Family life discussion: Authors James & Kathleen Littleton of Better by the Dozen Plus Two

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Per the request below I am starting a new thread. Feel free to pose questions and holy wisdom. Kathleen and I will do the best we can to be instruments of the Holy Spirit. We are all on the path together. Christ is with us all. I am sure we will learn a lot from you. Let’s keep each other in our prayers and Eucharistic lives. May we all be docile instruments in bringing Christ and HIs truth and peace to our family and culture.

In terms of our message you may want to go to
lifesite.net/ldn/2007/aug/07080302.html to review a recent interview with Lifesite.

God bless you.
aboverubies said:
Welcome to the forums Littleton 👋 I love your family name, it gave me quite a chuckle. Won’t you please start a new thread on life in a big family and share some tips with us all? 🙂
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I just wanted to comment that I think it is really neat you are posting here. I read about your family on another thread here on Catholic Answers Forums and ordered your book.

I have only read part of it, but I have already found some **very **inspiring and helpful sections. Our family is still small as we are pregnant with our third, but I thought it was neat that what you were saying can be used by any family, helping them strive to be better, regardless of the size of the family. Once I am done reading it I will probably go back and underline my favorite parts to go back to them as reference whenever I need to.

I’ll come back to this thread with questions, I just wanted to tell you guys that its just so wonderful to see a family like yours and to have the opportunity to “meet” you through your book.
 
**Welcome and thank you for the writting the book! Now, I don’t have to write one. Your comments about fear being the real demotivator in people these days is something I’ve felt for a very long time too. I haven’t had the chance/funds to get your book yet, but hope to soon.👍 **
I have one question so far - do you homeschool the kids?
Do you have a supportive extended family? If not, how do you handle it?
How far apart in age are your children? Have you/do you use NFP to space?
What are the thoughts of your oldest children on having a large family? Do they want large families some day for themselves?
 
🙂 welcome to the forum, I’m sure there will be many ?'s
Open communication must be important to discussion, what closes this and stops the discussion in your opinion?
Dessert
 
First of congrats on publishing a book. I am sure that it was extremely time consuming work as well as a labor of love. I’ve been reading several vatican documents and I am curious what y’all think of this statement.

** “The spouses have the inalienable right to found a family and to decide on the spacing of births and the number of children to be born, taking into full consideration their duties towards themselves, their children already born, the family and society, in a just hierarchy of values…”**

Also do y’all use NFP in your marriage? If not, why?

If your children are college age, do you pay for their college(s) ?
 
Thanks for starting the thread! 👍

My question is related to finances. My DH and I have decided to allow God to send us as many children as he sees fit and hope never to utter those dreaded words…“We can’t afford any more children”. We are trusting that God will provide for all the children he sends us but most people think we are very naive to hold this viewpoint. Of course, we are not just sitting back waiting for money to fall from the sky…DH has studied and worked hard to gain promotions and increase our income and I work hard to run the home on a budget. We pray daily for help in this area and we are happy to live simply and frugally. Are we naive to think that God will bless our efforts and provide for our needs?
 
Welcome! I’m looking forward to reading your posts and I hope to get your book soon (I hinted to my DH about it for my b.day coming up soon!). Michelle
 
Thank you for the feedback on the book. Let us know what you think when you are finished reading it. Congrats on your blessing of expecting a baby. We had three children once. Seems like yesterday in a way. Larger families happen one at a time over the years, one child maybe two at a time. Keep making the best of every day and year as your life unfolds.

Hopefully our book will play a small part in bringing you and your family ever closer to Christ in the Eucharist. I can see you are a “pourer”. Count on our prayers.

In Christ, Jim Littleton
lifeisbeautiful said:
I just wanted to comment that I think it is really neat you are posting here. I read about your family on another thread here on Catholic Answers Forums and ordered your book.

I have only read part of it, but I have already found some **very **inspiring and helpful sections. Our family is still small as we are pregnant with our third, but I thought it was neat that what you were saying can be used by any family, helping them strive to be better, regardless of the size of the family. Once I am done reading it I will probably go back and underline my favorite parts to go back to them as reference whenever I need to.

I’ll come back to this thread with questions, I just wanted to tell you guys that its just so wonderful to see a family like yours and to have the opportunity to “meet” you through your book.
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Thank you for the post.

If you get a chance to read our book let us know what you think relative to the “Fear” issue, etc.

We don’t currently homeschool. We have a little on the past and may do so again. We have been blessed with solid Catholic school opportinities.

Most extended family is not on the same page with us, but we have a great network of solid Catholic families that support each other.

ages 21 to one.

NFP is of course useful for spacing as well as trying to have babies. Yes, we have used both ways, but mostly been open to letting God space.

I think our older children want large families, though one daughter just became consecrated, another is discerning consecrated life and a son is in the minor seminary. We have been blessed. All he glory to God. We attribute all the good in our family to Christ in the Eucharist and our faults and failures to ourselves, but God is infintely bigger than our faults. We lean on Him.

You are in our prayers.

QUOTE=Rob’s Wife;2664799]**Welcome and thank you for the writting the book! Now, I don’t have to write one. Your comments about fear being the real demotivator in people these days is something I’ve felt for a very long time too. I haven’t had the chance/funds to get your book yet, but hope to soon.👍 **
I have one question so far - do you homeschool the kids?
Do you have a supportive extended family? If not, how do you handle it?
How far apart in age are your children? Have you/do you use NFP to space?
What are the thoughts of your oldest children on having a large family? Do they want large families some day for themselves?
 
