Adiba

Yes, I don’t have to agree with everything Paedon says in the interview to get some interesting tidbits about the Brown family. This interview confirmed some things that were speculated about for a long time. They moved to Flagstaff because Dayton chose to go to school there and Robyn did not want to cut the umbilical cord. (Dayton got accepted to several others schools, btw). Even in Vegas, Kody spent most of his time at Robyn’s house. From the beginning, Kody treated Robyn differently than Paedon ever saw him treating the other wives. Breanna, Sol, and Ari are the favorite children and can do no wrong in Kody’s eyes. Meri and Robyn were never mother figures to him. Authority figures, yes— but not “motherly.” He said that “mean and abrasive” were not strong enough words to describe his opinion of Meri when he was young.

I haven't finished the show, but I was interested because I wanted to know how it all started and how he got so many to trust him with large sums of money for so long. I also wanted to know how he got some of his employees to do the jobs it took to run the scheme. I knew the basic story when it came out, but I didn't really follow it or pay much attention at the time it broke. I did want to know what Madoff's background was and what would have motivated a person to start something like this--which the first episode kind of addressed. Yes, greed is the primary motivator, but there were other factor involved as well.

So basically, Kody is saying, never complain, never want more from me, never talk about me to others except to praise me, and put up and shut up about whatever time, affection, and resources I deem you deserve. Robyn has no reason to complain because “since day one” she has had the best of Kody and the family’s resources. Even early on, if they were in a family meeting and one of the OG wives raised any issue, Kody’s jaw would set and his eyes would narrow and become beady. When Robyn spoke, however, you could see Kody’s expression and eyes soften. You could tell he was taking in what she said and considering it.

I think the only way this “tell-all” could have been really informative is if they had set it up like Divorce Court, with Kody, Robyn and Meri on one side and Jenelle and Christine on the other, with a (preferably female) judge presiding. Would love it if a female judge could tell Kody straight up that he’s lying, or to shut up.

Right, while I do applaud Christine for leaving Kody, I don’t think it was entirely about the “kids.” Aspyn, Mykelti and Paedon were out of the house already and Gwen and Ysabel were in the process of leaving. However, I think that Kody’s neglect of Truly and his absence for Ysabel’s surgery during the pandemic were the final straws for Christine. I agree that Kody’s lack of involvement with their kids was only one of the (many) reasons she finally decided to leave him.

If I didn’t know better, I’d think Gwen was becoming a sister wife from this post 😜

I saw it more as a prevarication by Robyn than an out-and-out lie. I think Christine did have something to say to Kody about their marriage and how it has deteriorated and how Kody seems unable or unwilling to work on it. I think she related the Meri situation back to her own, and that’s where Kody got it twisted. (Total speculation, of course.) Robyn didn’t hear the actual content of the conversation and relied on what Kody told her afterwards. However, all of this is suspect because it has never been brought up before. Also, Kody never does/ did what Christine wants unless it benefits him. Suki should ask Kody why he does not want to reconcile with Meri now that Christine has left.

It was interesting that Gwen said at first she thought it was “normal” that Kody didn’t go with Ysabel to surgery, but later realized it wasn’t, and that was sad. Also, during the “Covid is real” discussion she mentioned that she thought it was sometimes used as an excuse by Kody, and that there wasn’t that much difference in how much she saw her father pre-pandemic and during pandemic. In addition, Gwen said that she hasn’t been inside Robyn’s house in the last two years.

Our daughter was colicky and had reflux. She was a crier, a screamer,even. She didn’t want a bottle and only wanted to nurse. She was exhausting as an infant, so I do have some sympathy for Tori. Even my mother and MIL could not handle her for too long. However, Zach needs to step up and help any way he can, it’s only fair. As for Caryn, she might be too busy with her own new grandson to help much, even if Zach and Tori did not move away.

Another thing that was in this episode was the interviewer asking them what Robyn meant by the "Christine is still spiritually married to Kody until she has sex with another man"-- and they couldn't answer it definitively. I still do not get it. If adultery is a sin in their religion, does that mean one has to sin in order to remarry (in the AUB)? Does it mean that technically, Kody was in fact courting a spiritually married woman when he courted Robyn? The interviewer should have asked Robyn and Janelle (?) how it worked for both of them when they left their first husbands.

Yes, I’ve said this before about Robyn— she never really had the struggles of being a sister wife. She didn’t have to share a home (only very temporarily) with other wives or see Kody continue to have babies with another wife. She didn’t have to struggle financially once she came into the family. So it was easier for her to “keep sweet.” She got a big spiritual wedding and a long honeymoon (while Christine was left with a newborn and postpartum depression). She got the legal marriage and a trip to Hawaii. She got the lion’s share of Kody’s attention, consideration and family ‘s resources. What’s not to be happy about?

I don’t believe that Christine actually told Kody not to reconcile with Meri, but I could believe she said something along the lines of, “how about working on our marriage first?” Whatever Christine did or didn’t say, no way in hell would Kody base his actions or inaction on anything Christine wanted. When has he ever? I do agree that all of the wives have at one time or another complained to Kody about another wife or wives. Even more so, I believe Kody has bitched to each wife about another wife—in particular I think Kody has complained/whined to Robyn about what he sees as the disloyalty or excessive demands of his other wives.

Yes, and then Meri thought she was going to go to the legal ceremony with K&R, but they snuck off without her. Everyone was involved was being shady to Christine and Janelle— there should have been open and honest communication between all of them, as one family, before any changes were made.

Ok, when I saw that they had the funeral service in Utah, I assumed they lived there.

