For fun: How many kids

[DawnM]

15 hours ago, alysee said:

You are asking some complicated questions.

 

1. How many kids did you want before you had them?

I didn't really have a number.   

2. How many do you have?

I now have Four (adoption of #4 finalized this year!)

3. Are you happy with that number? 

Yes

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you? 

Not really

5. How many siblings do you have?

I grew up with zero.  I have since discovered that I have at least 4 sisters and one brother.   I have met the 4 sisters (2 from birth mom and 2 from birth dad).   I have not had any contact with the brother.   

6. What's your birth order? 

Only in the family I grew up with.   Second in my extended birth family.

 

 

 

 

[stephanier.1765]

16 hours ago, alysee said:

1. How many kids did you want before you had them? 4

2. How many do you have? 3

3. Are you happy with that number? It depends on the day but I think having a middle child was really difficult on that middle child.

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you? Also depends on the day. Most of the time I see more of their father in them, than me.

5. How many siblings do you have? 1

6. What's your birth order? 1

 

 

 

 

 

[mommyoffive]

1. How many kids did you want before you had them? 7

2. How many do you have? 5 

3. Are you happy with that number? No. I wish I had more.

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you?  I don't think so.  Some who have some traits.   

5. How many siblings do you have? 1

6. What's your birth order?  youngest

[Lady Florida.]

1. How many kids did you want before you had them? 3

2. How many do you have? 1

3. Are you happy with that number? Yes. I was diagnosed with unexplained infertility and didn't think I'd have any. Also I was older. Apparently I had one good egg left. 

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you?  In some ways he's like me, in some ways like his dad and older half brother. Mostly he's just his unique self.

5. How many siblings do you have? 1, a brother

6. What's your birth order?  Oldest by 5 years

[MEmama]

 

1. How many kids did you want before you had them? Never thought about it as a kid, none for the first 8 years of marriage, after that I was ambivalent 

2. How many do you have? 1

3. Are you happy with that number? Yes, he was planned and I have never wanted more. I would never, ever choose to bring a child into the world now, though

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you?  In some ways. There’s quite a bit of family resemblance on my side, though mostly traits that skipped over me. He’s not like DH at all

5. How many siblings do you have? 2

6. What's your birth order?  Baby (and they’ll never let me forget it)

 

Edited November 6, 2022 by MEmama

[SKL]

1. How many kids did you want before you had them?

• When I was a young adult, I wanted 6.  Since I didn't marry or have kids as a young adult, I stopped wanting 6 at some point, but always wanted at least 2.

2. How many do you have?

• Two.

3. Are you happy with that number? 

• Yes.  Perhaps because they were born when I was 40, two kids (and a job and a pet) are plenty to keep me busy.

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you? 

• Not really.  Each of my kids shares some personality traits with me though.

5. How many siblings do you have?

• There are 6 of us.  3 boys and 3 girls.

6. What's your birth order?

• I was 3rd born but 1st girl.  BBGGBG

Edited November 6, 2022 by SKL

[historically accurate]

19 hours ago, alysee said:

1. How many kids did you want before you had them?

2. How many do you have?

3. Are you happy with that number? 

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you? 

5. How many siblings do you have?

6. What's your birth order? 

 

 

 

 

1. No real number, just at least 1.

2. 3

3. Yes, now. When #3 was really little, I felt like there was another one who was missing, but I had a hysterectomy and so it wasn't in the cards.

4. 1 who looks just like me - all 3 have some of my traits.

5. 1

6. youngest 

[Condessa]

1. Nine

2. Five

3. No, I still feel strongly that someone is missing.  I was shocked when I first felt that again a week after the baby was born.  We didn’t think we were having any more; he was a surprise and is 7.5 years younger than my fourth.  
4. Not really.  I see similarities to me in certain aspects of their personalities, but not on the whole, no.

5. Four

6. I am the 3rd of 5.

 

Edited November 6, 2022 by Condessa

[Wheres Toto]

21 hours ago, alysee said:

1. How many kids did you want before you had them?   Always wanted 2.

2. How many do you have?   Had 3, but oldest dd has a different dad.  With the age difference it's like having an only then two.

3. Are you happy with that number?   Yes

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you?  Younger dd is exactly like me.   Personality and looks-wise. 