Thanks for the post. We will let the Holy Spirit lead us with His prudence and do our best according to our availability. Count on our prayers. God bless you.
dessert said:
🙂 welcome to the forum, I’m sure there will be many ?'s
Open communication must be important to discussion, what closes this and stops the discussion in your opinion?
Dessert
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We go into a lot of detail on this subject in our book especially in our chapters, Motherhood and Openness to Life.

We agree with everything the Catholic Church teaches. Some points we make are to contemplate the value of an immortal person, and to encourage our readers to give faith its proper value in addtion to reason when prayfully discerning spacing of births. We answer the NFP question in another post.

Our college age children are for the most part paying their own way with jobs, loans, grants, the generosity of others and the providential hand of God.

Having said that college education is important to us, but it is not eveything, and compared to the value of a child it is nothing.

count on our prayers. God bless you.

In Christ,

Jim Littleton

QUOTE=maria29;2667000]First of congrats on publishing a book. I am sure that it was extremely time consuming work as well as a labor of love. I’ve been reading several vatican documents and I am curious what y’all think of this statement.

** “The spouses have the inalienable right to found a family and to decide on the spacing of births and the number of children to be born, taking into full consideration their duties towards themselves, their children already born, the family and society, in a just hierarchy of values…”**

Also do y’all use NFP in your marriage? If not, why?

If your children are college age, do you pay for their college(s) ?
 
You are not naive. The saints were thought by their contemporaries to be crazy and naive. You have the grand gift of a deep and living faith. Don’t doubt yourselves. You and your husband will never regret your generosity with Christ, and He will continue to bless you. Yes, you will have challenges, but they will only serve to sanctify you and bring you ever closer to Jesus, and to trust Him more. Stay close to Christ in the Eucharist and to the Blessed Virgin Mary. This way you will be able to keep your supernatural outlook, perseverance and joy.

In Christ, Jim Littleton
aboverubies said:
Thanks for starting the thread! 👍

My question is related to finances. My DH and I have decided to allow God to send us as many children as he sees fit and hope never to utter those dreaded words…“We can’t afford any more children”. We are trusting that God will provide for all the children he sends us but most people think we are very naive to hold this viewpoint. Of course, we are not just sitting back waiting for money to fall from the sky…DH has studied and worked hard to gain promotions and increase our income and I work hard to run the home on a budget. We pray daily for help in this area and we are happy to live simply and frugally. Are we naive to think that God will bless our efforts and provide for our needs?
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God bless you for your example.

Each time a story like yours gets out, it makes it easier for the rest of us. You help “normalize” large families. 🙂

Thanks so much, and I’ll pray for you and your family.
 
Our family has many faults to work on. We are really trying to point to Christ and to living the Eucharistic life. We realize that we attract attention to the message due to the blessing of our large family. Let’s pray for each other.

In Christ,
Jin Littleton
Siena said:
God bless you for your example.

Each time a story like yours gets out, it makes it easier for the rest of us. You help “normalize” large families. 🙂

Thanks so much, and I’ll pray for you and your family.
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I want to see the Littleton Family Manual!!!
Please? Pretty please?
**I bought the download last night and made it all the way to p. 164 before reading off the computer made me feel cross-eyed. I’ll have to print the rest or go blind. 😃 **
**Much of your story is like reading our own, so I identify with you both on a lot of things. Esp as you have had them fairly close together too. Most large families I meet are much further spread out than my crew, which completely changes the dynamics. Your comments about our fear driven world are somethign I’ve said so often to people. They think WE live in fear all the time, but actually leaving our family to God has been a huge relief to us over the years. Thank you for telling couples this.👍 **
I have another question…
How have you, if you have, had to parent the 2 boys differently in any ways?
 
Thanks for the feedback. We decided not to publish the family manual as it is would take too much explanation as most of the world is not ready to understand it. Anyone can put one together. It saves work and confusion in the long run. It includes a time breakdown. It also includes times to get up, responsibilities for each of the children at different times, such as morning, meals, after school, Saturday.

Yes we parent boys a bit differently I guess since they have a different make up accross the board as you know. That might take another book, but we channel their competiveness and energy with regard to their formation and responsibilites. Our eldest left for minor seminary at age 13 and our other son is seven, so we a have had a lot of help with our older son from Christ and His Chruch to say the least.

It is all about the Eucharistic life and devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. The make up where we are lacking and we lack much without them.
Rob_s_Wife said:
I want to see the Littleton Family Manual!!!
Please? Pretty please?
**I bought the download last night and made it all the way to p. 164 before reading off the computer made me feel cross-eyed. I’ll have to print the rest or go blind. 😃 **
**Much of your story is like reading our own, so I identify with you both on a lot of things. Esp as you have had them fairly close together too. Most large families I meet are much further spread out than my crew, which completely changes the dynamics. Your comments about our fear driven world are somethign I’ve said so often to people. They think WE live in fear all the time, but actually leaving our family to God has been a huge relief to us over the years. Thank you for telling couples this.👍 **
I have another question…
How have you, if you have, had to parent the 2 boys differently in any ways?
Click to expand...
 
I am guessing you are involved with Regnum Christi. I’ve got my kids involved in the youth programs here in Central Indiana. They have been great blessing.

If I’m right about Regnum Christi, how has the spirituality of Regnum Christi affected your family life?
 
Are you familiar with the Apostolate of Blessed Sacrament Families? You mention the Eucharist a lot in your posts, which is what got me wondering. 🙂 I’m another person who is eagerly looking forward to reading your book! God bless your family!
 
**Oh, and one more thing…😉 **
do you have a blog or other website?
 
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