I’m a mum-of-14, we spend £9k a month on bills and have to leave one of the kids at home because we can’t fit in the car

WITH 14 kids in her house it safe to say that Shay Barbee has her hands full – and her wallet empty. The mum has revealed the eye-watering amount of money she spends on food per month including up to 36 gallons of milk, plus flogging over £400 for each child’s birthday. The Barbee kids’ ages ranges from 25 to 5. Credit: Jam Press/@thismomof14 Shay and Will pride themselves on not needing financial or practical support. Credit: Jam Press/@thismomof14 Shay and her husband, Will Barbee, have raised and paid for their plethora of children by themselves – priding themselves on not needing support from anyone whether it be practical or financial. The 44-year-old mum, who was once described as a birth “machine” by her doctors, had her first child 25 years ago – and her last child arrived five years ago. Sign up for the Fabulous newsletter Thank you! On top of the incredible £108,000 the pair spend yearly on groceries – which would be much higher if they didn’t have their own chickens to provide eggs – an extra £11,000 is set aside for clothing. Despite the heavy weight on their bank balance, the couple know that another child may still be a possibility while Shay is fertile. “We didn’t prevent or try to have children,” the mum from Chicago, Illinois, says. Shay often spots people counting them in public. Credit: Jam Press/@thismomof14 They spend £108,000 a year on groceries. Credit: Jam Press/@thismomof14 “We are open to whatever the Lord has for us. “I have very easy pregnancies; my doctor called me a machine. “I’ve been pregnant across two decades, bearing children across 21 years total from 1999-2021. Most read in Fabulous “If I add up each pregnancy length it totals 10 years and 3 months of carrying my children because each pregnancy was 9 months or so in length.” The parents are very proud to be totally self-reliant. “We don’t receive support from anyone; we provide, cook and clean ourselves,” shay says. “Our family raises chickens and ducks. “We have about 40 total and can go through 180 eggs a week. “We don’t eat a lot of bread; I try to bake my own and I usually bake six loaves for the day. “If I purchase bread from the store, I purchase about eight loaves per week. “We don’t drink a lot of milk either; I try to get our dairy from a local farmer. “When we’re able to obtain Jersey milk, we purchase nine gallons a week. “At Costco, we purchase six gallons a week.” The kids of the Barbee family are made up of Sean, 25, Jacob, 23, Joshua, 21, Jaicee, 20, Jewel, 17, Jeremy, 16, Jordan, 14, Jenevieve, 13, Jonah, 13, Josiah, 12, Job, 10, Jameson and Jerusalem, both seven, and Jiuseppe, five. Shay, a full-time mother, and Will, an entrepreneur and investor in real estate, run a fully-functioning family routine where all the youngsters are homeschooled, with the older siblings heading off to college. Shay and Will have been homeschooling for 14 years. Credit: Jam Press/@thismomof14 Shay says they provide, cook and clean for themselves. Credit: Jam Press/@thismomof14 Each child’s home school supplies costing around £1,500 – with all core subjects covered with the addition of biblical, music, fine arts and vocational studies. Shay spends most days at home preparing her children for the outside world. She said: “We have been homeschooling for 14 years and most days are spent at home, I’m usually up by 7.30am. “We have breakfast and outdoor playtime before we start our day. “We also have morning chores. “On any given day there are sounds of piano and violin practice in the background.” To cut down on costs and to teach their children good values to take into everyday life, Shay and Will raise animals. They have 40 chickens and ducks in total, which help them avoid buying eggs – as they go through an eye-watering 180 every week. Family events can put a big dent in the bank balance too – with the logistics of getting all of them in one place causing a fair few headaches. The Barbee family owns five separate cars but often opt for their 15-seater vehicle as the eldest, Sean, doesn’t attend every trip. On average, each birthday costs around £434, adding up to around £6,000 every year for all fourteen celebrations. Meanwhile, Christmas sets the family back £5,200 every year. She said: “Each child gets to pick what they want to do for their birthday plus a toy/clothes/shoes or whatever they choose. “Our Christmas budget includes gifts, trips, shows, new decor and Christmas pyjamas. “The biggest logistical challenge is transportation. “Because my oldest doesn’t go everywhere with us we now all fit in one 15-passenger vehicle, but sometimes we take two vehicles. “We make reservations and plan accordingly in advance.” When they go out and about, the family can be quite a sight – with Shay often spotting people counting them in public. However, the majority of the reactions in person are good in nature. Shay added: “I’ve witnessed people counting us but mostly the reactions are positive and people tell us how beautiful and well-behaved our children are. “The reaction is usually a resounding ‘Wow, that’s amazing, you don’t look like you have 14 kids! You must have the patience of a saint!’ “We never receive rude comments in person. “The only rude comments come from family and social media.” Comment now