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Home » Practical Parenting Tips » Big Family » Want a Big Family? Consider These Things First…

Want a Big Family? Consider These Things First…

Updated October 7, 2020

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Considering having a lot of kids and a large family? Great read for moms who wonder how many kids should I have.

Are you considering having a lot of kids close together in age or having a big family? This post will help you think on all the angles.


When you can no longer fit your whole family into a sedan… that’s when I consider it “big.”

When you can barely squeeze in a large booth at a restaurant. 

And when you start getting stares at the grocery store and people wonder if you’re running a daycare. 

A nurse who helped deliver my last two babies said, in her mind, a big family started at 5 kids.

family photo with parents and five kid

But I believe she had 7 kids which I class as an “extra large” family so there you have it.

Size matters. 

It matters on the type of vehicle you have to drive, the size of house you might choose to live in, the amount of money you’ll spend on groceries, how many times you have to double a recipe, and the noise level in your home.

Just to name a few things.

If you’re considering having a lot of kids, however you define that, then I hope this post will help you think it through.

Should I Have a Lot of Kids?

Full disclosure: I have 5 kids and could not imagine my life without all of them. To me, obvs, big families rock.

Husbands… if you only want one or two kids and your wife is letting you read this… don’t send me hate mail. :)

I’ve had 5 babies in 5 years and not lost my marbles. Sign up here and I’ll share my secrets!

It’s Not an Exponent, but It is a Multiple

Having no kids to having one child is a huge change. Having two instead of having one is less severe.

And having 4 instead of 3 is more, but not exponentially more. You’re already changing diapers, reading bedtime stories, cutting up peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and handling tantrums.

Now you’re just doing it with more kids.

family photo on the porch with parents and five kids

People say that after 3 kids it’s a nuthouse. I personally believe the nuthouse begins at 4 kids. For what it’s worth.

Two you’re already outnumbered.

Three you’ve got to keep a firm grasp to run a tight ship.

Four requires an razor sharp brain and the ability to ignore some things you don’t like.

Read: Daily Schedule for 4 Kids Aged 4 and Under

Christmas Tree Shopping ???

A photo posted by Rachel Norman (@momfarfromhome) on Dec 3, 2016 at 8:58am PST

You Must Be (Or Learn to Be) A Major Majorer As A Big Family Manager

If you are the type of person that needs everything a certain way or you don’t function, you either need to refrain from having a large family or you need to follow Elsa’s lead and Let It Go.

I personally chose (by force) to Let It Go. I still love order, still want kids who mind and obey, but I’ve learned to Major in the Majors and Minor in the Minors.

For us this looks like:

  • Starting and ending the day with a tidy enough house, but not running behind my kids all day to clean up
  • Letting kids dress themselves because it saves work. If it doesn’t match or it’s highwater and it isn’t church or a family photo, I don’t care.
  • Loosening the grip on some rules and doing away with others altogether. I don’t mind if they run in the house if they’re playing, for example.

Read: The Stay At Home Mom Schedule That’ll Keep You Sane

big family with five kids hugging in front of a whooville picture

Your Home and Life Will Not Look the Same With A Big Family

If you have one or two kids and are still hanging on to the vestiges of pre-mamahood… those will be done away with when you have a large family.

For starters, you cannot maintain tight control on everything with so many kids.

It’s just impossible.

Two, by nature of the fact you have a lot of kids you just won’t have as much time. Three, good luck finding someone who will babysit all the kids if you want to be gone during meal or bedtimes.

At least, good luck finding someone to do it often.

big family with five kids

Your home can still be tidy, but imagine how big of a mess one toddler makes? Multiply that by 5 and, even if your kids know they must clean up after themselves, if you interrupt them mid-play the house looks like an episode of Hoarders.

You can still have drop zones, good organization, and good home systems, but your home will look like children live there.

Because they do.

