Perspective

It's all been kind of a lot, lately. There's been a lack of activities and an abundance of stuck-in-the-house, and I've been feeling it. So yesterday, BJ took the kids to Brandon's to play while I went out by myself.

First stop was Kohl's, because I need a few new shirts. All mine have kid gunk on them, go figure. As I was wandering through maternity (just passing through, I promise) to check out the jammies, I noticed a woman pushing a stroller. She was obviously pregnant, like "any minute now" pregnant. The kid in the stroller appeared to be right around one, while the other child with her was older (almost 5, it turned out).

"Wow, you're about to have your hands really full, aren't you?" I said to her, smiling. I know the rule is that you never mention to someone that she may be expecting unless you can see an actual baby emerging from her at that moment, but she was slender, aside from the basketball belly, and she was in the Maternity section, for heaven's sake.

"What, this?" she said, encompassing the children and the baby to come with a gesture, "This is nothing." She rubbed her belly. "This is number six. I have three more at home."

"You're KIDDING!" I said. She looked considerably younger than me. I paused. "Can I ask you a really personal question, since we don't know each other at all?" I kind of joked. "How do you do it? I only have two, and there are months when ends barely meet. How can you possibly afford six kids?"

"Oh, we want EIGHT! And I'll tell you, my husband is the sole provider for our family, and he only makes $12 an hour. We just have faith that God will provide, and he always does."

Wow. "I don't know how you do it," I said. "My two can drive me insane. I think five, or six, would send me over the edge."

"Well, once you have four, it's no big deal to add another!" she said. She really looked happy, and the kids were well cared for, clean, wearing nice clothes, well behaved... I imagined what I would look like if I had five kids (all under age 8) and was 8 months pregnant. The mental picture I arrived at was not pretty.

"Good luck to you!" I said, humbled, as she walked away.