Many of us dream of having a big family, but we might have different ideas of what that means. As someone who grew up with exactly one sibling, four children sounds like a big family to me. Others might say it takes 6-8 children to make up a large family. This couple blows those numbers out of the water.
Meet the family that brings a new meaning to the phrase, “the more the merrier.” Clive and Louise Andrews are the proud parents of 10 kids – and they want to try for number 11. It definitely sounds like a big number, so what does a family of twelve actually look like?
Clive and Louise work hard to keep their household running smoothly. Louise is a part-time cleaner, and Clive recently retired from running his own flooring business. He is now a stay-at-home dad and absolutely loves what he does.
“I worked five, six days a week, every week,” Clive explained on an episode of Big Family Values: More Kids than Cash. “It’s daddy day care for me now and daddy day care was something I wish I had done quite a long time ago.”
This father may not be working a nine-to-five job anymore, but the work is never done in the Andrews household. Louise starts her day at dawn, cleaning and tidying the house before getting all 10 children ready for school. Breakfast has proven to be its own battle. The family spends around £1000/month on food, which is more than twice what an average British household spends.
The Andrews buy 15 boxes of cereal, 15 pints of milk, and up to 12 loaves of bread each week. “Instead of spending thousands of pounds on holidays and living it up in the sun we live it up at the supermarket and make sure the kids are fed,” Clive says.
This huge family certainly takes up a lot of space. The Andrews own two conjoined homes of three bedrooms each. As you can imagine, they have A LOT of clothing. Where do they put it all? They have converted an entire bedroom into a walk-in closet for the whole family. Each child has his or her own rack.
With seven boys and three girls, all ranging from 5 months to 17 years old, Clive and Louise have a lot on their plate. Yet somehow, they aren’t finished yet. The couple is already preparing to try for child number eleven. To them, family is the most important thing.
“We don’t need holidays,” Louise shared when considering the family’s expenditures. “Love is stronger than having to go sun yourself on a beach all day.”
Even though the parents know that having so many children is worth it, some things will always be a struggle. The family recently had to give up their mini-bus, so they now need two cars to get anywhere they need to go. And when a simple meal at McDonald’s can put them out £40 easily, they have to keep a vigilant watch on their spending. Still, so much love in one place makes it all worth it.
The Andrews are a shining example of what it means to put family first. Clive and Louise pour their entire lives into their children, and the result is one enormous happy family.
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