Schwandt Family: #15 Is Finally A Girl!

[Bethella]

After 14 boys in a row, Kateri and Jay Schwandt finally have a girl. Maggie Jayne Schwandt was born on Wednesday, Nov. 4 at Mercy Health Saint Mary’s. She weighs 7 pounds, 8 ounces, and is 20 inches long, according to a Nov. 5 release.

https://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/2020/11/the-schwandt-family-welcomes-first-baby-girl-after-14-boys.html?outputType=amp

Previous discussion of the family:

 

Edited November 7, 2020 by Coconut Flan

[TuringMachine]

Are these the people that named a kid "sheboygan"?

also 

Quote

While the couple always had a sliver of hope that they may have a girl, they had not even discussed potential names, he said. He said the family doesn’t even own “a stitch of pink baby clothing.”

and

Quote

“I want a girl, a girly girl but she’s got 14 brothers," Jay Schwandt said. "She will play hockey, she will play basketball, she will get dirty, she will climb trees, she’ll hunt.”

Yikes

[Bethella]

5 minutes ago, TuringMachine said:

Are these the people that named a kid "sheboygan"?

Yes, #14 is Finley Sheboygan. 

[JermajestyDuggar]

At least they aren’t fundie! Dad is a lawyer and mom is a social worker I think. The kids go to school and even though they now have 15 kids, I think the oldest 5 are adults. I’m not saying it’s ok to have 15. That’s crazy. But they are much better off than quiverful fundie families with 15. 

[AliC]

Okay, this is going to sound cheesy, but I got just a little misty eyed reading about how happy Tyler (oldest Schwandt boy) was about his new baby sister and how he thought the day would never come. My mom's told me several times about how my brother reacted pretty much the same way when I was born; my parents never had more than just us two but he's nearly ten years older than me and wanted a little sister more than anything else. He even wrote about me when he had to do an essay for school on the greatest gift he ever received.

[gustava]

Now they can stop.

[JermajestyDuggar]

55 minutes ago, gustava said:

Now they can stop.

I think this was probably their last chance anyway. I think they are in their mid 40s.

[Ausje]

56 minutes ago, gustava said:

Now they can stop.

She's 45, so they're probably done whether they want to be or not.

ETA: You beat me ?

Edited November 7, 2020 by Ausje

[Hane]

My family actually has an aunt and uncle who kept having kids until they “got their boy.” They were about 26, and he was their fourth and last kid. Much hoopla ensued, because he was the only one of my boy cousins on that side to Bear the Family Name. (My dad and his other brothers either had only girls or no kids.) And Boy Cousin wound up never having kids himself.

[Jana814]

9 hours ago, AliC said:

Okay, this is going to sound cheesy, but I got just a little misty eyed reading about how happy Tyler (oldest Schwandt boy) was about his new baby sister and how he thought the day would never come. My mom's told me several times about how my brother reacted pretty much the same way when I was born; my parents never had more than just us two but he's nearly ten years older than me and wanted a little sister more than anything else. He even wrote about me when he had to do an essay for school on the greatest gift he ever received.

That’s really sweet. I have a dog client who kids are 8 years apart, girl older then boy. She was so happy to get a sibling, because all of her friends had one. 

[FilleMondaine]

The Guardian has a sweet write-up, with pictures! (squee!) of the baby, and family, and quotes.

What I love about the pictures is that all the children's different personalities show.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/nov/06/michigan-schwandt-family-14-sons-daughter

[SweetLaurel]

I have a friend who was the youngest boy of seven and they stopped after the girl came after him.  He always felt - still does - feel like if they had had her earlier, he and his three or four older brothers would never have been born.  That they were placeholders till they got the kid they really wanted and how disappointed their parents were to find out - 'great, another boy'.    I hope they don't make their younger boys feel that way.  It makes me sad.  I hope his parents don't really feel that way, and that these parents make the boys realize that they were just as wanted as the girl.   

 

Edited November 7, 2020 by SweetLaurel
punctuation

[waltraute]

2 hours ago, SweetLaurel said:

I have a friend who was the youngest boy of seven and they stopped after the girl came after him.  He always felt - still does - feel like if they had had her earlier, he and his three or four older brothers would never have been born.  That they were placeholders till they got the kid they really wanted and how disappointed their parents were to find out - 'great, another boy'.    I hope they don't make their younger boys feel that way.  It makes me sad.  I hope his parents don't really feel that way, and that these parents make the boys realize that they were just as wanted as the girl.   

 

That's not the vibe I get from them at all. I actually think they loved having all the boys and that if they'd had a girl earlier they still would have kept going. My read on them is that they are old school catholics of the no-birth-control variety and that they love having kids. She will likely be their last because the mother is 45 or 46 now, but I think if the daughter had been 14th (instead of 15th) they still would have had another. 

Edited November 7, 2020 by waltraute

[HereComesTreble]

For real real...I love the name Finley Sheboygan.  Middle names can totally be silly—who cares?  He can always leave it out or just use the initial.  Plus, Sheboygan is fun to say.

[AliC]

10 hours ago, HereComesTreble said:

For real real...I love the name Finley Sheboygan.  Middle names can totally be silly—who cares?  He can always leave it out or just use the initial.  Plus, Sheboygan is fun to say.

Agreed, and even though it might be old hat by now, I can't help but think "well at least it's not Spurgeon".

[Bluebirdbluebell]

I get major fundie/fundie-lite vibes from these people.  Yes they believe in education, but that's common among Catholic fundies. (I grew up Catholic, and I know a lot of Catholics.)

15 kids is a lot. Although the mother is one of 14 children, I suppose the mother could have been raised fundie Catholic and isn't necessarily fundie Catholic now. 

