Were they big families or little families in 1st century palesine?

I will try to elaborate a little about some of the people that The Bible mentions. The parents of Mary; Anne was from Bethlehem from the tribe of Aaron, and Joachim from the tribe of David. Joachim was ridiculed because he had no sons, but we refer to Elizabeth, Mary and the mother of James the Lesser as being being of the daughters of Aaron. Joseph was a merchant from Bethlehem and he had grown sons, the oldest being another James.

So we have families of children that survived their early years. Many children did not mature and for some time in Genesis, a child's life given in years, was not recorded until ones fourteenth birthday. Take the times recorded, divide by 12 and add 14 = ones age in modern translation.