The Human Beings Known as the Arnold-Klein Family

[gunderda]

And now I just have a weird image of a little person polygamous family in my head lol

[wrestlesflamingos]

Think of how many ways they could customize a home!

[Libby]

The children that attended the birthday parties were being filmed. They had probably already signed waivers. Will did not interact with any of those children. I think if he did make a friend at one of the parties, or played with the other kids, they would have showed it.

[4leafclover]

 

Edited: On second thought it's probably better to leave well enough alone.

 

Smart move.  And can you believe we made it through an entire repeat performance of hateful Jen and Will's lack of social skills without one mention of diapers???  Wow......baby steps!

[CPP83]

No abusing horse corpses. If you feel a former horse is being treated poorly, please hit the report button.

 

 

Hee. I love your approach, wrestlesflamingos.

 

I can only speak for myself, but I don't post here with the intent or desire to change anyone's mind about anything. I'm just way too old to care or try or think that it's even possible.

 

I just don't mind civil discussions and healthy debates whether someone is agreeing with me or not, and when the time comes that we can all walk away and agree to disagree as needed then that's what is most important to me.

 

 

 

I'd like Bill to marry a second wife. A psychic. They should have triplets with one average height kid. Possibly gypsy.

 

 

Again, hee. And that would be the perfect way to start off the next season. Sister Wives: The Little Couple Edition.

 

 

Think of how many ways they could customize a home!

 

 

I'm imagining rope ladders and fireman poles and a lot of incense burners.

[4leafclover]

That psychic--assuming she was good at her trade--would have to be a sadist to foresee all the things that would be said about her and still not opt out.  Oops, just added an S&M vision to that already disturbing picture!  Thanks wrestlesflamingos!

[walnutqueen]

50 shades of sumpin' being thrown down!  LURVE IT.  :-)

[joanne3482]

50 shades of sumpin' being thrown down!  LURVE IT.  :-)

I think OWN has that coming out next month. 

[Snow8585]

Gosh, talk about going off topic...I thought we were supposed to talk about what we see in the episodes.

[BizBuzz]

Nothing like being able to break the flow, get people laughing and then continuing on.  Thanks to those that made me laugh this morning!

Gosh, talk about going off topic...I thought we were supposed to talk about what we see in the episodes.

 

This thread is for anything about the Klein family ... not episode specific.

[walnutqueen]

This show brings tears of joy to my eyes, and I must occasionally cover my sappiness with brutal humor.  Hence I rely on Monty Python's "I'd like to buy an argument" and "CSI: Little People edition", and a sacriligious reference to that POS ripoff of Story of O you youngsters call "50 Shades" - because honestly, you could cut the tension around these parts with a butterknife, and someone needs a ::giggle::  :-)

[Snow8585]

 Wrestlesflamingos on Feb 14 suggested we discuss things that are on the show and not general feelings. Now we can talk about anything related to the Klein family. Excellent!

[BizBuzz]

 Wrestlesflamingos on Feb 14 suggested we discuss things that are on the show and not general feelings. Now we can talk about anything related to the Klein family. Excellent!

 

If you seriously want to get specific about rules, we can accommodate that, instead of trying to hang on to principles of not being a dick.  Which would you prefer?

[Snow8585]

I do not understand your comment, could you explain especally the part about being a dick?

[CousinAmy]

I would like to know why people who are against seeing children on a reality show are watching children on a reality show.

I would think that that hour once a week could be spent watching something you do enjoy.

I understand the concept of "hate watching"- I watch The View, after all - but if I was fundamentally against the concept of comedians moderating talk shows I probably wouldn't bother to watch it at all.

[BizBuzz]

In the PTV Welcome Message, it says this:

 

The Social Contract

My golden rule for forums is to pretend you are at someone else's party. Different opinions are welcomed and debate is encouraged but if you can't converse without name calling or flaming then you'll get The Size Nines out the door.

 

Dave has many times reminded us (the mods) that this means Don't be a Dick.

 

I might have used it out of context ... however, if you keep up with the Announcements and the Suggestions area, you will see that this is his philosophy to run his board.

[gunderda]

Think of how many ways they could customize a home!

Do you envision the 2nd wife as a little person or normal size? I immediately thought of her as normal sized and then felt bad of all the work she would have to do... all the lifting.. getting stuff from the high shelves.... lol

 

I would like to know why people who are against seeing children on a reality show are watching children on a reality show.

I would think that that hour once a week could be spent watching something you do enjoy.

I understand the concept of "hate watching"- I watch The View, after all - but if I was fundamentally against the concept of comedians moderating talk shows I probably wouldn't bother to watch it at all.

I don't get it either....... the more they watch the more ratings they get... the more possibility the show will stay on longer.....

