FRUITFUL

Yes, that is all one family.  And they are special folks.

The Mama in the picture had a certain familiar third grade teacher who can remember when other kids wanted to grow up and be a fireman or a nurse...Amy wanted to grow up and be a Mama with lots of kids.

Amy is living her dream.

Meet Josh.  He's the fine man that has made Amy's dreams come true.

Josh gets a big hunka chunka respect.  That respect is not for picking Amy out of the crowd.  That would have been a no-brainer.  He gets respect for putting shoes on all of his crew...and for staying steady at the wheel.

Speaking of wheels, this is how Josh drives their big commercial van to the beach for vacation.  

.     

Can you just imagine the logistics of going out to eat, much less going to Florida?

Check out the van below.  Pretty orderly, eh?

Josh and Amy's relationship began through the eyegate.  Amy was thirteen and sitting in Sunday school when a new boy walked in.  Amy leaned over to her friend Kendall and whispered "he's CUTE!"  Their relationship grew stronger foundations, and they've been married 17 years this summer.  He's still pretty cute, don't you think?

For the last four years, their children have been homeschooled.  Josh believed they should at least see how that worked for their family.  Amy was overwhelmed with the idea at first.  Then as she says..."the Lord has a way of doing a 180 on your heart.  He impressed on me to listen to the desires of my husband's heart."  They tried home schooling, and it fit them.  Amy says she loves it because it gives them a chance to learn while they do life together and grow closer.  Plus they are first to the beach.

But of course when they go anywhere, people stare.  Some gapers are brassy enough to ask questions. Amy says the two most common queries are:

#FLABBERGASTED  "Are all those kids yours?"

Amy posted this quote to the left on Facebook to address that question.  Moms love the absurdity of the quote.

Once, as she drove through Mickey D's for ice cream, the lady at the window craned her head way out to check the multiple van riders.  Then her comment was "GIRL!  I hope they are paying you a LOT to take care of all those children."

Of course the paycheck comes in doing what Amy is wired to do.  Amy is flourishing as she serves her children.

#UPCLOSEANDPERSONAL  "Are you Catholic?"

Politely Amy explains that they are not Catholic, but just love children.  The skeptic, thinking no one loves children THAT much, wonders if they have an OctoMom need for attention.  Good grief!  There must be a gazillion easier ways to garner attention.

We were in Josh and Amy's church when we lived in Little Rock.  Believe it or not, they volunteer regularly @the Children's Ministry desk, checking in children.  I truly can't imagine how even the five girls get out the door with coordinated bows, much less the girls AND the boys AND the baby-of-the-day.  These are well-behaved kids who help each other.  How else would it work?

One of the sweetest stories I heard Amy tell was when about halfway through the birth order,  Josh announced to the children that Mama was having a baby.  A small voice piped up "didn't we just have one?"

In the olden days, people had multiples because the crops needed harvesting and it took many hands to get all the work done.  These days, many hands are considered work.

Josh and Amy say that of course their family takes intentional effort, but they also know that the Lord showers blessings through His gift of children.  They have been privileged to get to know and care for some brand new human beings.  And these kids will grow up knowing how to nurture others.  All the schools in the world can't teach that.

The bottom line for this couple?  They want to be open to what the Lord has for their family.  Their lives are fruitful as they introduce some of the next generation to the Savior.  What a grand statement they make for life!

P.S.

Have you counted heads in that first picture?  If so, you know that there were an odd number of kiddos (5 girls and 4 boys).  That picture was taken at Seaside, Florida LAST year.  And Amy was... yep... pregnant with the little boy she had six months ago.  You should know that now the boys and girls have evened out.

GREETINGS FROM SEASIDE 2012!