What has life been like with 10 children? Why did we decide to live this counter-cultural lifestyle? If you’ve been reading The Heavenly Hearth blog for any length of time, you may feel you already know me pretty well. I’ve been around for a few years — since 2014, in fact. And if you’re new, you may be wondering, “What more is there to know?” I don’t believe I’ve ever taken the time to give an intimate overview of my life as a conservative Christian wife and mother in one, unified article.

In Part 1 of this article, you’ll read about:

• Why my husband and I have so many children,
• How I’ve given birth to our babies, and
• What it’s like homeschooling multiple children of various ages.

In Part 2, you’ll discover:

• How I deal with my imperfections as a parent,
• The way we pass our faith on to our children,
• My thoughts on being regarded a “fundie,” and
• Why I started headcovering.

This interview was conducted in early 2026 by a dear friend of mine and long-time reader of this blog, Kinuko, who later published it on her blog in Japanese. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed participating in this interview!

Part 1

Right where He’s put me

Interviewer: To begin, could you briefly introduce yourself?

Jessica: Hi! I’m a Christian wife and mother living a simple life in a small home, nurturing aspirations of accomplishing great things for God right where He’s put me.

My husband and I have been homeschooling our children since 2013, and we are trying to raise them biblically. Many things are not perfect, and we’re learning as we go, but we keep pushing forward! 

Interviewer: Two years ago (in 2024), you welcomed your tenth child. Congratulations! Could you tell us the ages and genders of your children?

Jessica: Thank you! Our children range in age from our oldest at 22 years (who was born when I was 20) to our youngest at two years (who was born when I was 40). So far, that’s a total of over two decades of childbearing!

Each of our children are about two years apart, and there are six girls and four boys. Our littlest one is a girl, and everybody considers her the darling of the family. She can be feisty sometimes when she wants her way, but her affection and cuteness make her easy to forgive.

Perhaps she will be the last child God gives us – or perhaps not. We are open to His will for our lives, which we believe includes the amount of children He wants us to have, and when.

[Update from Jessica: By the time this interview was published on The Heavenly Hearth blog, I was already expecting our 11th! If you didn’t know that already, well . . . now you know! Due around Thanksgiving of 2026.]

It was a family that started from what some people might call “chance”

Interviewer: I understand that your and your husband’s deep Christian faith lies behind your choice to have a large family. Did you always have this kind of biblical conviction from the beginning, or were you led to it at some point in your life?

Jessica: It has been a lengthy journey where understanding and change have happened gradually over time. Our relationship had some problems in the beginning, and at first we didn’t even talk about whether we wanted to have children or not.

But then we had our first one, a son – from what some people might call “chance.”

We did not have strong convictions about having a large or a small family. We simply went with the flow of where “chance” was taking us.

We somewhat casually used the birth control pill after our first was born. But this changed after we had our second child, a daughter. I became concerned about how the pill worked.

I did some reading and became alarmed when I found out that the pill can cause early abortions through the way it changes the lining of the woman’s uterus (other types of hormonal birth control work the same way). Though the pill is promoted as “preventing” pregnancy, it can actually end one. The pill doesn’t always prevent ovulation; breakthrough ovulation can sometimes occur. When it does, certain pill-induced mechanisms may keep an already fertilized egg from implanting, thereby leading to its death. Since the newly-conceived life is actually a human person in its earliest stage (remember that it has its own, unique DNA from the moment of conception), then, even if that newly-conceived life hasn’t implanted yet, its loss can be considered an early, undetected abortion. 

God’s word over the world’s definition

The way you frame it counts, and I choose God’s word over the world’s definition. This new life, no matter how young, is human life, and human life is precious. God says, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you” (Jeremiah 1:5). Who formed Jeremiah in the womb? God did. Jeremiah wasn’t an accident. He wasn’t a result of chance. He wasn’t just a blob of cells. He was formed and known by God from the earliest moments – in fact, he was known by God before he was formed in the womb! Even in his unformed state, he was a person. He already had a divine purpose and calling: “I [God] ordained you a prophet to the nations.” And as it was with Jeremiah, so it is with all the rest of us: we are each precious and we each have a purpose. Our babies do, too, even if they are only one minute along in gestation. 

After sharing what I discovered with my husband, we decided to stop using the pill and opted for Natural Family Planning (NFP) instead, which involves charting the woman’s fertility signs. I was pretty good at this for a while, but then I unexpectedly became pregnant again. At first, I was unhappy because this forced me to change my plans. By that time, I thought I only wanted two children: one boy and one girl, and this upset the balance. God worked in my heart, though. He gently revealed to me that though it’s good to be aware of what’s going on in my body, I need to trust Him to open or close my womb. The Bible reveals that God is not only capable of controlling the womb, He also wants married couples to “be fruitful and multiply,” if He allows (Genesis 1:28). I had been concerned about my plans, but I hadn’t been willing to accept His.

