The mother of the largest family in Australia admitted that if it were not for the persistence of her husband, they would have a maximum of two kids.
Janie and Ray Bonell are not actors, not musicians, not stars from the red carpet. But many people know them. Still, are there many families where 16 children are being raised at once? Janie and Ray have exactly that many – 9 boys and 7 girls. The oldest “kid” is already 31 years old, and the youngest is only 6 years old.
Janie recently hosted a Q&A session on her YouTube channel and talked about why she decided to become so large. Her explanation was very unusual. It turns out that she never wanted children at all.
“I still remember telling Ray that I didn’t need children. I just don’t want to, ”Janie says.
But her husband grew up in a large family, he had five brothers and sisters. And he dreamed that he would have many children: four, maybe six.
“I resisted. She said that this would never happen. As a result, I agreed to have one, maximum two children, ”recalls a mother with many children.
The firstborn was born – a boy named Jesse. And Janie realized that being a mom is what she was born for. The first pregnancy was followed by the second, and then Janie herself asked her husband how he looks at having another baby. The husband was happy. So two daughters and a son appeared in the family. One more son was not enough for complete harmony. So Janie got pregnant again. And … a girl was born.
A boy was born, then another and another. In total, Janie was pregnant 23 times – unfortunately, not all pregnancies ended well. Between the fourth and fifth child, there was a miscarriage, after the 12th baby another one, and in an attempt to conceive on the 16th, Janie lost her child four times in a row.
“We just enjoyed the way our family is growing. But all these miscarriages – it was a very difficult time. Eventually, our little Caitlin was born. I would have given birth to another, but it seems my body is against it. We don’t use any protection, but I don’t get pregnant anymore, ”51-year-old Janie shrugs.
But difficulties with conception could well be expected. After the birth of her last baby, Janie was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. She managed to overcome the disease, but since then she was forced to undergo an examination by an oncologist every year. And during the next scan, it became clear why her body is so opposed to another pregnancy – Janie had cancer again. This time, the tumor was found in the kidney.
“It’s amazing how quickly life changes. A year ago, I spoke at a conference, talked about how to defeat cancer, and today I am back in a hospital bed, I had an operation, and there is still a long chemotherapy ahead, ”Janie writes on her Instagram page.
By the way, the family does not ask for help even in such a difficult moment. They have only one request to subscribers: to pray for Janie’s health. And she herself is sure that she will be able to emerge victorious from this battle.