‘I’m a mum-of-14 with £9,000 bills – we get through 180 eggs and nine gallons of milk a WEEK’

A mom-of-14 has revealed the eye-watering amount of money she spends on food per month, including up to 36 gallons of milk, plus spending over £400 for each child’s birthday.

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.

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On top of the incredible £42,800 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 knows 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, told What’s The Jam.

“We are open to whatever the Lord has for us.

“I have very easy pregnancies; my doctor called me a machine.

“We don’t receive support from anyone; we provide, cook and clean ourselves.

“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, run a fully functioning family routine where all the youngsters are homeschooled, with the older siblings heading off to college.

Each child’s home school supplies cost 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.”

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