When you never get invited anywhere because of your large number of kids...

[Mum2Be7]

Hi ladies,
I understand how u feel I'm in Melbourne I'm 29 and have 6 kids with baby 7 on the way, I love my big family, but others seem to think its a burden, I don't have any friends with kids and ppls reaction is always that of shock but I am so used to that. It's nice to finally find a group who understands. Yay to all the big families out there!!!

[Ferney]

i have a friend who has 6 kids, they come over i have no prob. However i do have a problem when her kids come over STARVING and raid my cupboards and aske me for food the whole time they are over. They are rude and intterupt conversations. They bring their food into the lounge when i ask them to eat at the table.

When they leave my house looks like a tornado hit it!!! i kinda dont mind but its the little things that annoy me - like mushed food in the carpet, cups of spilt juice behind couches, broken toys belonging 13mth old....it really does hurt to feel a lack of respect. Their mother never tells them off as she's too busy breastfeeding her youngest or is just too tired to are. They absolutely run a muck here.

Your kids are probably nothing like this. I'd assume they have manners and know how to behave in other poples homes. Maybe she has had a bad experience with kids running a muck in her home??

You should probably tell her your kids are not dogs and tell her you wont be visiting anymore if they continue to treat your children like dogs.

[Mummy2eight]

People stopped asking us out a long time ago in fact 4 kids ago even family stopped we no longer fitted with the rest of the world and their 2.5 kids we would get oh you can afford to go where we are going with yr lot not that they asked first or the place is not big enough etc etc, now my kids are older they do go out with friends a lot and yes sometimes it is hard with such an age gap it is hard to please everyone, now it's just us and although lonely I don't have to answer to anyone or watch their other people disappointed faces when we turn up

mummy2eight

[Annabella]

Most of our friends have lots of kids so we are not excluded as its pretty 'normal' in our circle. However, i freely admit to sending all the kids outside when people with big families come over if the weather is ok, even if the kids don't want to. Our hous rly isn't big enough especially with how rowdy a big group of kids gets, plus there are always ours and others' babies needing some peace and quiet, and I get sick of cleaning up after lots of kids. Of course, if it's really cold or really hot it's different, but on a 'normal' day I send them out! And would prefer mine play outside when we visit others as well!

[thepouts]

We only have 3 children, and one is a newborn. I'm younger so none of my friends have kids. I stopped having very much contact with friends after comments like "one day when you don't have the kids you should come over". Sorry we're a package deal!

[SimplyMum]

Just adopt me and my son! We'd LOVE to be apart of a big family.

We have 6 grandkids in our family and they are always over- they have free reign over the house- probably too much. They come inside wet after many hours in the pool, leave dirty clothes all over the bathroom for us (I live with my parents) to wash. Annoying, but I love that they feel so comfortable here.

[SuperGranny]

Every party started when the six of us would arrive. We had only four children but that was a large family back in the 70s/80s. I dont agree with the children being 'put outside', and if anyone had treated us like that we would have made the first visit the last. Children are children for such a short time, if the friendship is worth anything it will still be there when you all become grandparents. I would just not accept the rudeness, and put a 'raincheck' on the friendship for a time. PS, my children would not have behaved as my grandchildren do, but that is grandmas choice, no reflection on how my grandchildren are being raised, but gee I sure have changed. haha, Marie.