[BizBuzz]

AND to add this:

 

Sure, follow your bliss as long as it doesn't break our most important rule: Don't Be A Dick

[gunderda]

AND to add this:

was there a typo in that....? (does/doesn't)?

[Cherrio]

Smart move.  And can you believe we made it through an entire repeat performance of hateful Jen and Will's lack of social skills without one mention of diapers???  Wow......baby steps!

Except, you just did.   :)

[BizBuzz]

was there a typo in that....? (does/doesn't)?

 

Not quite sure what you are asking, but my post was a continuation to my explanation of why I said Don't be a Dick (this post) ... it is the one rule the founder of this site has stated more than once to adhere to. 

 

ETA:  DUH, sorry ... I see what you meant ... that is what I get for typing instead of copying and pasting.  Thanks!

[wrestlesflamingos]

was there a typo in that....? (does/doesn't)?

 

Perhaps. We'll never know. Some sneaky chick edited it.

[Cherrio]

I would like to know why people who are against seeing children on a reality show are watching children on a reality show.

I would think that that hour once a week could be spent watching something you do enjoy.

I understand the concept of "hate watching"- I watch The View, after all - but if I was fundamentally against the concept of comedians moderating talk shows I probably wouldn't bother to watch it at all.

I actually stopped watching the show and many other reality based shows. I come here and read the summaries and comments. Sometimes I will go to Youtube.

        But, its well known on the other hand, that shows of this genre get their biggest ratings with characters we love to hate, troublemakers or bratty kids. I am not saying the Kleins are villians or the kids are brats since conclusions are swiftly drawn, but just look at how popular and huge some of the reality shows are here on this website. I would venture to guess they might be the most popular forums.

 We can watch or not watch, its not right or wrong and everyone is going to have a different opinion. Put yourself on tv and you are going to be talked about.

[wrestlesflamingos]

The most popular shows here involve bratty super heroes. There's also some affection for bratty daily tv shows. In the bratty reality tv space, this forum does pretty well. We're proud of how many people come here to post. It's not always our best day and we are no friends to equines but there's passion.

[walnutqueen]

I hope you reconsider the equine equation - if only to evoke a horse's rear end with affection, one fine day, wf!

[wrestlesflamingos]

Gosh, that's pretty. Brava!

Edited February 17, 2015 by wrestlesflamingos
bravo/brava.

[walnutqueen]

That would be "Brava" - & all the pretty horses we don't shoot, eh!

 

Wasn't there a very early episode of Jen's Mum and horsies, or did I invent that, as well?  (see how I TRY, TRY , TRY to bring my recalcitrant self back on topic?)   :-D

[Cherrio]

That would be "Brava" - & all the pretty horses we don't shoot, eh!

 

Wasn't there a very early episode of Jen's Mum and horsies, or did I invent that, as well?  (see how I TRY, TRY , TRY to bring my recalcitrant self back on topic?)   :-D

Just make sure you follow the 14 page manifesto and remain in the farm chic mode when referring to horses.   :)

[Snow8585]

Jen's mom owns an expensive horse or two and enters them into competitions.

[Foghorn Leghorn]

Just make sure you follow the 14 page manifesto and remain in the farm chic mode when referring to horses.   :)

 

"Is there a test?"

Jen's mom owns an expensive horse or two and enters them into competitions.

 

Yes Judy loves it when Will and Zoey are interested in them.  I wonder if they are boarded in Texas.    

[mbutterfly]

The children that attended the birthday parties were being filmed. They had probably already signed waivers. Will did not interact with any of those children. I think if he did make a friend at one of the parties, or played with the other kids, they would have showed it.

It is possible they would have filmed more interaction (there was a little shown). It is also possible they didn't because they had specific things they wanted to film in what was really a very few minutes shown. We simply don't know. 

[Snow8585]

Yes that is very possible but on the flip side, many of the videos of Will in New Day showed him playing and interacting with other kids there. And he seemed very happy.  Very cute videos of him pushing a little one in a stroller and participating in Christmas celebrations. Of course, one could say well of course they would show that to get him adopted. But by the same token, TLC could do more if they chose to,  in showing his playful side with other kids. That would certainly be a milestone for me to see him assimilate as best he can and that other kids would accept him. Same goes for Zoey too. When the one little girl went to hand her flowers at Zoey's party, Zoey looked like she had no clue what to do with them. She had to be encouraged to accept flowers from a "friend." Not only that, but not one photo of Will on Bill or Jen's twitter page show them with other kids. Could be a privacy thing but when there is a WIll (no pun intended) there is way.

[ZoloftBlob]

Of course, one could say well of course they would show that to get him adopted. But by the same token, TLC could do more if they chose to,  in showing his playful side with other kids.

