how i became a baby buncher

By Erin Brazofsky

When Matt and I decided we were ready to have children, I honestly didn’t give much thought to the “How many? How soon?” questions. I always figured I would have three children (I am one of three girls—my mom was a Baby Buncher back in the day), but I never really thought about how closely I would have them.

Then, Levi came along and my world was rocked. I didn’t fully comprehend, until that chubby little newborn staring at me with big eyes was born, just HOW MUCH I would love him. My new role presented 'oh so many challenges,' but it was also the most rewarding and gratifying job I have ever had. And I knew without a shadow of a doubt that there would be more babies.

When Levi was around six months old, part of me felt “ready” to have another baby and part of me was saying, “NO WAY.” So, when I found out I was pregnant when Levi was 8 months old, I wasn’t shocked, but was overjoyed with a teeny bit of, “Oh, boy, here we go.” thrown in. And when Seth was born, I felt as if it were the most natural thing in the world that he was here. Looking back, life seemed incomplete without his little face in it.

And the last 8 months that Seth has been with us have been challenging to a degree (What is it that everyone tells you about going from one to two kids? That it’s easy? Hee.), I have loved, loved, loved every minute of watching my two small sons interact with each other and I can’t wait till they are older and can be best of friends (Don’t burst my dream bubble, okay?).

Having enjoyed having our “2 under 2” so far, Matt and I were thinking about trying for a third this summer. Well, it seems number 3 decided to surprise us a bit early and we are happily expecting he/she in January! This is opening a WHOLE new page in the Baby Bunching world for us and in the coming months, I will so need a lot of help and advice. For instance, minivans. Just the thought gives me a migraine. And, how do you wrangle three small people when there are only two adults? What’s the best way to transition my 2 year-old to a big boy bed AND get my 8-month old to share a room with him so the baby has somewhere to sleep? You can be sure I will be passing along tips and rants as they happen.

But, for now, I am beaming over the new life we get to meet and the brood we will be. Three under two. Baby Buncher. Wow. And this is how I got here.

How about you? How did you arrive at the title of Baby Buncher?

**Erin will be accepting all donations of a free minivan and extra car seats.**

Comments

[Antonella]

It took my a while to get pregnant with my first baby. I was already thinking of having another when I was on the way home from the hospital. My son was just so good, a good sleeper, didn't really cry, so we decided to start trying, not thinking I'd get prego any time soon. Well, the second month of ttc, I was prego. With my 3rd, I just really liked the kids being so close and wanted another. My babies are 18mo and 23mo apart(4, almost 3 and almost 1yr)
Congrats on your 3rd little surprise!

[Kristy]

My first pregnancy was a twin pregnancy. A boy and a girl. We were shocked and overwhelmed at first but quickly became excited about the idea of raising twins. Sadly, we lost our daughter when I was 21 weeks pregnant. Shortly after losing her we decided we wanted our next child pretty close in age to our son. I got pregnant when my son was 10 months old. Our children are almost exactly 19 months apart.

Congrats on your third blessing. Best of luck to you!

[Michelle - Torrance, CA]

My husband and I both wanted a large family and we always envisioned our children being close in age. We have a two-year-old, a one-year-old and a three-month-old. I will say that at times I did question my ability to manage but it is important to make sure you have the right level of family support. This choice to have small children close in age will affect everything from trips to the grocery store to coordinating appointments. If you have a spouse or a family member that is very involved with daily tasks, it makes things easier. My husband and I find it much easier to go grocery shopping alone and we save bringing our boys along for the trip for serious shopping tasks. In terms of strollers, a Baby Trend sit and stand works for two children but you may need another single stroller for your newborn. I have two strollers and I am thinking about just going for a Joovy Big Caboose to use when my oldest son does not feel like walking.

[Beckie]

We adopted my older daughter as a newborn. The day of her 2 month check-up I took a pregnancy test on a whim and it was positive. My girls are 10 months apart and I can honestly say I'm SO glad it worked out the way it did. That first year was really hard, but it gets easier every day (they are 2 and 3 now). I'm glad I never had to "decide" when I would be ready for another...they decision was made for me!

[Lori]

When our first son was 9 months old we decided to start trying for our second. It took us 10 months to conceive and then I miscarried. Luckily it was only 3 months later that we conceived our second son and he was born 2 years and 9 months after our first. A much bigger spacing than I was hoping for. Then when our second son was only 7 months old we had a great surprise- I was pregnant with our 3rd son! He was 6 weeks early so they are 15 months apart. We wouldn't have planned them to be that close together, but it has been so fun and we wouldn't change anything. It is getting even more fun now that they are 2 and 3 and more independent. I became a buncher by accident but I would definitely do it again!

