Issue link: https://cp.revolio.com/i/139497
At 8:12 p.m. at Sky Ridge Medical Center in Lone Tree, Darren and Kerri Bunker welcomed 7-pound, 3-ounce Nola Sadie Bunker into the world on a rare and, many believe, auspicious birthday: 12/12/12. I t will be another 88 years before all three numbers in a date are the same – a fact that prompted expectant parents everywhere to cross their fingers for a triple-twelve birth. But for the Bunkers, those digits were significant for another reason: Nola is their 12th child. "I always wanted a big family," says 41-year-old Kerri – herself the oldest of 12. "Growing up, there was always something going on. We were the house that all the neighborhood kids wanted to come to." Adds Darren, 47, and the middle child of nine: "I just loved the camaraderie. You always had someone you could trust." Step into the Bunkers' Highlands Ranch home today and you find a relatively calm, remarkably tidy household that defies large-family stereotypes put forward by movies like Steve Martin's classic comedy, "Cheaper by the Dozen." With 10 kids still at home and a cousin and son-in-law living there too, it is still home to 14. And Kerri also holds down a full-time job as a sales director for Mary Kay Cosmetics. But by being painstakingly organized, cultivating an ethos of cooperation, and being fiercely protective of their family time and alone time as a couple, the Bunkers have created a household from which families of any size could take a few cues. "When you have large families, people always look at you and ask: 'How do you do that?'" says obstetrician Steven Grover, a father of five who delivered three of the Bunkers' children. "They have 12, and they have done a great job raising sharp kids who are well grounded and respectful." "I actually think people with two or three children have it harder than I do. They have to do all the laundry and dishes and diapers and everyone depends on them." Born and raised in Provo, Utah, the two met at a dance and married soon after Kerri graduated from high school. It wasn't long before she noticed something was missing. "It was so quiet all the time. I would leave the TV on just so there would be some noise." She gave birth to Heidi on Oct. 19, 1990. Then came Isaac, Thomas, Martin, Hans, Dallin, Tanner, Savannah, Lily, Molly, Lucy, and Nola, arriving roughly every two years over the course of 24. The Bunkers lost three other children: Twins John and Matthew suffered complications during pregnancy and lived only 22 minutes after their birth in 2007. In 2010, Maxwell was born with Down Syndrome. He passed five weeks later due to problems with his heart and lungs. "That was hard," says Kerri, her voice cracking as 4-year-old Molly climbs into her lap and puts a tiny, empathetic hand on her cheek. "But the kids have learned a lot through our hard things." Health & Wellness Magazine • 13