Psalm 127:3-5 is one of my favorite Scriptures regarding our children. This passage has been a guiding influence for my husband and me over the years:

Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,

The fruit of the womb is a reward.

Like arrows in the hand of a warrior,

So are the children of one’s youth.

Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them;

They shall not be ashamed,

But shall speak with their enemies in the gate.

Once we decided to stop using Natural Family Planning, there was so much freedom and peace: freedom to simply be man and wife without the pressure to avoid conception, and peace to accept God’s will and believe that whatever children He gives us, He will also provide for. I still occasionally chart my fertility signs, but I do this only to be aware (called the Fertility Awareness Method, or FAM) and not to control. This is useful for being aware of health conditions, detecting pregnancy, and knowing if you have experienced an early loss.

When we gave control over to God, we felt a great burden lift; surely He is wise enough to decide what is best for us, and we can trust Him completely.

What I learned from giving birth at home

Interviewer: You have chosen to give birth mainly at home. Do you invite a midwife to assist you? You have also experienced water births, correct? How do you feel about the strengths and differences between hospital births and home births?

Jessica: My first two births were in the hospital. Though I don’t regard those births as “traumatic” in any way, I still see them as less than ideal, for me. I couldn’t get off the bed without having to maneuver my IV or readjust the fetal monitor which was strapped to my tummy. Every time I had to go to the bathroom, it was quite a process with all the equipment. The nurses were too busy to hold my hand, and my husband didn’t want to get in the way, so though I was surrounded by people (mostly strangers), I felt neglected and alone. I was also given an episiotomy, which seemed unnecessary to me and prolonged my recovery.

After those first two experiences, I decided that the next time I wanted a more comfortable, supportive, woman-focused way of giving birth.  For our third child, we hired the same midwife who had assisted my mom when she gave birth to my sister many years before this.

I noticed that though this labor had what seemed to me a similar level of pain as my previous two, it felt so much more peaceful! In our home, my husband didn’t have a fear of getting in the way, and he held my hand the whole time. There was no rushing around, no apparatus that had to be strapped onto me or needles that had to be poked into me, no bright lights, no strangers witnessing my most intimate moments, no male doctor whom I barely knew seeing my naked body. I had a gentle water birth in a sturdy inflatable kiddie pool in our living room, with dim lights, quietness, lots of time, easier bathroom trips, being able to move any way I needed to feel comfortable, no episiotomy nor tearing, and only female attendants whom I trusted. There was serenity. 

The very warm water soothed my labor pains and made them more bearable, helping me relax. Our son was born in the water, the midwife catching him as he emerged and placing him immediately in my arms. I gazed joyously at his beautiful face. I was amazed that my body already knew what to do and could do it with minimal help from anybody, including, it seemed, myself. A couple pushes was all it took to get him out. After the baby and I were evaluated by the midwife and cleaned up a bit, we went to sleep in our own, comfortable bed. The midwife stayed long enough to make sure we were doing okay, and even after leaving, she was only a phone call away if I needed her help.

Comparing my different birth experiences

In total, I’ve had six water births, one birth on our bed, and three hospital births. (Read my birth stories for babies 7-10 here, and baby number 6 here … numbers 1-5 happened before I had a blog.) The third hospital birth was mixed in among the water births, but that’s another story.

I have given birth while sitting in a semi-reclining position, while kneeling, and while partially standing (holding on to something or someone for support). The freedom to move our anatomy in different ways can help the baby descend, which I have experienced dramatically several times firsthand. Each labor lasted an average of 12 hours or less. I don’t think I’ve ever pushed more than two or three times with any of my home births. I have never had an episiotomy or a tear during my homebirths. I have never had complications.

However, I am prone to high blood pressure during the last trimester, and  I’ve also developed mild gestational diabetes during several of my pregnancies (which I’ve been able to control through diet alone). I tend to bleed quite a bit after the birth and have received Pitocin after labor to help with it. Yet I consider these challenges completely acceptable in exchange for the myriad blessings of being able to birth at home.

I think that hospital births are great for those women who are at high risk and are in danger of developing complications. They are good for women or babies who need intervention. They may also be appropriate for women who are experiencing intense anxiety and would feel more peaceful at the hospital (this was birth number 9, for me). For example, I read about a woman who had beautiful home births when she had all her children, except for the most recent one. This baby had to be born at the hospital because the placenta was covering the cervix (a condition known as placenta previa), creating a life threatening situation. Discovering this totally changed the mother’s plans, but she accepted it as God’s will. She believes that having a caesarean at the hospital saved her and her baby’s life. 

On the other hand, for those women who aren’t in danger of severe complications, a home birth can be a rewarding option. It protects the woman and the baby from unnecessary interventions and allows labor to develop unhindered. In most cases, a woman is able to have her baby naturally, with little to no help, because God made the labor process amazingly precise. Through my many experiences, I  have developed a deep trust in my body’s ability to labor on its own, and in God’s ability to help me through the trial. 