5. How many siblings do you have?  just 1 full sibling.  Have had a variety of step-siblings over the years

6. What's your birth order?  youngest, even when taking the steps into account, I've always been youngest.

 

 

 

 

 

[katilac]

19 hours ago, EKS said:

3. Are you happy with that number?  Yes but lately I've been thinking that I should have had a few more...because homeschooling

 

Funny, that's a definite reason why I thought 2 was plenty 😄

18 hours ago, Quill said:

 I was more like the oldest of the younger set. A lot of my traits are more similar to a firstborn than to a middle. 

I would definitely have pegged you as an oldest.

[keirin]

21 hours ago, alysee said:

1. How many kids did you want before you had them?

When I first met my husband, I wanted none but was open to having up to 2. He wanted a baseball team's worth. 😅

2. How many do you have?

4.

3. Are you happy with that number?

I wish I could have had more. At least 6.

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you? 

Not really. They are their own people, though I see aspects of my personality in them.

5. How many siblings do you have?

1

6. What's your birth order? 

Youngest

 

 

 

 

 

[Corraleno]

1. How many kids did you want before you had them?

Three or four

2. How many do you have?

Two

3. Are you happy with that number?

I would like to have had at least one more, but I had a really difficult pregnancy with DS (severe, untreated hyerpemesis, ended up weighing 104 lbs at 5 months), then needed an emergency c-section, and I think my body just shut down, and went directly from pregnancy to menopause —  I wanted to try for another when DS was around 18 months, but my hormone tests came back as post-menopausal, so DD is adopted. I initially planned to adopt more kids, but the process with DD ended up being so much longer and more traumatic (and more expensive) that I expected, and I just couldn't emotionally go through that again.

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you? 

DS is very very much like me. Unfortunately he also inherited dyslexia and ADHD from his dad, which does not mix well with the intensity, perfectionism, and anxiety he got from me. He is super hard on himself. Physically, he looks a lot like me, and even more like my father, brothers, and a couple of my nephews. DD is the polar opposite of DS in pretty much every way, and they don't get along very well, which makes me sad and is one of the reasons I wish I'd had more kids, so they could have each had a sibling they were close to. 

5. How many siblings do you have?

3 full, 1 half, 4 step. But TBH, I'm not very close with any of them. I left home very early and never went back, and I've always lived at least 1000 miles away, usually on opposite coasts or another continent, so I rarely see them. 

6. What's your birth order? 

Oldest of the bio sibs, although I had 2 stepsisters who were 1 & 2 years older. My half-brother is 15 years younger; he was a toddler when I moved away. One sibling and two step siblings have passed away and I haven't seen the others since DD was in preschool.

[Harriet Vane]

21 hours ago, alysee said:

1. How many kids did you want before you had them?

2. How many do you have?

3. Are you happy with that number? 

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you? 

5. How many siblings do you have?

6. What's your birth order? 

 

 

 

 

I wanted zillions, at least 4-6. I had two, and I've fostered many. I wish I'd had more through birth or adoption. My daughter's talents and interests are just like mine, but her personality is more sanguine like her father. My son is the opposite mix--he's every bit as stubborn and headstrong and passionate as me, but his talents and interests align with his father. I have five siblings and I am the oldest. 

[Faith-manor]

21 hours ago, alysee said:

1. How many kids did you want before you had them?

2. How many do you have?

3. Are you happy with that number? 

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you? 

5. How many siblings do you have?

6. What's your birth order? 

 

 

 

 

I have 4.

I wanted 2. 2 were surprises despite vigilant use of birth control. So the 4th meant we took serious, permanent measures.

I am happy with them. I adore them, and we have good relationships with all four of them now that they are adults and living independently.

None of them are just like me. One is a literal mini-dh. My two oldest did inherit my musical genes.

I have two siblings, and I am the middle, but we are spread out. My brother is four years older than I, and my sister was a big surprise almost 14 years younger.

[katilac]

1 hour ago, Faith-manor said:

my sister was a big surprise almost 14 years younger.

omg 😅

We took permanent measures at a certain point, but I still feared a similar scenario and didn't fully relax until I hit menopause. 

