[~ A7lA DoNiA ~]

A few decades ago, many families had half a dozen or more children. Nowadays, more and more families

are choosing to have only one or two children. Are smaller families better than larger ones? Why or why

not? State your position and support it with specific reasons and examples.

I grew up in a large family،ھI am the oldest of six،ھand I have many wonderful memories from my childhood.

I am very close to most of my siblings and I treasure my relationships with them. But when I have my own

family someday, it won't be as big as the one I grew up in. As much as my large family was full of love, and

as much as I learned about sharing, giving, and patience, I think having too many kids puts too much

pressure on the parents and the oldest children.

When I think back on my childhood, I remember playing with my siblings or grandparents. I don't remember

spending a whole lot of time with my mother and father. They were always around, but they were always

busy. Although they did their best to spend some quality time with each of us, there was just too much to

do to keep our large family going. My mother was always cooking, cleaning, nursing, changing a diaper,

shopping, or taking someone to baseball practice or a playdate. She was always tired.

My father, on the other hand, was always working. He needed overtime whenever he could get it, and

weekends were always full of projects around the house. He had lots of helpers, of course, but there are

only so many things kids can do. Even when we were able to get away for vacation, Mom and Dad couldn't

really relax, because there were so many kids to look after.

Money was also a constant worry for my family. With so many children, our budget was always tight.

Back-to-school shopping was always a stressful time; we all wanted the latest fashions, but we could only

get a few things. My younger siblings lived on hand-me-downs as much as they could. We shopped at

bargain stores and often got clothes that we didn't really like because they were on sale. Our house

always needed repairs, and there was never enough money to keep up.

Another problem with large families is that the older siblings always end up being babysitters. Like it or not

(and most of the time I didn't like it), I had to watch my younger brothers and sisters. At age six, I could

change a diaper like a pro. I was getting my brothers and sisters dressed, giving them breakfast, helping

them get ready for bed. I learned a lot about sharing, selfsacrifice, and responsibility at an early age, and

these are important character traits that I value highly and want to instill in my children. But I also want to

give them a chance to be children. I don't want them to have so much responsibility at such an early age.

I don't want to give the impression that I didn't have a happy childhood. I most definitely did; I was loved as

much as my parents could love me, and I had wonderful fun with my brothers and sisters. But I always

wanted a little more time with Mom and Dad, and I often resented having so much responsibility. I wished

my mom wasn't always so tired and my dad didn't have to work so much. Because I want to be there more

for my kids, because I want them to be kids throughout their childhood, I plan to have a much smaller

family.