As a mother of 5 children
I FEEL YOUR PAIN! Please know it does get better. Maybe not today, or even tomorrow--but eventually it does get better. Repeat that to yourself.
FIRST get rid of the darn cat! With everything on your plate the last thing you need to deal with is a stupid biting cat. Delegate this responsibility to your husband. Have him give it away, take it to QAWS whatever. Just get rid of it ASAP
NEXT Hire a maid. Your husband will soon see the wisdom and necessity. Ask a neighbor or friend for a referral and hire one ASAP. You don't have room for a live-in so simply hire one for as many days a week as you can afford.
LASTLY. Put your children to work. With such a big family you have to delegate responsibilities. I have given my children chores from the age of 1 (yes barely walking) on up. At 1 they had to get their own diapers when they needed changed and bring them to me. Then they had to throw the soiled one into the garbage. By 8 children can do laundry, make lunches, clean everything in the house and help with food preparation. I'm not saying make them full-time slaves, but they need to learn these life skills anyways. It is EVERYONE'S responsibility to keep the home running smoothly. You will find plenty of helpful websites with ideas for chores along with charts and reward systems. It can even be fun for children.
Take 10 minutes each day to be by yourself. Go into your bedroom, close and LOCK the door. Turn soothing music up loudly and just relax, meditate, read or whatever. Even if the baby screams and others are pounding on the door--ignore them. They will survive for 10 minutes. You need this time to de-stess and regroup. When I feel like screaming and throwing things I give myself a "time Out' Then I am better able to handle the situation.
When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Try to concentrate on the good things in life--loving husband, beautiful children, your health, You have an income etc etc. When you are happy, the children will more likely to be happy. The mother sets the tone for the entire household.
As a mother of 5 children
I FEEL YOUR PAIN! Please know it does get better. Maybe not today, or even tomorrow--but eventually it does get better. Repeat that to yourself.
FIRST get rid of the darn cat! With everything on your plate the last thing you need to deal with is a stupid biting cat. Delegate this responsibility to your husband. Have him give it away, take it to QAWS whatever. Just get rid of it ASAP
NEXT Hire a maid. Your husband will soon see the wisdom and necessity. Ask a neighbor or friend for a referral and hire one ASAP. You don't have room for a live-in so simply hire one for as many days a week as you can afford.
LASTLY. Put your children to work. With such a big family you have to delegate responsibilities. I have given my children chores from the age of 1 (yes barely walking) on up. At 1 they had to get their own diapers when they needed changed and bring them to me. Then they had to throw the soiled one into the garbage. By 8 children can do laundry, make lunches, clean everything in the house and help with food preparation. I'm not saying make them full-time slaves, but they need to learn these life skills anyways. It is EVERYONE'S responsibility to keep the home running smoothly. You will find plenty of helpful websites with ideas for chores along with charts and reward systems. It can even be fun for children.
Take 10 minutes each day to be by yourself. Go into your bedroom, close and LOCK the door. Turn soothing music up loudly and just relax, meditate, read or whatever. Even if the baby screams and others are pounding on the door--ignore them. They will survive for 10 minutes. You need this time to de-stess and regroup. When I feel like screaming and throwing things I give myself a "time Out' Then I am better able to handle the situation.
When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Try to concentrate on the good things in life--loving husband, beautiful children, your health, You have an income etc etc. When you are happy, the children will more likely to be happy. The mother sets the tone for the entire household.
Good Luck Remember --this too shall pass.