I would have managed an oops pretty well when my first two were still little, but it would have been a tough go for me once they were school aged. 

[BlsdMama]

1. How many kids did you want before you had them? 4? 6? I hadn’t thought about it a lot. DH was pretty firm about 1 and then 2.

2. How many do you have? 12 / 11 living

3. Are you happy with that number? 

😂 Um, sure 
 

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you? 2 are very like me in personality and 2 look a lot like me  

5. How many siblings do you have?

1 brother & 1 sister
6. What's your birth order? 

Oldest

Edited November 6, 2022 by BlsdMama

[LMD]

7 hours ago, Elizabeth86 said:

Yay!! I’ve been wondering about you and your baby boy. I hope all went well!

Thank you! Yes all went well, he's just perfect, born at 39 weeks, 8 1/2 pounds. Recovering from my first ever caesar is less fun 😄

[Elizabeth86]

2 minutes ago, LMD said:

Thank you! Yes all went well, he's just perfect, born at 39 weeks, 8 1/2 pounds. Recovering from my first ever caesar is less fun 😄

So glad all went well. Yes, a c-section recovery was quite surprising to me after 3 vaginal births that were effortless to recover from. Hope you are back to normal soon, but do take it easy!

[Eilonwy]

On 11/5/2022 at 8:08 PM, alysee said:

1. How many kids did you want before you had them?  I wasn’t sure, but eventually I wanted 4.

2. How many do you have? 3

3. Are you happy with that number? Yes, because it would disrupt a lot of things to have another, and each pregnancy got harder.

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you? No, but each of them has some characteristic that’s very similar. 

5. How many siblings do you have? One

6. What's your birth order? Oldest

 

[East Coast Sue]

On 11/5/2022 at 7:08 PM, alysee said:

1. How many kids did you want before you had them?  Not sure, maybe 3

2. How many do you have?  4

3. Are you happy with that number?  Yes

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you?  Nope

5. How many siblings do you have?  1

6. What's your birth order?  I’m the younger one

 

 

 

 

 

[knitgrl]

1. How many kids did you want before you had them? I have no idea why, but when I was 7yo, I really wanted four kids. When I married dh, I told him a hard stop at 3, because "I don't want to be changing diapers at 40."

2. How many do you have? 4 (Guess who was changing diapers at 40+?)

3. Are you happy with that number? Yes. I married into a large family and always dated guys with large families.

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you? No. They all came out with completely different personalities and interests. I think a number of traits skipped a generation or two.

5. How many siblings do you have? One.

6. What's your birth order? I'm the oldest.

[Scarlett]

On 11/5/2022 at 6:08 PM, alysee said:

1. How many kids did you want before you had them?  At one point 6…..

2. How many do you have? 1

3. Are you happy with that number?  Not really. 

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you? He is. In many ways.  

5. How many siblings do you have? 2 Half, 2 step. 

6. What's your birth order? Oldest of half’s, youngest pT of steps

I was married for 16 1/2 years before my son was born. I was almost resigned to no children. My son has been my greatest joy and my greatest pain.  

 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 7, 2022 by Scarlett

[Momof4sweetkids]

6 hours ago, BlsdMama said:

1. How many kids did you want before you had them? 4? 6? I hadn’t thought about it a lot. DH was pretty firm about 1 and then 2.

2. How many do you have? 12 / 11 living

3. Are you happy with that number? 

😂 Um, sure 
 

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you? 2 are very like me in personality and 2 look a lot like me  

5. How many siblings do you have?

1 brother & 1 sister
6. What's your birth order? 

Oldest

Maybe too personal but I'm so curious how your DH went from firm on 1 or 2 to having 12! 

[BlsdMama]

6 hours ago, Momof3sweetgirls said:

Maybe too personal but I'm so curious how your DH went from firm on 1 or 2 to having 12! 

A lot of time away for Basic training/AIT left him open to #3. 😉 

 

#3 died in 2001 (a preemie then NEC) and we were expecting #4 before we even processed grief over our loss. I think my personal feelings about the preciousness of life and frankly, God softening his heart. Now there is a joke in there about watching me castrate a baby goat in my there being responsible for the last three, but I’m mostly sure that’s a joke. 😏 

[Guest]

21 hours ago, katilac said:

Funny, that's a definite reason why I thought 2 was plenty 😄

I would definitely have pegged you as an oldest.

