Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Abigail O'Leary

Mum-of-12 shares pregnancy journey which saw her with a baby bump for almost 20 years

A mother-of-12 has shared her pregnancy journey after life with a baby bump for almost 20 years.

Zoe and Ben Sullivan have one of the largest families in Scotland, living in a four-bedroom house on military quarters with their 12 kids.

The couple are parents to Elizabeth, 17, Olivia, 16, Noah, 13, Evangeline, 11, Tobias, 9, Agnes, 5, and Joseph, 4, two sets of twins, Charlotte and Isabelle, 14, and Leah and Erin, 6, and baby Flo, 8 months .

Now, Zoe has shared images from the past two decades, documenting how much of that time has been with a bump.

She first fell pregnant in 2004/2005, which was soon followed by another baby in 2006.

Then in 2007 and 2008, the family welcomed their first set of twins, and just a year later, in 2009, Zoe was carrying a baby bump yet again.

In 2010, Zoe without falling pregnant, however in 2011 she announced she was excepting another child.

But they weren't done there- as between 2012 and 2013, the mum had found herself with a big bump once more.

Between 2015 and 2016, the duo and their children learnt that they were about to become mum and dad to the second set of twins.

The parents welcomed child to their huge brood in 2017 and 2018, and this was then finally followed with their latest pregnancy in 2021/2022.

In a recent clip on their social media platforms, the mum walks their fans through her pregnancy journey over the years.

Speaking to followers on YouTube, she said: "We’re all about honesty and what life is really like. As much as I’d love to have a pristine house all the time, there’s 14 people living in my house and we haven’t got much space.

"So what others might see as messy clothes is actually individual piles of people’s things that they’re kind of in the process of wearing or have only worn for an hour and are going to wear later.

"A certain nasty person keeps getting a hold our videos and switching things around, saying stuff like ‘the Sullivans’ house is disgusting’.

Zoe had also spoken about running. huge family during a cost of living crisis (One Tribe TV)

"The worst thing about it is people who have previously followed you and like your channel start to believe what others have put on.

"That’s where it gets really upsetting. It’s not the original troll if you like, it’s when other people start believing it."

Recently, the family have opened up about the struggles of running a huge family amid a cost of living crisis.

Zoe said their bills have nearly doubled from £240 to £400 a month, despite not using the central heating during the summer, and they have two seven-seater cars - one of which is used by Ben to go to work, while she uses the other for shopping.

Recently, the family have opened up about the struggles of running a huge family amid a cost of living crisis (Daily Record)

The family have not had a holiday in years but live near two beaches in Lossiemouth, Moray, so often go for walks and make do with day trips.

But they had hoped to take the kids away, although savings for that are now being put into groceries and bills.

Zoe fears bills could increase to £600 a month which would be unaffordable, and said the prospect of winter using blankets rather than central heating was scary.

Identical twins Leah and Erin with their older sisters Charlotte and Isabelle (Sullivan family / SWNS)

She shops at Tesco, Adli, Asda, Home Bargains and B&M to find deals, often in the evenings when items are discounted, and spends £320 a week on groceries, which works out at around £21 per person on food.

The family will soon need to find a five-bedroom home which Zoe said was daunting, and she and her husband gave up alcohol and neither smoke.

Stay-at-home mum Zoe said: "The jump in price is huge, we don't use any more, it's just the increase in price.

Zoe Sullivan with her children Leah and Erin (Sullivan family / SWNS)

"We have lived in our house nearly ten years, we used to pay around £200 to £250 a month, there's no way we could afford to pay £600 or £700.

"It is really scary, there doesn't seem to be any help for people.

"There's no way we can meet these costs, what we would have put into savings is now going into food and bills."

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.