[10 of 13] Julie's Deleted Posts - Gum-Gate Part 3

Gum-Gate Part 3
July 14, 2008

Kate calls Jodi and then Kate explains that "Evidently, the kids got into the gumballs, and once they had them, Jodi didn't know what to do." This comment really irritated me!! Like Jodi doesn't have a brain in her head to figure things out. Since 3 of the kids already had gum, she decided to allow the other 3 to have one gumball. BIG DEAL!! The kids didn't convince her of anything. They know they chew gum, and Jodi knows they chew gum. J&K seem to be very inconsistent with their "rules". An example: the kids can eat ice cream for dinner on a "special day", yet they can't eat a cupcake "on a special day" unless they eat dinner. I'm sure it's very confusing for them.

Then Kate says Jodi's such a loving and..."not forceful individual"...Jon decided to chime in and started laughing as they both said "and they know that". I'm sure Jon was just happy that someone else was getting it from Kate. They looked at each other and laughed, as if it were their "inside joke". Kate went on to state how they would have handled the situation. Well, when you leave your kids with someone else, you can't expect them to handle things exactly as you would. Kate says, "They convinced Aunt Jodi that mommy lets them chew gum at home. Yeah, right!" What I have to say to that is--they weren't in YOUR home! I already stated my opinion--they didn't "convince" Jodi. Kate made it sound like she is easily manipulated. Jodi isn't a new mom. She has plenty of experience with her own four children. That's just ridiculous!

They say they have a standing gum rule--they're not allowed to chew gum until they're 4. Then they had to back up and say, "unless we're flying on an airplane". I guess they forgot about the ski trip, and maybe that it's alright if they want to keep them quiet. If safety is the concern, is it any less of a choking risk to chew gum on a plane? Kate only talked about being upset that she had to do extra laundry and stain removal. Maybe the real reason she's obsessed with the laundry is that she wants "top dollar" when she consigns all of the free clothes they receive. I also read a theory that some think she's trying to get an endorsement from a laundry detergent or stain removal company.

Back to Collin...I made the mistake of allowing my 9 yr old to watch the episode with me. As I watched, I found it very cruel to threaten to throw out a child's security item. Collin was crying and said "teddy bear's my buddy". What did Kate yell? "TOO BAD!!" There is absolutely no excuse for this, IMO. She hadn't been with the kids all day, so it's not like this happened at the end of her exhausting and stressful day as the mother of eight. I can't imagine the terror that Collin was feeling at the thought of losing his bear! I don't care what the end result was. For those few moments, Collin actually believed she was going to throw it in the trash. I'll stop there, but that was one of the most heartbreaking things to watch.

My son didn't say anything until the show was over. I looked over at him, and he had tears in his eyes. He asked me why she was so mean and why she was yelling at the kids. The next thing he said really struck me, and I hadn't said a word as we were watching. He related Collin to his younger sister. She has a special "blankie" as a security object, and he knows how important it is to her. He said, "[my sister] has marker and stains all over her [blankie] and you'd never throw it out. You don't care that it has stains." Hearing his response and seeing how upsetting that was for him to watch, really hit me hard. I will never allow my kids to watch the show again. It also shows how older siblings really look out for the younger ones. Mady stood up to Kate for Collin. My son was thinking about his younger sister. And I guess, I'm still looking out for mine.