Large families in the 21st Century!

Neon's ago I wrote a post about the benefits of having a large family. I know many can't wrap their mind around on why or how we function, basically their question is, "If I couldn't handle a large family, how can someone else?" There must be some forms of neglect. Typically the average family has 2.5 children with 1 dog and that is enough for most parents. There is some parents that can successfully raise over ten children. I feel compelled to continually advocate for larger families. I wrote in a previous post that our home is open to anyone that questions our abilities. Some of the benefits I've witnessed with our family is our children have more knowledge and self confidence. We are our own support network. Our children have compassion for every ones different needs including within our society because they experience it at home. This is a personal favorite trait of mine, compassion for others and our children are developing it because of our large family. I'm definitely not saying any of these attributes can't be developed in a smaller family, but I know our children exhibit theirs through their daily life with many siblings. With many siblings there is no lack of conversation and playful attention. They constantly have intellectual stimulation which strengthens and sharpens their judgement. I know that our children with special needs have come a long way because of their constant interaction with their siblings. Every day several of our children are teaching our littlest daughter new words. We're constantly surrounded by laughter, we are a livelier bunch. I truly believe our adoption placements were very easy because of the number of children we have. The acceptance and experience receiving a new sibling is most welcoming. If there is special needs, our children aren't afraid but willing to provide stimulation for further development for that sister or brother. Children in large families succeed because they're experienced with that trait I love called compassion. They develop understanding. Of course there is that normal sibling rivalry and with more of it, it teaches our children lessons in fairness, sharing, forgiving and forgetting. That provides them with a more resilient surface. The biggest aspect that large families learn is patience. Which will help them in their adult years becoming self reliant. All our children have their own space if needed, if wanted but otherwise they're never alone - each and every one of our children are learning to get along. This helps with group settings, they become more comfortable in busy crowded situations. Some of our children have more courage and can easily jump into a public presentation. I feel confident to single parent across British Columbia because mostly our children are cooperative and responsible. With stating all the attributes our family possesses, and I've seen in other larger families - the facts are it's easier to add then to take away children. I know and understand some families struggle with 1-3 children but there is families that can handle 4,6,10, 15+ without much difficulty. The truth is we all live daily dedicated to our individual situations. I also believe that every family that have siblings, one or more; it's the greatest gift of a lifetime. Centuries ago,  large families were more acceptable, I'm here to fight back, to argue, to continue to state that the twenty first century can handle larger families too. The love we have for our children doesn't divide as more children come along. It multiplies. -Shalom Freedom.