Interesting! 

[Murphy101]

On 11/5/2022 at 6:08 PM, alysee said:

1. How many kids did you want before you had them?

none 

On 11/5/2022 at 6:08 PM, alysee said:

2. How many do you have?

11

On 11/5/2022 at 6:08 PM, alysee said:

3. Are you happy with that number? 
 

I guess so, never really thought about it. (ETA: now that I’ve thought about it. I’ve always been happy with what I’ve had. I was happy with 3 when I had three and I became happy with each one more as I had them.  If I had another, which is doubtful at nearly 50, then I imagine I’d continue that way.)

On 11/5/2022 at 6:08 PM, alysee said:

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you? 
 

yes

On 11/5/2022 at 6:08 PM, alysee said:

5. How many siblings do you have?

3 literally but in reality none.  They have not been a part of my life for most of my life even when I was a kid  

On 11/5/2022 at 6:08 PM, alysee said:

6. What's your birth order? 

I’m the youngest by 11 years. 

 

Edited November 7, 2022 by Murphy101

[elegantlion]

1. How many kids did you want before you had them? 0

2. How many do you have? 1

3. Are you happy with that number? yes 

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you? ds is a combo of me, his dad, and a lot like my dad. My mom says living with him is like living with a mini-version of my dad. 

5. How many siblings do you have? 1

6. What's your birth order? last

[Mrs Tiggywinkle Again]

1) 0 through most of my 20s.  Like I was adamantly childfree. Then I met DH and realized I did in fact want babies; I just wanted his babies lol.  Then I wanted 4-6.

2) 3

3) I think because the choice to stop was made by my body and not by me, there’s a definite sense of loss.  For a variety of reasons I think my youngest would have been happier with a sibling just a bit younger than him.

4) oldest DS is on the spectrum and has anxiety.  He is very much like me.

5) 7

6) Oldest

[TheReader]

On 11/5/2022 at 6:08 PM, alysee said:

1. How many kids did you want before you had them?

2. How many do you have?

3. Are you happy with that number? 

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you? 

5. How many siblings do you have?

6. What's your birth order? 

 

 

 

 

- I wanted 4, DH was adamant it would only be 3

-we have 3

-I am definitely happy with that number, now. For a while, I mourned not necessarily not having 4 kids, but never having a girl, but long ago I reached a place of absolute contentment with our family. 

-hmmm, are they like me.....all 3 of them have traits of both DH & I....none of them, I don't think, are just like specifically one or the other of us...some have stronger me traits, some have stronger DH traits, mixed of course with their own traits....probably I see myself *most* in my middle kiddo

-siblings is a weird thing for me. I had one sister growing up (and still have). I also had/have an adopted brother, but my ex stepdad got sole custody/mom relinquished her rights  when they split up (very very very ugly divorce) - we haven't seen him since he was 4.5 in 1993.  Then I had (and have again, as mom is remarrying this ex stepdad) a stepbrother and stepsister.  And also now I have step/adopted/half brothers since my dad married his wife. They are the ages of my oldest boys. So......how many siblings do I have....? "one" is what my brain defaults to. But "three" is more accurate, and I guess now "five" is even more so, and then if you include the former adopted brother, "six".......

-birth order is at least easy - I am the oldest. Whew. 

[fairfarmhand]

1. How many kids did you want before you had them? 6

2. How many do you have? 4

3. Are you happy with that number? Yes. It was like a switch went off in my brain when I got pregnant with #4. I told my dh (we'd had 3 girls first) Doesn't matter if this one is boy or girl, it's definitely the last. And that was a good thing. My oldest took more energy and time than the other 3 put together, and there were 10 years between oldest and youngest. Her puberty/teen years were very very hard and I'm thankful that we had no more little ones because I would not have been able to cope with all of that at once. I would have likely had more children if my dd wasn't the way she was, but she is, so that was the way it turned out. I am not disappointed or anything. 

4. Do you have any kids that are just like you?  My two youngest look so much like me and my brother. However, my dd 20 and my ds 14 act and think just like me. 

5. How many siblings do you have? 2

6. What's your birth order?  middle of two brothers.