Over Forty and Loving It!

Ooooh, who didn't see THAT coming?

I had no desire to ever watch "Jon and Kate Plus 8", however, when I stayed with my daughter last summer, she tied me to a chair and made me watch it. (That's my story and I'm sticking to it.)

The kids are adorable. The parents...not so much. But, you know what? I remember when my kids were small -- my first two kids are fourteen months apart, and the second and third child are eighteen months apart, so it was almost like having triplets the stupid way. It was quite stressful at times. We were young, we were broke, and we were overwhelmed. The marriage didn't survive, although there were many more issues and the kids were the least of it. Still, having a lot of kids I think adds tremendous stress to an already situation (marriage) that is predisposed to stress in the first place.

Jon and Kate have EIGHT children, all the same age (six are sextuplets; two girls are older and twins.) I can't even imagine the stress element, and it makes my stomach roll to think about it. Even still, I'd watch that show and cringe, because Kate seemed to be a control freak and really hard on Jon. Then, I'd think of when my kids were small and you know, no matter how involved the father is, the bulk of the responsibility of child raising falls on the mother. I'm sorry, but it's true. Go ahead and fall on the floor and foam at the mouth -- that's my opinion and you're not going to change my mind.

I think being responsible for eight children all the same age would probably make most women nuts and put an amount of strain on a marriage that's hard to handle. That being said, I was really aghast at some of the things these two said to each other. In a marriage, it seems like you need to be each other's biggest fans -- watch each other's back. I guess I'm naive that way.

I feel bad for them, as a family unit. I think the whole idea of putting their family under the microscope of the camera was probably a bad one, and I also think they only way their marriage stands a chance of being saved means TURNING OFF the damned camera and put that energy into trying to fix what's gone so horribly wrong.

I saw part of the big premiere of the new season of their show last night. (It wasn't my fault -- my daughter called me and MADE ME turn it on.) Apparently there are allegations of infidelity on both sides (holy shiz-niz, with eight kids who would have the time, much less the desire??) which both denied, and the rift between husband and wife was huge and very painful to watch. I actually felt bad for Kate. She seems genuinely heartbroken, and apologized for past behavior and expressed regret. Jon pretty much sat there like a lump of mashed potatoes and said, I'm just here for the kids. He seems very resentful of the fact Kate wrote a book and has been traveling on speaking engagements and he's been home taking care of the kids.

This is where I lose any sympathy for him. Sure, Kate can be a cast-iron, control-freaky bitch, but she stayed home for 4 1/2 years with the kids -- now that she's out and about and HE'S the one "stuck" at home, he's angry. It's okay for her, not okay for him.

I feel so bad for the kids. First of all, for having a camera stuck in their face 24/7 from the moment they were born and without their consent, so that now, their life probably feels unnatural without a lens following their every move. Wonder what kind of long-term damage that's doing and what happens when the cameras and electronics stop. Second, I feel bad for the kids because their parents, two ADULTS, can't pull the plug on the show in an attempt to put the pieces of their marriage together.

And, I feel bad my daughter got me hooked on this mess in the first place.