I am excited to record and share my birth story with everyone, but first I thought it would be best if I share the basics and some pictures of our beautiful new baby...
GIRL!
Last night, at 10:19pm, the newest member of our family arrived!
We are excited to welcome our new little one, measuring 20 inches long, and weighing only 7lbs. 2 oz. (Two whole pounds LESS than our last!). She has light, silvery hair, and rosy skin. She's getting lots of love and attention at our house!
We've decided to name her
Una (Oo-na-- A Welsh form of "Agnes", which is Rachel's Granny's first name)
Mildred (After Russell's grandma)
I'll post the amazing, wonderful, birth story in the next few days, but right now, I'm busy falling in love with our sweet baby Number Eleven and getting lots of rest. (Or at least TRYING to...)
This morning I read some unkind comments that a woman had posted about large families, and it has me thinking this morning. (You can read the comments and the rebuttals here.)
Mostly, I'm sad and disturbed that there are people out there that really feel this way about large families like mine. It makes me sadder than I can say. :-(
I want to honestly look at a few of these prejudices out there about large families, and add my two cents to the issue.
As I understand it, here are the main issues that concern some people, regarding large families:
1) Kids in large families have to sacrifice in order to share their personal space.
It's true, that in a large family, there is less private space for each individual. They have to share bedrooms (many times with more than one sibling) and may not ever know what it is like to have a room all to themselves.
My first response to this is, why does our modern society feel that individual children should be given their own room/television/computer/play system to occupy themselves with? Why is there such a push toward isolation for children? Why do people feel that there can be such a thing as "too much" family time?
I believe that selfishness is the scourge of recent generations. Selfishness fuels all that is wrong in our society today: abuse, unkindness, divorce, abortion, etc.. And I believe that we as parents reinforce the "virtue of selfishness" when we teach our children to think only of themselves, and their wants.
Even if I had only three or four children, I would expect my children to share their bedrooms with their siblings. Why? Because in so doing, they learn lessons about sharing, about patience, about respecting others. They learn that the world is a place to work with others, to find compromises, and solutions that bless others-- not just themselves.
2)The older children become babysitters for the little ones.
Yes. This DOES happen. But those of us with large families do this out of more than necessity. We also do this ON PURPOSE because we believe we are raising future parents! We don't want our children to be ignorant and helpless when it comes to caring for children, because we believe that children ARE the future. We hope our children grow up to start families of their own. We believe that strong, loving families are the building block of successful societies, and we feel called to train our children to be the builders of the next generation. So they learn to wipe noses, to respond to a child's cries of hunger, to change diapers, to dress and care for someone with real needs.
3) Large family households are chaotic.
This is sometimes true, but I also know plenty of small families with chaotic households. I'm afraid we large families don't have the corner on that market! So, yes, there can be bigger messes, but we large families also have more people to help clean up those messes. :-)
Children who do chores learn how to take care of themselves. They learn how to cook, how to clean, how to effectively run a household. Adults outside our family who work with my children always compliment me on the practical skills that my kids have. My children have learned to be good workers, and know how to effectively work together to accomplish something good. Are they perfect? No. But they are learning and are being trained in their home. Our goal is for them to be equipped to navigate their adult lives with confidence and competence.
4) Haven't You Ever Heard of OVERPOPULATION???
I've had a few comments of this variety on my other blog, and I am surprised at how stubbornly so many people hold on to this unproven theory. In fact, this idea has been DIS-reputed over and over again, using mathematics and statistics, yet the general populace insists on defending and repeating this dogma in lock-step!
Here are some ACTUAL statistics* for you:
In order for a culture to maintain itself for more than 25 years, there is a required fertility rate of 2.11 children per family.
A rate of 1.3 children per family is impossible to reverse itself, because it takes 80 to 100 years to correct itself.
As of 2007: the fertility rate in France was 1.8; the rate in England was 1.6; the rate in Greece was 1.3; Italy was 1.2; and Spain was 1.1
In Europe, there is one group of people who do have a higher birth rate than the natives of each of these countries. Muslim immigrants have a fertility rate of 8.1 children per family in France, for example.
Canada's fertility rate is 1.6
Here in the United States of America, our current fertility rate is also 1.6 (With Latino immigration, the rate increases to 2.11).
In an editorial review of the secular book, Empty Cradle by Phillip Longman the following is noted:
“Overpopulation has long been a global concern. But between modern medicine and reduced fertility, world population may in fact be shrinking - and is almost certain to do so by the time today's children retire. The troubling implications for our economy and culture include: The possibility of a fundamentalist revival due to the decline of secular fertility.”
Interesting. Some of them are noticing we’re multiplying—and they’re afraid.
Interestingly, while God’s people were slaves in Egypt, the Egyptian Pharaoh made the same observation as Mr. Longman and he grew fearful. In Exodus chapter 1 we read:
"But the children of Israel were fruitful and increased abundantly, multiplied and grew exceedingly mighty; and the land was filled with them. Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. And he said to his people, “Look, the people of the children of Israel are more and mightier than we…”
Of course, when Longman speaks of the “troubling implication” of a “fundamentalist revival” he is not simply referring to Christians; he’s referring to any religious group that is having children—lots of them. But, the fact remains: another demographer is noticing that secular folks (and Christians who think like them) are shrinking in numbers.
Birth control, homosexuality, abortion, and women pursuing careers rather than marriage all contribute to the declining birth rate. Rather than view children as the blessing Scripture tells us they are, they are seen as “just another mouth to feed,” or as a burden that gets in the way of our personal goals.
Here are two videos that I think spells out the myths behind over-population very well:
I sincerely feel called to bring children into the world, into a loving home where they are taught the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
From where I stand, some of the disgust that people have for large families comes from a difference in priorities. To many, a big house, complete with a bedroom for each child, is a necessity. They feel that they simply cannot do without the newest model cars, designer clothes, convenience foods, and endless entertainment budgets.
Those of us with large families feel exactly the opposite. We willingly sacrifice the world's material goods in order to bring more children into our families. And by so doing, we are teaching our children what is really important.
The choices that each of us make in our lives strongly effect the next generation. Actions and example speak louder than words, and I hope we are telling our children loud and clear that THEY are more important than material goods.
As I believe they truly are. :-)
* You can read about national birth rates by scrolling down on this page to the Demographic Data Estimate charts
We've decided to name her
