All-boys club: Michigan couple welcomes 12th son
By ED WHITEBy ED WHITE, Associated Press?
?The Schwandt brothers, all 12 of them, pose for a photo in their Rockford, Mich. Tuesday, August 6, 2013. Clockwise from bottom left, Tyler, 21, holding Tucker, 2 days, Vinny, 10, Drew, 16, Zach, 17, Charlie, 3, Calvin, 8, Brandon, 14, Luke, 19 months., Gabe, 6, Wesley, 5 and Tommy, 11. As Jay and Kateri Schwandt brought their 12th newborn baby boy home Tuesday, they made a couple of things clear. They have not been trying for a girl these past two decades, as they gave birth to boy after boy (after boy .). (AP Photo/The Grand Rapids Press, Chris Clark) ALL LOCAL TV OUT; LOCAL TV INTERNET OUT
The Schwandt brothers, all 12 of them, pose for a photo in their Rockford, Mich. Tuesday, August 6, 2013. Clockwise from bottom left, Tyler, 21, holding Tucker, 2 days, Vinny, 10, Drew, 16, Zach, 17, Charlie, 3, Calvin, 8, Brandon, 14, Luke, 19 months., Gabe, 6, Wesley, 5 and Tommy, 11. As Jay and Kateri Schwandt brought their 12th newborn baby boy home Tuesday, they made a couple of things clear. They have not been trying for a girl these past two decades, as they gave birth to boy after boy (after boy .). (AP Photo/The Grand Rapids Press, Chris Clark) ALL LOCAL TV OUT; LOCAL TV INTERNET OUT
In this Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2013 photo, Jay and Kateri Schwandt pose with their 12th newborn son Tucker at their home in Rockford, Mich. (AP Photo/The Grand Rapids Press, Chris Clark) ALL LOCAL TV OUT; LOCAL TV INTERNET OUT
In this Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2013 photo, Kateri Schwandt kisses her 12th newborn son Tucker before leaving Mercy Health St. Mary's campus in Grand Rapids, Mich. (AP Photo/The Grand Rapids Press, Chris Clark) ALL LOCAL TV OUT; LOCAL TV INTERNET OUT
Tyler Schwandt, left, shows younger brother Wesley how to support newborn Tucker's head in their home Tuesday, August 6, 2013 in Rockford, Mich. As Jay and Kateri Schwandt brought their 12th newborn baby boy home Tuesday, they made a couple of things clear. They have not been trying for a girl these past two decades, as they gave birth to boy after boy (after boy .). (AP Photo/The Grand Rapids Press, Chris Clark) ALL LOCAL TV OUT; LOCAL TV INTERNET OUT
The Schwandt boys welcome their youngest brother Tucker home to Rockford, Mich. Tuesday, August 6, 2013. Shown from left are Vinny, Tucker, Calvin, Wesley, Luke and Gabe. As Jay and Kateri Schwandt brought their 12th newborn baby boy home Tuesday, they made a couple of things clear. They have not been trying for a girl these past two decades, as they gave birth to boy after boy (after boy .). (AP Photo/The Grand Rapids Press, Chris Clark) ALL LOCAL TV OUT; LOCAL TV INTERNET OUT
DETROIT (AP) ? A western Michigan family welcomed their 12th child. And, shocker, it's a boy ? just like the other 11.
Jay and Kateri Schwandt of Rockford believed the latest baby might break the gender streak, especially after Kateri, known as Teri, was nine days past her due date. That was unusual for her pregnancies. But as it turned out, it was hardly a game-changer as a nurse at a Grand Rapids hospital announced delivery of another boy.
Tucker was 7 pounds, 12 ounces.
"Of course. There was a chuckle in the whole room," Teri, 38, said told The Associated Press on Thursday. "I looked at my husband, and we exchanged a knowing smile. When they say it's a boy, I think, OK, no problem. I've got this. We know what we're doing."
Tyler is the oldest son at 21. When the school year starts, three Schwandt boys will be in high school, while five brothers are in lower grades. That leaves three more at home with Teri.
The Schwandts, who live north of Grand Rapids, consider themselves devout Roman Catholics who don't believe in using birth control and put the size of their family in God's hands. Teri comes from a family of 14 kids. But she's not the only member of her own family committed to the cause.
She has a sister in the Detroit area, Kate Osberger, who has 10 children of her own. Yep, all sons.
"That's amazing. This is a miracle," said Dr. Bob Barbieri, who researches fertility issues and is chairman of obstetrics and gynecology at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston. "It appears there is some type of genetic determination in some families that have a lot of girls or a lot of boys. It's not well understood. It's more than a statistical oddity."
A large brood brings many challenges, regardless of gender.
Daily trips to the grocery store and usually a weekly stop at a warehouse store when possible. School lunches can mean going through an entire loaf of bread each day. The Schwandts have a 15-passenger van ? "the big bus" ? that carries the clan to family gatherings and Sunday Mass. It helps that some boys are old enough to drive.
"I'll call and say I'm stuck. I need you to pick up Wesley from preschool," Teri said. "There aren't too many kids who get to know the preschool teacher."
At home, half of the 12 sleep in two bedrooms with bunk beds. Teri has a rule of no more than one pair of shoes for each kid in the entryway. Once the boys hit sixth grade, they do their own laundry.
"Someone's responsible for unloading the dishwasher and loading it. Someone vacuums the stairs," said Jay, 39, who has a land surveying business. "We heat the house with wood. We're cutting wood, hauling it and stacking it. They may not like it but they know they need to pitch in."
Teri said she's only known the gender of two babies before they were born. Believing a girl might arrive this time, the family settled on Jaynie for a name, a play on Jay's name. It wasn't needed, of course.
"He would love a little girl," Teri said. "He's never done a daddy-daughter dance."
Maybe he'll still get the chance.
"Possibly," Teri said of more children. "We never close that door."
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Follow Ed White at https://twitter.com/edwhiteap
Associated Press
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