Sunday FAQ (#1)

I'm sure many people have many questions about our family; about how we came to adopt, home school, have a large family, etc. These are all questions I would like to answer for you, so I have decided to start a new segment on this blog called Saturday Questions. Every Saturday I will answer five questions asked by blog readers. If you would like to ask me a question, leave a comment in the comments section below. For this week, I am answering five questions that I assume people would like to know... that I have been asked before.

Q: Do you have help throughout your days?
No, Wren and I do not employ additional help to assist us in raising our children and running our household. People always seem surprised by this answer, but just because we have a family of nine (almost ten) does not mean we are in need of a nanny or maid. Our house can be both as messy and as organized as any other family on this earth, we just choose to keep it clean and organized. And generally, doing so is not difficult. Sure there are more dishes to wash and more laundry to do, but with the help of structure, organization, and help from every member in the Kingston family, keeping a clean home is doable! We do have amazing family support, though. My four sisters and I all live within five miles from each other, and we are always available to help out and be there for each other.

Q: What kind of vehicle do you drive?
I drive a 14 passenger van. Wren and I purchased it in 2012 and we love it. It fits our growing family and there is tons of extra space.

Q: Do you ever get "me" time?
I am generally a person who does not need "me" time. I feel more joy spending time with my family, than going to the spa or doing something else by myself. With that said, I do take time for myself each day, away from my kids and husband to just take a break from all the noise and focus on myself. It is usually just for 30 minutes or less, and some days it even happens before anyone has woken up or after everyone has gone to bed. This time is wonderful and by the time my 30-minutes is up, I feel refreshed and ready to get back to motherhood. Usually during this time I might read, or blog, or even take a nap. I have the choice to do whatever I want to do, while Wren watches the kids. Thinking about it, though, there are plenty of other times during my weeks when I have "me" time: I shower by myself, I go grocery shopping by myself, I do laundry by myself, etc. And thanks to these little moments of quiet throughout my days, I am able to be a better wife and mother, I just know it.

Q: How did you and your husband decide to have a large family?
Wren and I both come from large families; he has five brothers and I have five sisters (funny, huh?). So we both based our desire to have a large family off of what we had growing up: lots of love and laughter, siblings as best friends, and even lots of hecticness and craziness. When we got married we thought we'd have maybe five kids, but we never settled on an actual number. Then, a couple months after our wedding, I got pregnant... while on the pill. I was definitely in shock but also excited about the baby that would be joining our family in eight months time. When Maya was born, I fell madly in-love with her and was distraught by the idea that because I was on birth control Abigail wasn't supposed to be mine, but by some miraculous act of God, she is. From that moment on, Wren and I made the decision that we would never use another form of contraception again, and allow all the blessings the Lord wants to give us to come naturally. That was the best decision of my life because now i've been blessed with seven miracles.

Q: What roles do you and your husband play in your family?
My husband is the patriarch and I am the matriarch of the family, which means he pays the bills and I raise the kids. While we do have distinct roles in our marriage, we do not base our positions in our family based on gender. Just because I am a woman, doesn't mean I should automatically stay home and raise our kids; and just because Wren is a man, doesn't mean he should automatically be the one to work. But for us, this is what works. I can't imagine doing anything else in life, and neither can Wren. We work as a team in our marriage and as parents to our kids, it's a fair trade off and i'm so grateful for the opportunity to be a stay-at-home mom.