Being at home during the birth of my children has been a great blessing to me, but I believe God is present wherever we are, in whatever situation we find ourselves in, whether at home or at the hospital. The most important thing is to keep our focus on Him. It is the same in labor as it is in the rest of life.

Learning as a part of “life,” not just “school”

Interviewer: You yourself were homeschooled growing up, and now all of your children are homeschooled as well. How do you teach children of different ages? If you have a simple daily schedule or routine, could you share it with us?

Jessica: Yes, I was homeschooled from first grade through high school graduation. I then went on to complete a year of full-time studies at the local community college. I have two siblings, so homeschooling for my mother was not exactly the same as it is for me with my many children. However, a few things I learned from my mom have translated well into my own experience, such as having the children do as much work as possible on their own, while following a schedule. The more we as moms can delegate to our children, the lighter our own load and the more the children learn to be responsible. 

With older children, I let the curriculum teach them. I only check up on their progress every now and then, and answer any questions they come to me with. I expect them to be mostly independen,t and to help with their younger siblings in certain areas, as well.

The younger children need more one-on-one time, and I make a strong effort to personally teach them the basics of reading and math so they will be able to become independent learners. Knowing how to read fluently is the key for them to be able to develop independence. Once they can read well, they are able to follow a schedule and complete their curriculum on their own, freeing me up to focus on the next youngest ones.

I always start the day with a Bible lesson, during or right after breakfast. I have heard many homeschool moms say that it’s best to begin the day with God; it sets the foundation for everything else. After all, what is academics but learning about the world God has made in the different categories of language (which He invented), math (which He utilized in the construction of the whole universe), history (which He’s guiding), science (which He made possible through His creation of the physical world), and many other interrelated areas? 

After our Bible lesson, we sing a hymn that we’re trying to memorize, then pray together. In all, Bible time takes about an hour. Then we work on cleaning up the house.

Chores are important for children’s motor development (as well as their character development), so I consider this part of their education, as well. After this, we do about an hour of academics before the children head outside to play, and then we have lunch. During lunch, we often enjoy an audiobook or an edifying and educational show (Little House on the Prairie episodes are a favorite right now, though we also enjoy Moody Science Classics and other helpful DVD’s).

Right after this, we have quiet time for two to three hours so that the littlest ones can take a nap (I take one, too), and the older ones can finish their work without distraction. I usually assign each older child to work on some basic schoolwork tasks with one of their younger school-aged siblings. This only takes them about thirty minutes and it gives the older ones the chance to develop the skill of passing on their knowledge to someone else, while it gives the younger ones the chance to learn to listen to their older siblings. It also gives me the chance to take care of the baby and toddler and get some much-needed rest, which is especially crucial when I’m pregnant and feeling exhausted.

Later in the afternoon, if there is anything extra I need to go over with any of the children, this is the time for it. Then we may have an extracurricular activity to go to, and dinner. That finishes our school day, but perhaps you noticed that it is really more a lifestyle than it is “school.”

The homeschool life is one where every aspect of life is integrated into every other one, where school is not an area by itself apart from home and family, but is interconnected. It is even interconnected with the Bible and religion. In fact, our Christian curriculum helps us to see how every subject relates to God’s word.

Love is something that is imitated

Interviewer: You are still in the midst of raising your children, and I’m sure there are joyful days as well as challenging ones. Has there been anything your children have said to you that melted your heart or encouraged you?

Jessica: One of my girls, who is ten right now, is especially affectionate, and from time to time she has hugged me and said, “You are the best mom in the whole world, and I’m so glad God made you my mama!”

Our oldest daughter, who is 20, has told me on multiple occasions that she thinks I’m a wonderful mother and that she is blessed to have been raised by me. She has said, even though I make mistakes, she knows I’m doing my best.

It is really heart-warming when my 16-year-old son hugs me and says, “I love you, mama.” He tries to be respectful to me even when I tell him to do something he doesn’t want to do, which I appreciate, especially because he’s now developing ideas of his own about how things should be done.

When I don’t feel great, my children will often notice and ask me with concern, “Mama, are you okay?” It’s so special to know that they care if I’m okay, because sometimes, from the way kids act, it doesn’t seem like it matters to them how their attitudes affect their parents. But, it’s good to be reminded that they really do care.

And the little ones, from the seven-year old and down, daily hug me and tell me, “I love you.” Their sweetness gives me further motivation to continue my work of mothering with gratefulness and joy. It also reminds me that what they see in me, they copy. If I constantly remind them how much I love them, they will easily and naturally reciprocate this same caring attitude.

To be continued in Part 2 …

• How I deal with my imperfections as a parent,
• The way we pass our faith on to our children,
• My thoughts on being regarded a “fundie,” and
• Why I started headcovering.

About the Interviewer

Kinuko

I am drawn to small things, beautiful things, and words that resemble prayers. I believe in Christ and walk through life in the spiritual currents of Eastern Orthodoxy, searching for the faint light that breathes in each day. I live with my Middle Eastern Christian husband in a Greek village amid an orchard.