[Nicole]

I'm pregnant with #4 and if I make it to my due date in December, then my oldest will be 3 years and 9 months. There are 14 or 15 months between each of them. I always knew I wanted my kids close in age and have LOVED it ever since. People kept saying we were crazy and didn't know what we were doing when we said we wanted them this close, but boy were they wrong!! :)

[Leticia]

I folow this blog since my son was born. I always wanted to baby bunch. Unfurtunatelly I lost baby #2 (twins girls). My children would be 19 moths apart. I would have 3 under 2! Now I'm trying again. They won't be a buch anymore. But maybe I'll be lucky and bunch #2 and 3.
I was happy to read similar stories here with happy endings.
(Sorry if I have english mistakes. I follow your blog from Brazil!!)

[Colleen]

Any day now I will join the ranks of baby buncher! My daughter just turned 17 months and I am due June 10th with my second girl. It took us a while to get pregnant with our first and so we decided to stop contraception early because we anticipated a long time getting pregnant with the second -not so! While I was shocked at first I can't wait for my girls to grow up so close together. I'm sure I'll be checking back here often for all the great tips on making handling a busy bunch easier.

[Brittany Knoefler]

We always knew we wanted our kids about 2yrs apart but once my son came along and we got into the grove of things I was ok with even sooner. We he was 10mo we decided to try and got pregnant that month but sadly miscarried. We tried again when my son was 13mo and got pregnant right away again, with twins this time. I was excited and oddly enough not scared at all about having 3 under 2 but we sadly lost one of the twins around week 7. Our two boys will be 22 months apart and we are thinking about having a third later :)

[Rochelle Pearce]

I never thought that I would have so many children so close in age, but God had other plans! Right now, I have a 4yo, 2yo and 1 yo and just found out I am pregnant with #4! This will give me 4 children under 5! Any advice would be welcome as I am scared to death! LOL

[Stacie]

I've followed you all since my fourth child was born back in February... I now have a 12 year old, 3.5 year old, 2 year old, and a 3 month old... so I have THREE that are three and under along with my pre-teen. They all happen to be girls, too! I love the posts and articles, etc... and all the advice. It's one day at a time at my house, especially now that I'm off for the summer and have all four at home with me. I've enlisted my cousin to help me keep them occupied and to help me with outings, because there would be no way I could keep up with all of them without her! Anyway, thanks for this site!

[Sara]

I'm with you on 3 in a bunch. And I even just got my minivan. And honestly, I felt the same way, just thinking about it made me queasy. But now, driving it with my 2 boys and big baby belly, I'm loving it. You will too. Good luck!

[Amy]

Our boys are 12 months and 5 days apart....I would for sure consider us Baby Bunchers, hehe. Our first one took over nine months to concieve while our second was a big surprise! Imagine finding out you are pregnant and you have a four month old! It has been crazy but fun, the boys are now 1 1/2 and 2 1/2 and I wouldn't have it any other way, in fact we are thinking of adding more to the family!

[Rebecca]

When I was 19 I had an ovarian cyst rupture & it ruptured that ovary. The doctor told me I would be able to get pregnant but it might be difficult with only one ovary. After being married for 5 years we decided to TTC. Surprisingly God blessed us the first try. I always wanted a boy and then a girl & for them to be close in age. Minutes after delivering my son I asked my hubby if we could go ahead & have another baby. He was shocked but decided to try when our son was 13 months. God surprised us again by blessing us with the first try. My son is now 28 months & my daughter is 7 months & I wouldn't trade it for the world. I tear up on a regular basis just getting to witness the love they have for each other. They get upset if the other is sad. They can make each other laugh when no one else can get a smile. They love to give each other hugs. & kisses. I'm so blessed to have these LOs & I couldn't imagine my life without them. Congrats on #3 & i pray that God will give you wisdom & discernment as to which vehicle you should get, how you should raise your bunch of blessings & the provision & patience to make it all work.

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I love the strategy of family planning that you did. I too, would want a close in age kids. In that way, they'll be able to treat each other as best friends and not just real siblings. But first and foremost, you have to project the financial stability and at the same time if you are emotionally prepared.

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