Hey! I have six kids!

Well, well well. I cannot believe I am a mom to SIX beautiful kids. I have one lovely son, and five beautiful daughters and we can not feel any more proud. We are so happy with our family!

If you told me even 9 0r 10 years ago, that when I was 36, I would be married and have six kids in the span of 8 years, I would have called you crazy. But hey, this is the journey of our life! I am so happy with the path we have chosen to take. It has been crazy at times, but so amazing, so much more than words can truly express.

I have been doing a lot of reflecting back on this journey we have taken since our marriage, and then the birth of our first, and how inexperienced we were, how scheduled we were, and how rigid we were. I thought I had no time, then we added our second, and boy were we in for a surprise at just how difficult it was to go from one baby, to two in 18 months. But, we survived.

Then, we added in a third, and it was not so hard. But challenging to be at home with three kids 3 and under. Two in diapers. But we coped and we managed.

Then, the next pregnancy. Pregnancy number 4. We experienced and early loss. That taught us that having being pregnant, doesn't always mean there will be a healthy, beautiful baby there at the end of 9 months. That pregnancy we learned a lot, and felt a lot of sadness and emptiness that we still feel today. Every January, we think of the baby that could have been, and every June, we remember that Fathers Day when we lost the baby. We still do the 'what ifs' and we realized that this baby could never be replaced, only remembered.

Then, we got pregnant again. This was our 5th pregnancy, and our 4th baby. We worried a lot during this pregnancy. Only because I always wondered if this baby would make it. Especially being pregnant after a miscarriage. But, she was born and she was a wonderful addition, and we learned to trust that all would be well.

Then, along came number 5. (6th pregnancy) and again, you just expect the pregnancy to go a long smoothly, but only to find out that there are problems during the pregnancy. And, our baby would have some sort of kidney troubles. So you worry, worry worry and worry the pregnancy away. And, to have the baby born and have the best possible outcome. You do not take a pregnancy for granted. We learned you do not assume that everything would be perfect, but to us she is. Even with her extra ureter! She continues to amaze us! And inspire us.

And then, here comes number 6. (Pregnancy number 7) and you hope and pray that all will be well, especially now that we have had so many healthy babies in a row. You tend to wonder if the chain of good luck will end. So, there is a lot of worry and anxiety especially during the first 'routine' ultrasound, will they find something wrong again? and the extra blood work because I was AMA at age 36. But, then to find out baby number six is healthy AGAIN is only a miracle. And even with the labour and birth of Courtney, we just 'expected' labour to be quick and easy. 8 hours tops. But then to have about 30 hours from start to finish, was a big shocker to EVERYBODY who was waiting for that call. This was our longest labour EVER! But, I just kept telling myself, that good things come to those who wait. Good things come to those who wait. And wait we did. And Courtney was REALLY worth the wait.

I now longer have to look at the empty seat in the van, and wonder who will sit in there, I no longer have to look at the dinner table and wonder who will sit there. I no longer have to stare into the bassinet and look at the boy outfit and the girl outfit and wonder who will be in there. We no longer have to decide on names, because this name that Cliff picked for Courtney was perfect. (even though he swore we were having a boy!) And, I will share the name of the 'boy' name now...if there was no Courtney...we would have had a boy named Cooper Ralph!)

A lot of unanswered questions have been answered with the birth of our sixth child. That is a great feeling to know all of those questions have now been answered.

I wonder where our journey will take us now? I know our life is going to be full of adventure and I cannot wait!