 

The difference being that New Day and TLC have very different agendas. New Day wants to present a cute adorable child that melts your heart and makes you want to commit to supporting New Day and or to adopting a child. Therefore you're never going to see a montage of Will screaming for food, crying, hitting other children etc etc even though we all know these things happen (because all children cry, scream for treats, and yes hit others) TLC has an entirely different agenda, they're looking for ratings and misbehavior is far more entertaining than Will placidly following directions. There's no ratings to be had in well behaved children (one of my objections to putting children on reality shows btw)

[CousinAmy]

I wonder if the parents of those young playmates might read TV forums and message boards, and hesitate to put their children on reality TV where they fear that they will be criticized for putting their children on reality TV.

 

Zoey is just three years old, but I think she's at the level of a 2 1/2 year-old. (At this young age 6 months is a huge span in development.) I don't expect a girl of that age to be comfortable around a lot of older, bigger children, and would only have one or maybe two friends/playmates. Will I would expect to be more social, being older and having lived in the neighborhood longer. But he's not, or at least not ready for that kind of interaction on screen, so I'm content to wait and see. 

[Libby]

Kids tend to be kid magnets. They find one another and play, quite easily. Things with Will seem a little off to me regarding other children. Zoey is a little young. The kid magnet thing will probably come as she gets a little older. At 4 1/2 they should be pulling Will away from the other kids. I feel sorry for Will. So many things seem a little off.

[KarmaG]

Kids tend to be kid magnets. They find one another and play, quite easily. Things with Will seem a little off to me regarding other children. Zoey is a little young. The kid magnet thing will probably come as she gets a little older. At 4 1/2 they should be pulling Will away from the other kids. I feel sorry for Will. So many things seem a little off.

 

Maybe. I didn't like other kids and was put into two years of preschool to learn to share/interact with other kids. It didn't work. I always preferred adults.

Edited February 17, 2015 by KarmaG

[Snow8585]

TLC also has a lot of freedom in what they show. I was happy to read on Jen's twitter feed that Bill and Jen are planning to take the kids to the movies. I hope TLC shows that if they are still filming.

Edited February 18, 2015 by Snow8585

[athousandclowns]

I saw a promo for the new little family and it occurred to me that I don't remember if The Little Couple had finished or if my DVR had not taped it. ( there was no hair pulling swearing jail sentences etc so I was vague of a possible finale)   So I came here to see if I missed something.  My gosh what the heck happened?   I watched from the beginning I  loved these people and did not need to take a shower after watching an episode.  I found Jenn highly intelligent, compassionate  sensitive to parents and little ones.  She was so thrilled with her new home,  fast family and devastated from failed attempts at pregnancy and then to be smacked with a cancer diagnosis that would do many  regular folks in. 

I have worked around doctors and seen really bad behavior by some overlooked (favored) and these were not particularly capable doctors.  I have volunteered in a non profit kindergarten prep infant to 5 year old little ones whose parents were ESL.  Not all kids engage when thrown in with a group of kids they are not familiar with , they do not naturally share. I also knew someone who adopted from China a  4year old girl and there are well known issues with children who lived in orphanages and she arranged that she would have "sister friends" from same situations that she has had all the way through high school.  I think Jenn and Bill have this.  I enjoyed seeing their little slice of life.

The Duggers, Rolhoffs and Kate and the Kody Browns are not admirable people in my mind. Who knows how long they can work with their physical disabilities so any money they can sock away for their kids to be able to go to college and have a life with a few less of  challenges that they have had to endure. Good for them. 

Mods please excuse my post as I can not find any show that I missed...Bills surgery etc. Not on demand, not scheduled so when did the show go off?

[gunderda]

Not on demand, not scheduled so when did the show go off?

 

they're on a mini hiatus.  This season is broken into two parts.  Not sure when they'll be back on but they still have at least half a season to show this year sometime.

[Absolom]

The LIttle Couple's season was pushed up early due to the loss of Honey Boo Boo and another show.  It kind of made a mess of TLC's December/January schedule.  They showed what they could finish to fill in the gaps.

[Jellybeans]

looking forward to their return.

[joanne3482]

Not only that, but not one photo of Will on Bill or Jen's twitter page show them with other kids. Could be a privacy thing but when there is a WIll (no pun intended) there is way.

 

When I was a Girl Scout leader, I NEVER shared pictures of my scouts on my social media. I would take photos of them doing things and share them with the parents but any photos I put up would be of things like scenery or the results of our activities (like baskets of berries when we went strawberry picking) but not the kids because they weren't my kids. I can see the Arnold Klein's adopting something like that. A lot of my SM friends seem to only show their own kids in the photos they post, not other children. I don't presume this means they have no friends. 

