5 kids

We have five kids. I know this because I birthed them all and I feed and care for them everyday but I don't think I yet know this. Just tonight I was telling Sean that I was driving a girl to dance class. I was saying how her Mom has 6 kids and it must be so difficult for her to get everyone in the car. Sean says, "but Ashley, if you have her daughter, now you have 6 kids that you are driving to class." Oh, right, I forgot!

I remember a time when I would look at families with four children and think, how in the world do they do it? I always wanted two kids. One boy and one girl. I have always loved kids but I truly never gave it a thought to have more than two. Perhaps it was because I grew up with a brother or maybe it is because having two kids is so common. I'm really not sure. Our original "plan" was to have our second child roughly 2 1/2 years after our first but wouldn't you know that we found ourselves with two children in 16 months. It was shortly after Caileigh's birth that I started to ponder the idea of a third. Things were so amazing with two that I began to imagine how much greater they could be with three. I wanted one more pregnancy in which to enjoy every last milestone. After Mikayla was born I loved the idea of more but the idea of actually having any more never really crossed our minds. Little did I know that 18 months later I would be Mom to 5!

I look at my family of 7 and feel so incredibly blessed. A day doesn't go by that I don't feel thankful for their health and presence in my life. I do think, however, as more children have joined our family I have lost perspective that five kids is indeed a larger family. I am reminded though each time I walk through the grocery store or mall. It is incredible the amount of stares that I receive. I suppose it does look a little funny to see someone pushing a double stroller, pulling a shopping cart, hauling one child on the back and guiding two walking children, but it can be a little disconcerting and I am still getting used to it. The typical comments are, "you sure have your hands full" or "are they all yours?" and also "you do know what causes this don't you?" I think the best comment was the other day when I was in the mall with the kids and a woman stopped to ask me if they were all mine. She then proceeded to shake her finger at me and say, "now no more!" I should have said, "but I'm already pregnant again!" I didn't though, and I'm not.

So I have five kids. Five beautiful, wonderful kids. And just think, 12 years from now I will have five teenagers.

Uh-Oh.