Finished Seasons 1+2 of Jon+Kate Plus Ei8ht
February 11, 2009
I want a billion babies.
Not really at all, actually. But I’ll say “quite a few” and “a large family” are safe terms I could use right now.
I can just imagine getting really angry at 3 year olds for doing what 3 year-olds do (cry, hit, whine, bite each other…) and yelling at them. It seems like Kate and Jon just… are constantly talking at their kids. “Don’t hit.” “Share.” “Stop.”
I don’t know if I could be that on top of the situation, that controlling. I mean, the kids are climbing all over the place, pushing each other down, and breaking stuff. I feel like I would be laid back – more like Jon – and just wait for them to cry. Once they cry, I react, although I can imagine that waiting to respond until they cry would only ENCOURAGING CRYING. I just want to say, “Here are the rules, here are the consequences,” but do 3 year olds get that? Kate is all about positive reinforcement – I could do that. But then what do you do the 80% of the time that they’re acting up? I guess I’m just not used to a calm, cool and collected parent hoisting their child over to the naughty corner instead of yelling at them. Those parents aren’t freaking out at their kids.
I’m used to seeing parents go from not-caring to yelling their head off in the blink of an eye.
I have no idea how to parent. I do think, sometimes, that I’d just watch kids do stupid things and wait for them to hurt themselves before I came alongside and said, “That’s why I told you not to X.”
I’ve watched parents with toddlers, and they all seem to be the same – every 10 seconds they’re saying something to their children. I have very little experience with toddlers, but I think I’d leave them to their own devices more often, and trust them to figure out that pain is avoidable if you’re more careful/obedient. Then again, I was an only child. A lot of my childhood was spent playing by myself.
I can’t help but think that the knowledge of cameras following and recording their every move has an effect on their parenting. :P A million eyes following and judging them…
I wonder what happens with all of the inevitably cut footage, or when all of the cameras are off.
I’d totally babysit your kids if you wanted. :D
After watching twenty episodes of these people, I honestly think that they don’t care that the cameras are there. I’ve seen brief glimpses of the producers (middle-aged women) and the guy who holds the boom (once a 2 year-old went up and hugged his leg), and it seems like they really do go unnoticed. The thing is, I think they’re too busy to care about what other people think…and they do sit down the next day and watch the footage and comment (not quite like a commentary, more like narration, and explanation) and often will say things like, “I wish that wasn’t on film,” because they had said something rude or mean. They seem authentic, to me. “Calm cool and collected” might’ve been an exaggeration. They’re just not yelling at the kids ever… which blows my mind.
:D Yes please, babysit my kids! I give you permission to dress up my future children :D Haha.
http://psychology.about.com/od/developmentalpsychology/a/parenting-style.htm
This gave me an ideological framework for parenting. But when it comes to managing behavior?: Hell if I know.
Maybe you need to reconsider the idea of having a “billion babies” or rather, a large family, and start off with, you know, one. And see where that takes you.
I know that you grew up, ostensibly, as an only child, and that as such have a great need to not allow your children to grow up the same way (I understand this very well, as my boy feels the same way).
But as someone who grow up in a larger family, it’s not all that fun. A child can be just as lonely with 2 siblings as they can all by themselves, and they’ll get into more trouble as there’s less supervision. Parenting needs to be clearly defined with a large family, as it gets spread thin when there starts to be more children than parents.
If you question your ability to parent calmly, perhaps it would be best to start off small, and be patient until you know what kind of a parent you’ll be. Thankfully, human beings generally only have one at a time, so biology is on your side.
Perhaps you should volunteer at your churches nursery, and Sunday schools? That’s how I learned about children, and the parent I’d like to be. Plus there’s the added bonus of doing a good thing by volunteering.
[...] I own Seasons 1 & 2, and I loved it. Absolutely encouraging show. It was the battle cry for families – life is challenging but we’re in it together and this thing called family is worth it! You saw the support they got from their friends and family – the old adage, it takes a whole village to raise a child? Well, there was a small army here raising these eight kids. But now there seems to be no community, no counseling, just hitting the breaking point and … breaking up. Giving in as if it’s inevitable, as if that’s destiny, as if that’s just how things are. Resigning over to destruction. [...]