Read: The Non-Obvious Reason Your Home is Chaotic

Big Family Energy Exists… Can You Handle It?

You know you can go out with a group of friends or go to an event somewhere and you feel that energy?

That energy that says “Something is happening. Tonight is going to be fun.” 

Well, with a large family, that excitement is the norm. It always feels like something is happening. In fact, many things are always happening.

I can sense it myself and other kids most definitely sense it. When one child comes over and all 4 of my (mobile) kids run up to this child smiling huge grins and welcoming them…

I can feel that child feel it.

It’s a sense of excitement, energy, and movement. If you are a quiet introverted type, this may be a struggle. Or it may just mean you get better at finding time for yourself in the everyday.

When you wake up on the Wrongest Side of the Bed and the only remedy is making all the kids match #momof4 #SundayStruggles #momofmany #momofboys #caboosebaby

A photo posted by Rachel Norman (@momfarfromhome) on Jun 26, 2016 at 8:21am PDT

Food Shopping Is No Joke For Big Families…

A dear friend is married to one of four boys. He said his mom would cook a normal sized dinner then throw a loaf of bread and some butter on the table to tell the kids to fill up.

This is life with a lot of kids.

They eat and eat and eat and eat and you better cook from scratch and let them go hungry sometimes or you’ll spend $356,346 on groceries a month.

We do pretty well and don’t overspend the budget most months, but it is a factor. If you hate cooking from scratch and tripling recipes and want to cook every meal with nice cuts of meat and fancy fixins… it gets a bit cost prohibitive with a lot of mouths to feed.

When you buy groceries for 7 people for 1 month and it takes 3 carts, 2 grandparents, 1 baby carrier and a #cando attitude. #momof5

A photo posted by Rachel Norman (@momfarfromhome) on Dec 1, 2016 at 10:25am PST

There is Less Time Per Child In a Big Family

Most moms really want to spend one on one time with their kids. We love our little ones and want the to feel special, included, and cherished.

The more kids you have the more creative you have to be. You have to capitalize on the little moments throughout the day.

You don’t have as much time for grand gestures with each child.

It’s possible, but it isn’t as easy.

On the other hand, the kids are not sitting around lonely either. Even times when I’m wanting to spend individual time with one child, they often want to bring a sibling!

 mother and daughter hugging

I like to take one child with me on errands as much as possible. This is one way to fit it in. I have a fried who lets one child per night stay up half an hour later to have time with the parents.

Each family is different, but you have to make it happen whereas when you only have one or two children, it happens naturally.

If you are wondering how many kids is the right number or if you can really handle it, I want to assure you.

You’ll know.

You’ll feel it inside. 

And no matter what, you can handle it.

FAQs on Big Families

Is 3 kids considered a big family?

If you only have 2 kids, then 3 seems like a lot. To “large families” 3 kids isn’t a lot, and a family is typically considered big with 4 kids or more. But this is all opinion :)

What are the advantages of a large family?

Lots of built in playmates, chances to learn sharing, responsibility, and getting along with others. More people to love!

How do you manage a big family?

With home systems, organization, and distribution of chores and household tasks. Lots of life skills learned.

Are big families happier?

Well, that depends on the family. Big families aren’t necessarily any happier than small families, depends on the people.

What is the perfect amount of kids?

Well, that totally depends on how many kids your budget can handle, your emotions can handle, and your level of sanity can handle.

Are parents happier with only one child?

Depends on the parents :). Some parents want one child but feel a lot of guilt since their child doesn’t have a built in play mate, etc. Lonely onlies end up just fine, but some parents suffer being worried about it.

What are the consequences of a large family?

Less money, less time, more people’s hearts and minds to cultivate, and generally a louder and more rambunctious home. This may be good or bad to you :)

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I'm Rachel, mother of 5 young kids living in the Florida panhandle with my Australian husband. I write about family culture, family rhythms and routines, and boundaries in motherhood and life. You can see snippets of my daily life here and visit my shop for baby sleep, organizing, and routine help.

