Opus 188 - Goodbye

It is with a tinge of sadness that I write this post. Today I will be deleting "Jon & Kate Plus Eight" from my DVR's series recordings. Up until recently, I have thoroughly enjoyed watching this show that chronicles the life of Jon, Kate, their twins, and their sextuplets. Watching this show made raising twins look easy! However, it is time to say goodbye. "Why?" you may ask. It's a bit complicated, but I will try to explain...

When we first started watching Jon & Kate, they were (mostly) humble parents trying to survive the day to day rigors of taking care of two sets of multiples. As the show has become more popular, things have changed. We started noticing that most of the episodes were about their lavish trips to expensive destinations - A trip to Disney World where they were treated like royalty (stayed in a huge suite right on the property, got personal visits with the characters, etc.); A trip to a baseball game where they sat in a box and got to meet some players on the field after the game; I could go on, but you get the idea. Kate kept saying things like, "These are things my kids normally wouldn't be able to experience because we're such a large family." Note to Kate: Almost every kid in the nation doesn't experience that stuff and they're doing just fine. It just got really old watching them get all of this special treatment (which I know is just part of being famous) and hearing Kate act like it was just to make sure the kids experience things, blah, blah, blah (they aren't having normal, real kid experiences). I really started to miss the cute family that did normal family things like the rest of us. That's why I liked the show. If I want to watch celebrities living their lavish lives, I can. There are plenty of those shows on, but it's not what I want to watch.

And then there's the latest developments. If you haven't heard about it, here's a basic run-down: Kate decided she wanted to write books about her life/kids and now she's constantly traveling for book tours and speaking engagements and is rarely home. Jon had to quit his job to watch the kids. Kate seems to be too focused on making A LOT of money (my personal opinion) and Jon doesn't seem to be liking the whole stay-at-home dad thing (let's face it, some dads like it while some have an innate need/desire to be out providing for their families). Both have been accused of cheating on each other (by the tabloids of course) and now they're basically separated; probably headed for divorce.

The recent season premiere was just plain depressing. Jon and Kate weren't interviewed together, as usual, but were interviewed at different times. They hardly acknowledged each other at the kids' birthday party (which was WAY too elaborate). Kate was talking about the higher rate of divorcees among parents of multiples (makes you stop and think about your own marriage and make sure you're doing the right things to keep it strong). The kids were asking Daddy to be home more (it seems he's basically moved out except for when Kate is gone and he takes care of them). It was just plain sad.

It also doesn't help that I'm annoyed at Kate so watching her just gets on my nerves. It seems to me that she has become a diva and it bugs. She's never been very nice to Jon (ask anyone who has watched a lot of the show and they'll tell you that she's constantly yelling at him), she's too focused on money, and she has a warped sense of what kids really need. I'm sure Jon isn't completely innocent either - it seems that he's finally sick of everything and is pushing back in a way that reminds me of a rebellious teenager.

So that's it. Jason and I no longer enjoy watching "Jon & Kate Plus Eight." So goodbye cute kiddos. We've enjoyed watching you grow up. I hope your parents figure things out for your sakes and I really hope they stop doing the TV show so they can focus on their marriage and you, their cute kids.