Karla Bradley, 41, recently gave birth to her ninth child, despite previously believing the eighth would be her last. The Bradley family lives on a farm in Flippin, Arkansas; the oldest child is 14 years old, while the youngest is one month old, and both sets of grandparents live with them.
Karla always wanted a big family, but even she never thought that one day she would be the mother of nine children. She and her husband, Lucas, have known each other since high school, but their relationship didn’t blossom until after college, and they married in 2009. Karla gave birth to their first child in 2007 at the age of 26, and by 2019, they had seven more children: Jenna, Samuel, Liam, Evelyn, Inga, Ben, Rosalyn, and Cora.
Beau Wagner’s ninth baby, a boy, was born on March 15, 2023. “She is our first rainbow baby. Cora was born in 2019, and then it seemed like we were done having kids. But in June 2022, I got pregnant again, and it was a big surprise because a lot of time had passed. Then, right after I found out I was pregnant, we lost the baby very quickly, within a week,” explained the mother. However, she became pregnant again the following month.
That’s why Karla was more nervous than usual during her last pregnancy, but in the end everything went well, although when the labor started 12 days earlier than expected, at first she didn’t want to believe that it was really happening.
“I took our two daughters for tonsillectomy, and while they were being operated on, I started to feel that my contractions were getting a little more painful,” she recalled.
When Karla went into labor, her husband, who is a neurosurgeon, was between two surgeries and did not arrive at the hospital until some time later. Lucas brought along their two oldest children, Jenna and Samuel, who were looking forward to meeting their little brother.
“Already in the early stages of the pregnancy, we decided that they could also be there in the delivery room,” said Karla. “Sam got to hold her first, after me. Jenna got to cut the umbilical cord, and it was a really special moment for them.” The next day, the other children also visited them in the hospital, and they also got to know the youngest member of the family.
Karla says that Beau is a very calm baby, and because his older siblings help out a lot, it’s much easier for the mother. “For example, when we brought the baby home, the next morning the older children were already in my room to take care of it, help with diapering, or whatever the baby needed,” she said.
Karla also said that all nine of her pregnancies were problem-free, which she attributes largely to a healthy, active lifestyle and a diet rich in protein, fruits, and vegetables, but she says the lack of morning sickness was simply down to genetics.
The mother of nine regularly documents her family’s life on Instagram and has a huge fan base on the social network. Her followers often ask her if she and her husband are planning to have more children, and she hasn’t ruled out the possibility: “I mean, at this point, what’s the point of one more, right? If heaven blessed us with more children, that would not be a bad thing. We’ll see,” he said.
Karla and Lucas lived in Little Rock, Arkansas, for seven years while Lucas completed his neurosurgery residency, but since they both missed the rural lifestyle, they later moved to a farm where they keep dogs, cats, chickens, rabbits, cows, and sometimes pigs.
Lucas’s father takes care of the garden with the help of his third oldest grandson, Liam, but the other children also have tasks to do. The boys like to fish in the farm’s pond full of bass; Jenna likes to play volleyball and tried her hand at cheerleading; and the other kids like basketball and baseball.
Karla and Lucas raise their children according to conservative Christian principles; the family attends a Baptist church and is a believer in a simple life. “We make sure that the children get to know the Lord. We try to minimize electronics and distractions like that; let them play outside and just be kids,” says Karla. She also added that the most rewarding part of being a mother to nine children is watching their personalities develop.
At the same time, she admits that keeping track of schedules and birthdays can sometimes be a challenge, but she says a parent never regrets having a child, even though there is never a perfect time to start a family and life just happens.
“I mean, there really is never a good time, and it’s so easy to talk yourself out of it. But once the baby is here and you’re living your life, you’ll never regret adding another child to your family,” she said, recalling that while their children were born one after the other, they moved to another state, changed jobs, sold a house, and bought another, but somehow they always got along.
“I remember when my husband and I were talking about how we envisioned our family in the future. I said I wanted a big family, and he said he did too. I was so excited. I never in my wildest dreams thought we would have nine kids, but it’s amazing. I always say that we are immeasurably blessed,” added the mother.