Courtney Rogers was a virgin when she married her pastor husband, Chris. Courtney, who was 24 at the time, and Chris, who was 20, wasted no time in getting down to business.
First, there was Clint. Then Clay. Then Cade. Followed by Callie. I spot a naming trend here, folks.
After Callie was Cash, Colt, Case, Calenda, Caydie, Coralee and Caris.
And now? Courtney and Chris are expecting their 12th baby in 13 years – 12 under 12! Three guesses what the baby’s name will start with.
12 under 12 – could you even imagine??
Okay so let’s not beat around the bush here. That’s 13 years of back-to-back pregnancies and my nether region is literally quivering at the thought of this. Not to mention my uterus.
Some of the children are Irish Twins (born less than 12 months apart) while Colt and Case are real twins. The eldest, Clint, is 11 and the youngest, Caris, is nearly one. Baby #12 – a girl to make it 6 boys, 6 girls – is due in March 2022.
Cheaper by the dozen
Courtney and Chris both admit they’ve always wanted a large family. Chris has 9 siblings of his own and they first planned on perhaps stopping at 10.
After 10 arrived I still felt young so we went for ‘cheaper by the dozen’. It feels like the perfect family with six boys and six girls.”
While the house is bursting with lots of love, Courtney and Chris have suffered losses over the years too. In between pregnancies, Courtney has experienced three miscarriages.
I’ve been pregnant every year since 2008. At times it’s hard work. Keeping up with everyone’s schooling and all the cleaning and laundry is a chore.”
Courtney and Chris are Catholic and don’t use contraception. They simply let what happens, happens, and, well, lots has happened!
The family lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico and Courtney home schools all of her kids. She also shares their daily adventures on her Instagram page – Little House in the High Desert, admitting that strangers tend to troll her but she doesn’t really give a hoot.
People judge us at times. They don’t like large families or accuse us of not providing for them. It doesn’t really bother me because I know they’re strangers and don’t know us at all.”
Everyone pitches in
Courtney and Chris own a small farm where they grow fruit for the family. They also prefer cloth nappies over disposables to help keep the costs down. The family spends between $400 and $500 a week in the supermarket while raising some of their own meat and eggs.
Chris works at the church plus also takes on several side jobs to earn money.
Courtney handles all things at home, including allocating chores and homeschooling the kids. She explains that they eat brekkie at 8am, do schoolwork until 11:30am, have lunch, nap time for the babies or quiet time for the older kids. Then it’s more school, farm chores, cleaning and supper.
They usually get to watch a show before bed and hubby and I are usually finishing the clean-up and getting all the little ones ready for bed. Bedtime is around 8pm or 8.30pm.”
Courtney admits that she runs a bit of a tight ship when it comes to routine, schoolwork and chores but she’s pretty chill when it comes to freetime.
I’m lenient during playtime. I don’t really care what they do as long as it’s safe and I try to keep holidays fun. Our house can get quite crazy and loud.”
Christmas with the Rogers
The holidays are Courtney’s favourite time of year and she tends to spend around $2,000 to $3,000 all up. That’s gifts for 11 kids, plus PJ, outfits, the works. Courtney and Chris leave the presents for the kids only but admit that they love it as much as the kids do.
The children go to bed the night before in their new PJs and wake up early to open their stockings. They usually have a quick, but fun breakfast – something like cinnamon rolls and breakfast burritos.
The hubby then reads the nativity story from the Bible and then we open gifts. Afterward, the house is filled with happy messes and festive Christmas music. Our dinner is usually Mexican food. We can’t wait.”
What a happy, loving household! But, man, 12 back-to-back babies! Someone give this woman a medal!