It looked like Robyn was in the ER, not actually admitted. Was she admitted later? She seemed sick and it was good that she got checked out, but Lord, are they dramatic. “People go in hospitals to die,” — no Kody, they go to get treatment— no wonder the one daughter has anxiety issues. If Robyn’s oxygen was low, wouldn’t they have put a nose cannula on her? They do triage before putting you in an ER room/ bay, so the fact that she was there so long meant she wasn’t at imminent risk. I don’t mean to downplay Covid, I actually have it right now— severe fatigue, headache, body aches— but, knock wood, no trouble breathing.

Wow, if Robyn and/ or Kody’s name is on all of the parcels, Janelle can’t build without their approval even if she has the money. As I have said before, if Kody dies, do all of the parcels in his name go to Robyn? I really think Kody is trying to think of ways to scam Janelle out of her rightful share of CP. Kody creates confusion and says “think creatively, keep an open mind,” in order to manipulate situations to his (and Robyn’s) advantage.

I don’t know the timing of the THs or the editing, but yes, Kody had wanted to move to St.George at one time, and Christine did not. Robyn’s stepfather’s funeral was in St. George, so maybe that’s where her mother lives.

The fact that Colin was sent away at 12 and his Kate-custody siblings still no longer speak to him at 18 makes me think that Kate’s influence has a lot to do with it. The fact that Kate put him somewhere and basically threw him away at that age is reprehensible. She didn’t have him visit home or visit with him? Did she even write to him? Did they do family counseling? It’s very sad for Colin that he was abandoned by his mother, yet he still wishes for a relationship with her. In Pennsylvania you can’t just have someone committed to an institution legally for years and years. It ‘s not that easy. Kate must have paid a private “institution” to get rid of Colin because she couldn’t handle him. I hope it wasn’t something like KidsPeace, because they have a less than stellar reputation.

I think Janelle thought they had a “good” relationship as far as both of their understandings went—that they had a spiritual marriage/financial partnership/ friendship, etc. And now, that scam-artist shyster Kody is looking to push Janelle out— but not before he can think of a “creative” way to wrest any money or share of CP from her. I would go so far as to say that Kody and Meri’s relationship suffered way before the catfish. The catfish situation did not happen in a vacuum. Meri thought bringing Robyn into the family and later divorcing Kody so that Robyn could marry him would help her relationship. Boy, was she wrong. Kody was besotted by his new, younger wife. It seemed that he only went to Meri’s when he wanted a break from Robyn’s— not because he wanted Meri.

Kody was mainstream LDS — he even went on a 2 year mission. When he came back, his parents had decided to join the AUB and practice polygamy. Janelle was raised mainstream LDS and became AUB as an adult. Meri’s family started out LDS but became polygamous early in her childhood. No idea bout Robyn— and Christine’s grandfather was a founder of the AUB so she was raised in it.

Kody said he wanted Meri to partner with them on the land to get it “paid off.” Wow. All he wants is her money, he really doesn’t care if they build. I doubt Robyn cares, either, now that she has her big house. Janelle seems to sincerely buy into the idea of them all living on CP, but she needs to read the writing on the wall. Is Kody’s name is on all of the properties ? If so, that’s a problem for Janelle if she wants to or is able to build without his approval. Also, it’s not fair that each wife has to share with Kody—then he gets more—and by default, Robyn. If Kody dies, his shares go to Robyn unless he expressly names others in his will.

No big surprise, Syabira won, but her finale showstopper was unimpressive. She does seem to have good baking knowledge and the judges like her flavors. I don’t know about rosemary in a sweet bake, though—it can be really overpowering. However, I would have been surprised if Abdul had won, and shocked if Sandro had. Sandro just couldn’t rein it in and simplify so that he could finish perfectly. If Abdul had gotten his profiteroles right, he might’ve had a chance. Imo, there was too little time to get the summer pudding to set properly. A couple of my cookbooks have recipes for it, and one says overnight, preferably.

My mil used to travel with a group of women friends, as her partner hated traveling. One woman in the group always insisted on a shopping day in their itinerary— while the other uninterested parties could do something else. Nothing wrong with compromising— except it’s not Charles’ thing, apparently. I’m finding the new Charles to be a little too good-looking for the part—real Charles is sort of awkward-looking, imo.

I understand what you’re saying, but I would add that being on a reality show of any kind is probably not healthy for children. All of the adult Browns bear responsibility for exposing their children and family life to the public for entertainment and scrutiny. I don’t think Christine is some sort of Mother Teresa, but I do think she has been a victim of emotional and psychological abuse by Kody. A victim doesn’t have to be perfect for me to cheer them on when they have finally left their abuser. And I think, all things considered, she’s doing it in a way that doesn’t intentionally harm people more than it already has. Because if it were me, I have a hard time not going scorched earth on Kody’s ass.

I agree that one should not use their kids as therapists or talk about the details of one's marriage woes. However, they overhear or eavesdrop on adult conversations (I know I did) and can definitely sense tension and sadness in their parents. If I as an adult asked my mother if she was OK when I sensed she wasn't, I wouldn't take "I'm fine" as an answer. I know now to leave someone alone when they don't want to talk about something, but in my 20s and 30s I'd press the issue and question until I got some answers. Yeah, that wan't healthy but I was kind of a pushy PITA when it came to people I cared about. The reason I sort of give Christine a pass is because I think she is still learning about boundaries and healthy relationships. Also, they ALL talk crap about each other in the TH on the show, which the kids can see or hear about later, anyway.