It is virtually impossible to plan for the future for the simple fact that we never know what the future will hold for us. We try. We save money, dream dreams and generally try to make educated guesses, but we never know. I never could have guessed that I would ever be pregnant with twenty children at once (yes, back to twenty. The last four quietly slipped away yesterday having claimed their place in our family. As with other miscarriages, they will join us at a later time.)
We have always tried to plan for children. When we first married, my husband and I got a three bedroom house. It was far from work and the commute was atrocious, but we had planned to fill it quickly with children. For years the rooms stood empty before our two daughters arrived. Even then they shared a room waiting for other children that never filled the third bedroom.
When we moved, we planned differently and moved into a tiny two bedroom house. The second bedroom was large, really being a partially finished attic. We planned to divide it into two bedrooms and we thought it would be plenty large enough for our needs for a few years. Now just over a year later we are finding that we guessed wrong again.
In some ways we are very prepared for our children and in others we are so unprepared. We love them, that is the greatest preparation that we could have, but in the more earthly ways we are very unprepared. The shear financial burden that they have the potential to impose initially is mind boggling. We are doing our best to minimalize that and still met their needs.
For example, we have switched to cloth diapers. There is an initial expenditure, but I cannot even comprehend how much it would cost to keep that many children in disposables! It is averaged that disposables cost $2000 per child between birth and potty training. For one child that is steep but doable and the amount saved by cloth might not be cost justifiable when compared to the time for some people. For us, well, that would be $40,000 in a two year period the savings of cloth are so obvious that it would be unthinkable not to switch. A sister of mine replaced a broken washer because it couldn't spin items dry. She offered it to us and now we have a dedicated washer for diapers.
Formula is another thing. I had never considered formula. I had to use it for my first daughter as she came to us as a foster child and there was literally no other choice. My second daughter I was thrilled to nurse until she weaned herself definitively at the age of 17 months. I never thought that I would do it any other way. Well, I guess I am learning my lesson about categorical statements. I can nurse twins. I might even be able to figure out how to nurse quadruplets, but isoplets... There is no way that I would ever be able to nurse all of my babies all the time. It is my biggest grief in this situation.
I have looked at various baby formulas, and other options. We have decided in this case that the old ways are indeed the best ways. For millennia goats were always used to feed babies who didn't have access to real baby milk (nanny goats?) Now science has discovered that goats milk is indeed closest to humans milk. (Ok, I heard that rats milk might be closer, but come on, milking rats?!) We plan to pursue this when it becomes necessary. I will still nurse them, of course, but the goats milk will offer a supplemental source of natural nutrition.
Other things though are still beyond us. Car seats are one example. We have two which is enough to last us until February, beyond that I do not know what we will do. For that matter we will never be able to fit in a car again. Some way, somehow we will have to find a bus. The math boggles my mind. We have two children, twenty on the way and four more who have claimed a spot in our family. At a bare minimum that is twenty-six children. That means that we will need at least a twenty-eight passenger vehicle. I can't even imagine learning to drive it! I thought a suburban was big!
Then, of course, there is the house. We will not last long in a two bedroom, but moving is out of our budget, and certainly out with that many children. I guess we will save until we can build a house. We will have to build. They do not make houses for a family of our size.
Ah well, it gets too overwhelming. I guess the best we can do is our part, try hard and know that the Lord will provide when it is necessary.
We have always tried to plan for children. When we first married, my husband and I got a three bedroom house. It was far from work and the commute was atrocious, but we had planned to fill it quickly with children. For years the rooms stood empty before our two daughters arrived. Even then they shared a room waiting for other children that never filled the third bedroom.
When we moved, we planned differently and moved into a tiny two bedroom house. The second bedroom was large, really being a partially finished attic. We planned to divide it into two bedrooms and we thought it would be plenty large enough for our needs for a few years. Now just over a year later we are finding that we guessed wrong again.
In some ways we are very prepared for our children and in others we are so unprepared. We love them, that is the greatest preparation that we could have, but in the more earthly ways we are very unprepared. The shear financial burden that they have the potential to impose initially is mind boggling. We are doing our best to minimalize that and still met their needs.
For example, we have switched to cloth diapers. There is an initial expenditure, but I cannot even comprehend how much it would cost to keep that many children in disposables! It is averaged that disposables cost $2000 per child between birth and potty training. For one child that is steep but doable and the amount saved by cloth might not be cost justifiable when compared to the time for some people. For us, well, that would be $40,000 in a two year period the savings of cloth are so obvious that it would be unthinkable not to switch. A sister of mine replaced a broken washer because it couldn't spin items dry. She offered it to us and now we have a dedicated washer for diapers.
Formula is another thing. I had never considered formula. I had to use it for my first daughter as she came to us as a foster child and there was literally no other choice. My second daughter I was thrilled to nurse until she weaned herself definitively at the age of 17 months. I never thought that I would do it any other way. Well, I guess I am learning my lesson about categorical statements. I can nurse twins. I might even be able to figure out how to nurse quadruplets, but isoplets... There is no way that I would ever be able to nurse all of my babies all the time. It is my biggest grief in this situation.
I have looked at various baby formulas, and other options. We have decided in this case that the old ways are indeed the best ways. For millennia goats were always used to feed babies who didn't have access to real baby milk (nanny goats?) Now science has discovered that goats milk is indeed closest to humans milk. (Ok, I heard that rats milk might be closer, but come on, milking rats?!) We plan to pursue this when it becomes necessary. I will still nurse them, of course, but the goats milk will offer a supplemental source of natural nutrition.
Other things though are still beyond us. Car seats are one example. We have two which is enough to last us until February, beyond that I do not know what we will do. For that matter we will never be able to fit in a car again. Some way, somehow we will have to find a bus. The math boggles my mind. We have two children, twenty on the way and four more who have claimed a spot in our family. At a bare minimum that is twenty-six children. That means that we will need at least a twenty-eight passenger vehicle. I can't even imagine learning to drive it! I thought a suburban was big!
Then, of course, there is the house. We will not last long in a two bedroom, but moving is out of our budget, and certainly out with that many children. I guess we will save until we can build a house. We will have to build. They do not make houses for a family of our size.
Ah well, it gets too overwhelming. I guess the best we can do is our part, try hard and know that the Lord will provide when it is necessary.
posted by Ramona | 5:03 PM
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