 

I watched a brief part of the new Our Little Family show last night and one thing the mom said, that has never dawned on me, was about how little people tend to be afraid of big dogs because big dogs come up to their chests or higher. It makes me wonder if that's not part of the problem for Zoey and Will. They are more slow to warm to new kids because the kids are just so big. That's got to be somewhat intimidating to a 2 and 4 year old.  At New Day, Will's first interactions that he could remember would be with some of the same kids he was playing with in the video so to him they wouldn't be intimidating because he was used to them. Presumably the little girl who offered Zoey flowers did know Zoey but maybe not that well in Zoey's view. She seemed too old to be in Zoey's class at pre-school so she could have been a friend of the family or a sibling of a classmate, invited because the family was invited not because she specifically had any relationship with Zoey. 

[Snow8585]

I am sure that Will and Zoey are beginning to experience and feel the differences with other kids. It may have been on the LIttle People of America website or some other article on dwarfism giving advice to parents of kids with dwarfism. Basically, it said that when all the kids are small, no one really notices a little person but as time goes on and the other kids grow taller, that is when the kids with dwarfism really begin to stand out.

 

Taking another thread over here, yes they eat out alot according to Jen. At least a dozen restaurants they like in Houston. Including Cheesecake Factory.

http://www.chron.com/discoverhouston/health-care/article/Dr-Jen-Arnold-Things-I-like-to-do-in-Houston-5754264.php

Edited February 23, 2015 by Snow8585

[ZoloftBlob]

We also saw the Roloff children's friends when they were small.

 

Actually no we didn't. The earliest we ever even saw the twins was their 14th birthday. Jacob, who was the youngest at eight, and Molly at 11, *rarely* were ever shown with friends, and the bulk of the twins filming was when they were in their mid teens. When the Gosselin sextuplets were 3-6 - we rarely saw them interacting with any children other than fellow sextuplet family members.

[ZoloftBlob]

That was a party situation - we never saw other children invited over to the Gosselin house when the children 3-6 as friends. Their filmed birthday party was a special event in the park. Jacob Roloff had his girlfriend over to the house when he was *12*, not three to six. Your arguement is that other TLC shows show children at very young ages having buddies over. I haven't seen the new little show but I will take your word there. But LPBW NEVER showed the kids at 3-6 having friends over, and the Gosselins never depicted friends playing in the yard. The example you're citing is a TLC orchestrated event, not at their home, much like Will's birthday party at the zoo. I also don't think, and you can correct me if you disagree, that Will is capable of having a conversation about a girlfriend. As for the Duggar children, they are never shown playing with local children - they only play with other children when Mom and Dad Duggar thoroughly vet the family, like the Bates family.

[ZoloftBlob]

And my arguement is that age makes a difference - a LOT of parents are very uncomfortable with having their children on tv at very young ages. Jeremy Roloff at 16 having his sixteen year old friends over is NOT the same thing as a four year old coming over to play. You are saying its the same thing - that if a parent of a 4 year old and a 16 year old would have the same concerns over their child being on tv. You also clearly stated we saw the Roloff children when they were small, in order to back your arguement which is why I pointed out that we never ever saw a Roloff child at the same age as Will and Zoey, and the youngest Roloff child very rarely had friends over even when he was 8-12, the youngest we saw him on the show, in contrast to the older teenage children because yes, people have larger concerns about their young children being on tv.

[gunderda]

And Will likely wasn't familiar with the kids at his party. A young child not being comfortable with playing with kids he doesn't know is not abnormal.  AND let's not forget that fact that we only saw tiny snippets of the party - maybe him playing with kids wasn't any footage they felt they needed to show on that episode. 

[Veronique Bette]

In my opinion, Will and Zoey’s experiences cannot be compared with those of the other reality show children mentioned above, as all of the other children are and have been with their biological parents and siblings since birth and did not have to go through the post-adoption adjustment period that the Arnold-Klein children did. There’s no way to know how that experience, including language differences, may or may not affect a child’s socialization process. But for sure, Will’s ongoing (though improving) receptive and expressive speech issues would have had an effect on his ability to make friends as easily as other children his age as he would not have been able to freely communicate with them. I am sure that Jen and Bill make every effort to encourage friendships and playtime with other children and now that Will and Zoey are both in school, they will have even more opportunities for peer play and relationships, whether these are featured on camera or not.

[4leafclover]

@VeroniqueBette--you can't mean if it isn't on film, it didn't happen???  Oh noooooooo, you are going to disappoint legions of "fans!"  lol

[Foghorn Leghorn]

And Will likely wasn't familiar with the kids at his party. A young child not being comfortable with playing with kids he doesn't know is not abnormal.  AND let's not forget that fact that we only saw tiny snippets of the party - maybe him playing with kids wasn't any footage they felt they needed to show on that episode. 

 

Very true although Jen went out of her way to explain Will had a lot of friends from the gym they played at and through her work.  She gave a sense they had met and played together before which is why at the time I recall posters asking if these kids were friends why was there no interaction between them.  They stared at Will like he was a stranger.