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I googled everything I could think about but there was never really something that felt right, that felt genuine instead of just telling do’s and don’ts. 

And then I found your website and read your pieces about sleeping and eating. I carefully read through your schedules and decided to try it.

IT WORKED!! 

And within a week or two our little girl changed from a frustrated baby into this happy dappy smiling ray of sunshine, that is able to settle herself down by sucking on her fists, even in the middle of the night. At 12 weeks baby girl slept through the night and now at 20 weeks old she sleeps a good 10 to 12 hours every night. 

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Tami K.

Comments

  1. Suz says

    Great photos. I am one of 5 children born close together and it was lots of fun and noise growing up! I am so glad I have their company and support now I’m older and appreciate all my Mom did for us. Looks like you’re doing a great job.

    Reply
    • Rachel Norman says

      Suz, oh good. So you still like them into adulthood? Ha!

      Reply
      • Suz says

        Definitely. We obviously annoy each other at times, but we get on well most of the time! It’s great.

  2. Danielle Hart says

    As a mother who dreamed of having 5 to 7 children (my family had 4 and my husband had a baker’s dozen), we’re on our 4th year of trying to conceive. I’ve almost gotten used to being a one kid family who just babysits for friend a lot. But there’s a small part of me that’s losing confidence in my mothering capabilities the longer this takes, so thank you! I appreciated how well covered this sensitive subject and felt encouraged and enabled.

    Reply
    • Rachel Norman says

      Danielle, bless you girl. So you have one child and are still trying for another or don’t yet have one?

      Reply
  3. Jessica says

    Love this! I’m a mom of 8 (6 boys!) and I can totally relate! It is a crazy busy hard expensive loud place to be, but I absolutely love it and can’t imagine life any other way! It’s hard to believe my husband thought he only wanted one!

    Reply
    • Rachel Norman says

      Hahaha, 1…. Ha. Well he got more than he bargained for.

      Reply
  4. Ib says

    Hi! love your blog and tips.
    I was just wondering whether you’d be willing to disclosed the type of birth control you were on before you had baby number 5? I am stressing out, because I definitely want to be done at 5 kids!

    Reply
    • Rachel Norman says

      I did not have an IUD, which I now believe to be the only way I’d really feel it was going to prevent pregnancy, if that helps!

      Reply
  5. Amanda says

    I was just scouring the interenet for a post like this the other day! I’m 3 weeks away, give or take a week, from having my third baby in 3 1/2 years. Exciting but kind of scary wondering if I can handle it when my husband is in school full time and working two jobs! ? I’ve had the thought that I wanted a big family (maybe 6) for a few years now but just recently thought maybe 4 was big enough for me. Glad to know I’ll just know when I have the right number. ☺

    Reply
    • Rachel Norman says

      Amanda, yes and don’t feel you have to decide right now. Life is so difficult with school and working part-time and then having other little ones. You’ll know, and when you “come up for breath” when they’re a bit bigger you just never know what you’ll think!

      Reply
  6. Tania says

    Great post. I had three under three (oldest is now 5) and it was pretty crazy at times but we still want more! The joy outweights the temporary chaos!

    Reply
    • Rachel Norman says

      Absolutely!

      Reply
  7. Kassi Chapman says

    This is a great post, Rachel! We have a 2 year old toddler and are still very unsure about how many kids we want to have. You always have great stuff on your site!

    Reply
  8. Lara says

    I really enjoyed your post. I currently have 3 with talks of a 4th in a year or so…we’ll see what God has planned. Anyway, you have beautiful family!

    Reply
    • Rachel Norman says

      Thank you, Lara!

      Reply
  9. Andi says

    As a stay at home mommy of 6 and a in home daycare provider is all true. and they tell all sign that I was done was after I had baby number 6 I was no longer jealous of any one I saw pregnant or with me babies.

