would have 4 or 5 kids these days.I love big families and come from 4 kids as does my DH.I am actually surprised that people think it's weird to have more than 2(I know my sis thinks i'm mad)but most people I have come across think that 4 is too much.We don't miss out on much though and I am a sahm.We still go to Maccas or out to different places and the kids are always well provided for.Dh doesn't get paid that well but we manage,I know my sister said "you won't be able to afford this or that"but we are comfortable and I'm happy with the way things are!

[karcarcor]

HI, I'm a SAH mum of 4, (ages below). I love being a mum also. It is so rewarding.
I find that having a routine is good, but it must be flexible. And you need some time out of the house and to yourself. I go to a craft group on a Friday and the kids go into a creche for the 2 hours. They know that I am nearby, but it is MY TIME.
I find the kids occupy each other quite well most of the time.
The hardest time is between 4:30 and 6pm, when I am trying to bathe the kids, feed bubs and cook tea. Hubby usually gets home around 6, and if the kids don't eat by half past then they are too tired and grumpy.
I also have them all in bed by 7:30pm. So I get time out at night to spend with hubby.

[tommylu]

Hi there.
Well i have 4 boys and let me tell you that life is absolute caos!! BUT i love the noisy,busy household we have!
I do have a daily routine just to keep things running smoothly,but i am quite flexible.
During the day i do some housework but i dont kill myself doing so cause its only gonna get messy by the time the kids come home so why bother lol
And as one of the mums said,you DO need time to yourself for sure ! I like to go for a walk/run in the afternoon when hubby comes home i just dump them and RUN as fast as i can !!! LOL
My boys are aged 11,5,3 and 14 months so they are quite easy to manage.
The only down/up side of having a large family is we had to upgrade our car(i now drive a ppl mover !!)lol
and next year we are gonna have to upgrade to a house! our flat is getting smaller by the hour !!

:wave:

[MrsDribbleDrawers]

My husband and I have one child each from previous relationships, and I'm pregnant with our first... and we've already planned when our next pregnancy will be!!

Our kids are older (8 and 5), so both will be at school next year. I'm hoping that will make life a little easier, cause I'll end up with at least two, if not three, at home under 5!

I've always been excessively organised (although it doesn't translate into my housework!), so I'm hoping that will help keep me on track running after three (I work from home, so can pretty much set my own hours, and completely ignore it if I choose to!)

Good luck with all your plans, and your pregnancy... at 21.5wks, I'm starting to really struggle with keeping on top of the day to day stuff (fortunately, DH has been brilliant, been picking up my slack since day 1!)

[the_original_duchess]

hey thank you all for your replys, it sounds like im going to have my hands full, but im loving every minute of it so far, and will continue to in the future as we continue growing our family.
i also wanted to know if it is hard for you guys at times like xmas and birthdays? do u set a budget for each child? only get things that are needed, instead of wanted?
this year we are getting out kids art and craft things, instead of toys, i figure itl be better for them, plus we have so much fun painting together and with the playdoh, so i though tthat i'd buy them heaps of new things like that and we can have more together time.
oh and also do you have one on one time with each of your children?
sorry if im prying, i just wanna get some insight into how my life is going to be like soon.
Danielle:wave:

[CJJHRA]

we have 6... 3 singleton boys, twin boys, then a girl. My kids are now 14,10,8,5,5,2.

After having three, I found it rather easy when the twins came along.. I found it no more different, no harder, just a little more time consuming perhaps.. and I must say, did have have help of the older kids to help keep the babies entertained long enough so I could shower and clean up.

Sleep was the biggest and hardest.. but even then.. I was used to sleepless interuppted nights. I'm lucky though... 14y/o DS is a great help, he gets brekki for them all at least 3 times a week, and will help with shoes/socks with the three little ones.

as for birthdays and christmas.. we dont really have a set amount each child.. but at the moment... the older three seem to get more... The twins dont get nearly as much... they get alot of hand me down stuff and are still happy with $2 toys and more for quantity rather than quality at the moment still. DS3 is still in the middle, he wants lots, but wants good stuff too, but almost understands he gets more expensive stuff that makes up for the cheapness/quantity of the other three.... DD gets a fair bit, as shes the first girl and I never had any girlie stuff, apart from perhaps a teaset and toy food. No-one has really cpmplained that they think they are missing out.

Craft stuff is great!! So to is books and DVD's for pressies I have found, they get good use. My boys dont really want toys anymore.. just computer games or playstation games... But they all seem to like drawing (ok, not the eldest.. hes too old for that :rolleyes: ) and lego.

One on one time... DD gets alot as shes home with me at the moment. the twins get a bit, but not really 1on1 as they are nearly always together, the elder three get time when the little ones aer in bed (which they go to bed at 7.30 so we all can get some peace LOL).

Tuck in time they get time to talk and say whats on their minds.. anywhere from 5-30 minutes, but I get exhausted just listening to them sometimes LOL they go at 1000 words per second.

Throughout the weekends (and school holidays) they will all come up to me individually for a cuddle and a chat when they think the others are busy so they can get a turn in. But usually they are all off doing their own thing.. playing playstation together, or computer or split into groups etc, and pretty much take care of themselves.. so I do have plenty of time for housework etc (not that I do it!!LOL)

DH takes the 3 little ones out to a friends place for about an hour on the weekend.. the other three just play games... so I kinda get time to myself then for a bit. My mum has them sleep over in turns (2-3 at a time) every 3rd weekend. and DH has them on a Saturday arvo while I go to the shops or mums.

This last year has been rather good, things have gotton alot more relaxed and not so hard with all the boys in full time school 5 days a week. The twins are finally settling down and not fighting so much and listening to what I say.. before that.. was yeah.. chaos I guess you could say, but you get throught it ok.

[karcarcor]

For birthdays I usually spend around $100 each, but I don't always stick to this. I will buy something needed and something wanted usually, or mix them ie DD1 likes Bratz, but needed a new quilt cover, so she got a Bratz quilt set and was very happy.

For chrissy I usually get something big for all of them from Santa (like a swing set last year and a cubby this year), and then I get something individual from us. They also have a chrissy stocking, so in there they get undies and socks(wrapped individually so it looks like a lot) and a choccy stocking.b No complaints yet!