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''' '' :4,....c.:.',. ,;...4'.,....::f...;... ,.; " :..:.....i:,.,44....'.. ,...t;,...::' ;.'s When the Paul Child family goes for a walk, there is a lot of energy and a lot of joy generated on the way. 4. gi:',it .,..:&...,....,.. ...,1 ' photo by Gerald stvet ,,, ,f 1 ,,- ,,,,,,.- , i'r A , , 7 Little Ones: A Unique, Joyful Task , OGDEN, UTAH "A unique experience" is the way Paul and Mary Margaret Child describe their unusual way of life as parents of seven children under age 9, including two sets of twins. Brother Child is a dentist in Ogden and the family is active in the Weber Heights Stake. Though there are "little frustrations from day to day and problems situations to work out in the family," Brother and Sister Child say "it is a beautiful experience having a large family." gster Child speaks with a soft southern accent indicative of having ' ce, grown up in Wilmington, N.C. "I was raised as an only child by my grandparents, even though I did have a brother and sister," she said. "I made up my mind long before I was married that one day I would have a large family," she added. "There are times when I feel overwhelmed, hut so that I don't feel this way too often, the main thing in my life is to try to keep my list of priorities straight so that I know what's important and what isn't." The Child family includes, Michael, 9; John, 5; twins David and Mark, both 5; Melissa, 3; and twins Cassandra and months. There is an interesting story about the three boys. For several years after Michael's birth it seemed as though the dream of several children would not be realized. After a series of miscarriages, Brother and Sister Child were told by their physician that they would probably not have any more children. After Dr. Child received his dental degree, he sereved in the U.S. Army, stationed at Fort Dix. N.J., and there the Childs made application for adoption. A few months later, Sister Child learned she was expecting another baby, bat with her history of problems the couple carrying babies decided to complete their application anyway. On Feb. I, 190, their adopted son, John, was born and Paul Jr., z 10 full-term- , af!z-ptio- 12 CfV4CI. e WEEK ENONP ) 1 they obtained him when he was four days old. Sister Child learned she might have twins when her doctor thought he heard two heartbeats. Sister Child told him, "You're kidding! Don't you know about me?" And he replied, "Yes. You're ,Thr. Child's wife and you Just adopted a baby." "We were all very excited," Sister Child said. Brother Child was in Utah at the time taking his state board dental exams. high council for the past two years and Sister Child serves as social relations leader in the stake Relief Society: "I made up my mind that I wasn't going to stay home from meetings just because we had two new babies and Paul was visiting wards on Sunday," Sister Child said. "All the children cooperate so we can go to Sunday School because they want me to go with them," she added. "People in the ward are very nice about helping me with the babies when Paul " I was thoroughly shocked," he exclaimed, "I was right in the middle of my boards and I thought, 'Holy cow, if we're going to have twins, I really better pass these!'" Twin sons, David and Mark, were Brother Child said,. "We have to work together in many ways since we both serve on the stake level. I calendar my half days off during the week to babysit so Mary Margaret can go to her Relief Society meetings and have contact with adults and do her Church work born Aug. 13. Sister Child said, "I made up my mind when I had all three of these babies that I was not going to use them for an excuse." She continued, "I knew if I was organized, if I would plan ahead the things I wanted to do and write my list everyday in order of importance. I could get everything done." The first thing Sister Child would do in the morning would be to fix the 24 bottles of formula, then "do things in threes." She found she still had extra time for taking the babies and Michael out for a walk everyday, to do things with Michael and with her husband, "and still have time for Church activities." When the babies were old enough to sit up in high chairs, Brother Child set up a kind of production line to feed them. Brother Child had to get as involved as his wife in the feeding, bathing, diapers, etc. After the adoption of John was finalized, the family moved back to Utah where Brother Child set up a dental practice. Brother Child has served on his stake JUIN 5 , 1975 ' ' isn't there." well." , Brother and Sister would hate to raise without the incluenee They also feel parental Child say they their children of the Church. example is the greatest teacher. Sister Child said sometimes when the children are drawing or coloring, she will ask what they are doing and they will say, "We're making our Relief Society visual aids." Once she found them playing with a little suitcase and they said, "We're getting ready to go to the temple." She said, "Paul and I give each other encouragement in our Church work and we hope this will cause the children to have a love of the gospel and want to serve, because we both feel that life is happier because of service." The three little boys together can sometimes find a lot of trouble to get into. Their mother says that when they were two; this was the most hectic time in their lives One time Sister Child discovered that in their attempt to be mechanical, the boys managed to get their bedroom door completely off the hinges. Another time, one of the boys almost disassembled the , new backyard swing, taking out most of the nuts and bolts. 1 The summer they were three years old, the boys broke 11 windows of the ' house. 11 "I remember when they broke 24 bottles of peaches," said Sister Child."! had just given them their lunch and put them in the playroom downstairs. "It has only been ten minutes when I went down to find that I had leftt the storage room open. There was broken glass and sticky peaches all over, and the boys had eaten some of them." came over and "My mother-in-lahelped feed the children bread and milk. We were afraid they may have swatlowed broken glass!" Fortunately, the boys weren't hurt. Brother Child recalled another experience with the busy boys. "One (lay Mary Margaret called me at work and was very upset. She said the kids had been electrocuted and for w - k 4 f I - f4 Fl 1 t, 11 11 - me to come home quickly. "I had just finished drilling out a tooth and it was wide open. I told my dental assistant who was brand new to) put a temporary filling in because I had to go home. Brother Child ran the 512 blocks borne to find his wife calmly feeding the boys as they sat in their high chairs. Sister Child explained that she had gone to get the boys for naps and foirud a chair on top of a box reaching to the master electrical power switch box, which was open. The electrical power was off and the three boys were lying on the floor. "When saw the power box and saw them lying there, I went over and shook them and nobody roused, so, in panic, I thought they had been electrocuted," Sister Child related.' "After ' I 1 ' 1 , . . 1 I t j 1 I, called Paul, I came back down to say 'Oh, please, please, wake 'up.' John woke up and started crying and saying, 'What's wrong? Let me sleep.' They had decided it was time for their naps." I 1 L.. 1 I |