A mom-of-12 who spent 16 continuous years carrying babies is speaking out saying she is “adjusting” to the fact that she is no longer expecting.
Iris Purnell, 38 spoke with the NY Post and said “I would’ve loved to have had one more!” The California-based mother also said that she has been pregnant every year between 2004 and 2019.
It’s great to see a large Black family with the same mom and dad. My grandparents had 11 kids. This is rare these days. All praises to The Most High Yahawah. Children are a blessing from TMH. 🙌🏾🙌🏾
— Black_Jake_144 (@HebrewJake) July 28, 2022
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She revealed she has her tubes tied now, but she “loved” carrying her kids. “Not all my pregnancies were easy,” Iris explained. “I had six C-sections… but being pregnant gave me a spiritual elevation. I learned to be patient and to sit still with my body.”
Iris, who is a choreographer, met her husband Cordell, who was working as an international dancer, back in 2005. At the time, the couple each had a six-month-old son. Iris was mom to Malikhai , while Cordell was a dad to baby Junior. They both got married soon before having 10 more children in quick succession: Jahni, 15, Trinity, 13, Messiah, 11, JoJo, 10, Love, 9, Seven, 8, Michael, 6, Royal, 5, Heavenly, 4 and Hope, 3.
Iris spends most of her time going viral on TikTok, frequently choreographing family dance videos, and sharing them on her popular YouTube channel and TikTok pages. Her TikTok currently rakes in millions of views which has led her to have 501.3k followers.
TikTok viewers were amazed by the fact that Iris spent the almost two decades carrying kids, with one writing. “16 YEARS YOU’VE BEEN PREGNANT????? Momma the stress of kids and the stress of my body couldn’t do it!”
I’ve been pregnant for 16 years in a row & am now a mum-of-12 – it’s not easy & my kids have unusual names but I love it | The Sun https://t.co/f785jqWjCU
— Cengiz Adabag (@adabagcompany) July 28, 2022
Meanwhile, one teenage TikTokker admired the achievement, putting Iris’ pregnancies into philosophy. “She’s been pregnant my entire life!” they declared.
The Purnell family stated that their children have strengthened their relationship and given them increased motivation and energy.