I could be wrong, but I honestly don't know any Catholics with 15 kids, and I've known ones I consider fundie. 

[FilleMondaine]

20 hours ago, HereComesTreble said:

For real real...I love the name Finley Sheboygan.  Middle names can totally be silly—who cares?  He can always leave it out or just use the initial.  Plus, Sheboygan is fun to say.

Joseph ROBINETTE Biden Jr is another example, although I suspect that it was a maternal surname. Still, definite feminine "Boy named Sue" vibes, poor man, and no wonder he goes by Joseph R Biden Jr.

(PS The patriarchy sucks)

(PPS Should have written President-Elect Joseph ROBINETTE Biden Jr! Yay Joe and Kamala!)

[clueliss]

Robin eye is probably a surname since I’ve seen it on my family tree several generations back.  

[Hane]

12 hours ago, FilleMondaine said:

Joseph ROBINETTE Biden Jr is another example, although I suspect that it was a maternal surname. Still, definite feminine "Boy named Sue" vibes, poor man, and no wonder he goes by Joseph R Biden Jr.

(PS The patriarchy sucks)

Fun fact: “Robinette” means “faucet” in French.  

Sweet true story about a family who had two “generations” of kids: A colleague told me that her two older siblings were young adults when she was born, and I said, “So you were a big surprise?” She said, no—her conception was completely intentional. Her mom’s younger brother, who drove a delivery truck, used to stop by the house for lunch. He kidded his sister, “Now that Maria and Joey are out of the house, maybe you and Vinnie should have another baby!” Tragically, the poor guy was killed in a traffic accident later that day. His sister took it as a sign that another baby was meant to be (sentimental old-fashioned Italians) and nine months later, my colleague was born. Everyone in the family was overjoyed.

Edited November 9, 2020 by Hane

[smittykins]

22 hours ago, FilleMondaine said:

Joseph ROBINETTE Biden Jr is another example,

Fun fact:  there’s a jewelry store in my town called “Robinette’s.”

[Topaz]

On 11/7/2020 at 4:07 PM, SweetLaurel said:

I have a friend who was the youngest boy of seven and they stopped after the girl came after him.  He always felt - still does - feel like if they had had her earlier, he and his three or four older brothers would never have been born.  That they were placeholders till they got the kid they really wanted and how disappointed their parents were to find out - 'great, another boy'.    I hope they don't make their younger boys feel that way.  It makes me sad.  I hope his parents don't really feel that way, and that these parents make the boys realize that they were just as wanted as the girl.   

 

I used to know a family with six kids - 4 girls then 2 boys. The mother said that they’d always planned to have five children, and after girls #3 and #4 were born they got a lot of sympathetic comments about “yet another girl” and “the next will definitely be a boy”.  When #5 was a boy they got lots of “you finally got your boy” and “you can stop now”. They ended up having #6 and a big factor in that was that they didn’t want the younger girls to feel that they were unwanted and should have been a boy, or never would have been born if they had a boy earlier. I still think about that family whenever I hear someone make a comment like that and I’m careful not to say anything like that myself.

Edited November 9, 2020 by Topaz
Clarity

[4boysmum]

40 minutes ago, Topaz said:

I used to know a family with six kids - 4 girls then 2 boys. The mother said that they’d always planned to have five children, and after girls #3 and #4 were born they got a lot of sympathetic comments about “yet another girl” and “the next will definitely be a boy”.  When #5 was a boy they got lots of “you finally got your boy” and “you can stop now”. They ended up having #6 and a big factor in that was that they didn’t want the younger girls to feel that they were unwanted and should have been a boy, or never would have been born if they had a boy earlier. I still think about that family whenever I hear someone make a comment like that and I’m careful not to say anything like that myself.

I can relate to this so much.  As of last month, my username is a bit outdated.  I am now a 4 boys and 1 girl mum.  Am I excited to have a daughter because I had always kind of wanted to have a mix of sons and daughters?  Sure.  Is that the reason we had a 5th child?  Not at all.  I've had lots of "yay, you finally got your girl!" comments from well-meaning friends and family, but they always make me look around and hope my sons are out of earshot.  I have no idea right now if we will have more children, and it's not a decision I'm prepared to make a month after giving birth.  But there's a part of me already thinking that at least it would show that we weren't just having babies until one of them came out with two X chromosomes.

[Smee]

I kind of appreciate that the Arndts went on to have two more after Wizzy so there was no doubt about their fundiedom, they weren't just "waiting for a girl".

I have a few friends who have 4 or more of the same sex and rant about rude comments of the "how sad you didn't get your girl" or "eek all those hormones when they're teenagers" variety. So now I always take care to say something positive when I meet someone with lots of boys or lots of girls. 

These guys do give off the impression that they just love children and all their boys.

[JMarie]

On 11/8/2020 at 10:52 AM, FilleMondaine said:

Joseph ROBINETTE Biden Jr is another example, although I suspect that it was a maternal surname. Still, definite feminine "Boy named Sue" vibes, poor man, and no wonder he goes by Joseph R Biden Jr.

(PS The patriarchy sucks)

(PPS Should have written President-Elect Joseph ROBINETTE Biden Jr! Yay Joe and Kamala!)

Robinette is his paternal grandmother's maiden name. Hunter named one of his daughters Finnegan, which is 46's mother's maiden name.

(So excited to be able to refer to Biden as 46!!!)

[Petronella]

On 11/7/2020 at 1:28 AM, JermajestyDuggar said:

At least they aren’t fundie!

Wait, why are they in Quiver Full of Snark, then?