    Reply
    • Rachel Norman says

      :) I am with you. My last pregnancy every time I saw people with flat stomachs I was like WHY IS MY STOMACH ALWAYS HUGE? Ha.

      Reply
  10. Diana says

    Mama of 5 here (3 boys then 2 girls)! Mine are a little more spread out. My oldest just turned 13 and my youngest is 4 months (with an almost 5 year gap between boy #3 and girl #1) so even though it’s definitely cray-cray, I at least have good help! Lol. What keeps me sane on days the baby is needy or has had a poor night’s sleep, is knowing my boys and my almost 3yo are pretty independent and can do for themselves if needed, and even help me while Dad’s working. They bicker with each other, they argue with me about chores and things, and generally drive me up a wall, but I am constantly complimented by others about them, so I know we’re doing something right!
    We’re done having biological kids, but we plan to foster/adopt when we have a bigger house (last two weren’t planned and got here before we got that worked out, lol). I didn’t mind being pregnant, but my last two were soooo draining, I’d like not to repeat that process. So my husband “took one for the team.”
    What amazed me with my last surprise (not an oops!), is how much flak I got from unexpected people, and how much I DIDN’T get where I was expecting it! Ugh.

    Reply
    • Rachel Norman says

      I experienced that too. some people were super enthusiastic (that you wouldn’t expect) and others who are supposely family friendly were negative. Ha!

      Reply
  11. Natasha says

    This is so true! I can relate to everything you said. I come from a family of 11. My husband comes from a family of 10. So my husband and I have 6 kids. When people comment on how large our family is, I tell them that’s not big. I used to consider 6 kids a medium sized family, but nowadays it’s changed. I personally think a large family is when you can’t fit anymore into a mini van and need a 12 seat van.😉 But thats my opinion. May God bless all the moms with large or small families.

    Reply
    • Rachel Norman says

      Natasha, ha yeah if you need a 15 passenger then you’re REALLY a big family :)

      Reply
  12. Lesly McD says

    Hi Rachel, I’ve really been enjoying your articles, and passing some on.
    I birthed one daughter followed by 6 sons (so you & I are somewhat similar that way.) They are still good friends with each other as adults. As an INFJ it was indeed a struggle (plus w homeschooling) – but such a blessing!!!

    Reply
    • Rachel Norman says

      Oh wow you were able to homeschool them all? I LOVE that.

      Reply
  13. Angie S says

    As a mom of five ages 4,3,3,2, and 1, I have learned the best thing I can do is to take a deep breath and PRAY! Really it is about finding what works for you and your family. So we don’t make it out of the house till 11. I got a lot of sweet snuggles though!

    Reply
  14. Britta says

    This isn’t SO helpful! My husband and I both grew up with 7 siblings, and big family life is all we know. I want 5 kids minimum. But I’m also a total perfectionist and have a hard time being a control freak. I really needed to read this. This reminded me that I need to prepare myself for the chaos, and be aware of when we might need to stop and/or when I’m ready for the next one. Great article. :)

    Reply
  15. Joanna says

    I love all your writings!

    I would love to see one about tips and tricks for welcoming a new baby home… what do you do to survive the transition with other kids at home? I am going to have my third and am nervous about managing all the chores, dealing with the jealousy toddler/preschooler issues and not sleeping again. Would love your thoughts!!

    Reply
    • Rachel Norman says

      Great idea for a post, Joanna!

      Reply
  16. Abigail says

    This is so helpful. I have been pondering some of these things recently. Thank you for sharing.

    Reply
  17. Alicia says

    Thank you for sharing your experiences and things to consider. We’ve been discussing whether to add more children or not; this is helpful and clarifying for me!

    Reply

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Hey y'all, I'm Rachel Norman, BA, MS, Language of Listening® parenting coach, mother to 5 babies in 5 years on 3 continents, no multiples. Join me in parenting without losing your mind. Read More >>

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