7 Little Johnstons - General Discussion

[humbleopinion]

Emma is close to both Anna and Alex.

Alex and Jonah have a brotherly bond in their sloth-like behaviors.

Liz seems to be the closest to both parents.

Alex is a Momma's boy.

Edited May 3, 2020 by humbleopinion

[TwirlyGirly]

On 4/21/2020 at 6:07 PM, Honey said:

<snip>

According to Trent, it's not scapegoat, it's escapegoat.  😉

Ever since I heard Trent say that, and then read your post, I've been racking my brain because I was certain someone on another reality program had used the same term - escape goat - and thought I'd posted about it (with a visual!) at the time.

Today it finally dawned on me; it was one of the women on that (thankfully) short lived program, 1000-lb Sisters.

Here's the picture I posted then, and am now reposting here, so we all know how to identify Anna: the Escape Goat:

[TwirlyGirly]

Clearly I have way too much free time (😉), because look what I found:

"Scapegoat has a fascinating history. Today the word is used to refer to one who is wrongly blamed for something, but it originated with an actual goat.

In the Jewish and Christian Scriptures, God ordained a particular day during which the entire nation of Israel would set aside work, and during which the priests would atone for the sin of the whole nation. Among the rituals prescribed was the scapegoat:

And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the Lord, and the other lot for the scapegoat. And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the Lord’s lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering. But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the Lord, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness. —Leviticus 16:8-10, KJV

The scapegoat carried the sin of the people away with it, thereby cleansing Israel for another year.

The English scapegoat is a compound of the archaic verb scape, which means 'escape,' and goat, and is modeled on a misreading of the Hebrew ʽazāzēl (which is probably the name of a demon) as ʽēz 'ōzēl , 'the goat that departs.' More modern translations render scapegoat in this text as Azazel, but the misreading endured and has entered the lexicon."

History of scapegoat

Now, how many of you knew the Mayflower Compact is the name of the ship Christopher Columbus sailed on his expedition when he "discovered America"?

Anyone?  

I learn so much from Trent and Amber!

Edited May 2, 2020 by TwirlyGirly
Darn autocorrect!

[woodscommaelle]

I can’t handle all the bathroom talk. It literally makes me nauseous. 
 

Alex says some funny shit. When they were backyard camping and Trent was teaching them to build a shelter in case they ever got lost in the wilderness. And Alex was like: I don’t need to know how to do this bc why would I ever be in the wilderness?!!??? It just struck my funny bone. 
 

I love that they all loved surfing. And that they were all good at it. 

[LibertarianSlut]

18 hours ago, woodscommaelle said:

I can’t handle all the bathroom talk. It literally makes me nauseous. 

I was just coming on here to post the same exact thing.  This isn’t funny.  It shows serious lack of boundaries between parents and their teen offspring, in addition to being bad parenting when parents to let their kids go on and on about their bodily functions under the auspices of entertainment.  Just in really poor taste.

The whole thing with the “censored” over it wasn’t funny either.  Ok, a couple was having sex on the beach.  You just whisk your kids away and leave.  It’s not nearly as titillating as they want us to think.  

I find Trent so immature.  He is so strict when he wants to be, but then he jokes around with them in such childish ways, that I’m sure if I was his child, I would be really confused about where the boundaries were.  When I was growing up, my dad had a great sense of humor.  I always looked forward to seeing what gem he would come up with next.  What he would never do?  Is hit the brakes while I was using the bathroom in a moving vehicle.  The less the dad of a teenage daughter acknowledges her bodily functions on TV the better, as a rule of thumb.  

I find this family has a penchant for the gross.  What was up with the chewing gum?  Maybe kids whose ages are in the single digits would find that cool.  I could not fathom finding that appealing at 17-19.

I don’t know why they have to sleep in the RV.  That part seemed like roughing it for the sake of reality TV.  They reportedly make $400,000 a year for this show.  Their home is very nice.  It would have broken their budget to reserve a few rooms at The Holiday Inn Express for a few nights?  Why would you let your children sleep on a glorified shelf if you could avoid it?  Oh, yeah, I forgot, it’s hysterically funny.

I’m really starting to dislike this show.  The bathroom “humor” kills anything redeeming about them.  I thought Emma was like a really good young lady until she and Anna got into these topics in depth.  She’s 13, not three.  Jonah was the only one who didn’t decide to share the inner workings of his digestive system with us, and I like him better now.  In fact, at the end, Jonah said, “why do we always talk about this?”  Noted, Jonah!  

Everyone else was saying some things that would not have flown for young adults/teenagers, like nothing I have ever seen in my life.  I wonder if their size is some factor in the show airing this talk.  I couldn’t imagine a show that didn’t have “Little” in the title airing college-age Anna talking about what she eats and how it manifests.  It would be cancelled and everyone would say “WTF.”

Alex is such a fucking baby.  He’s 13 too, right?  I didn’t cry the entire year I was 13, and I was a horseback rider, and took my fair share of unpleasant spills, but I just would have found it humiliating to indulge in tears in front of my peers, let alone a national TV audience.  If the water getting into his ears was so potentially painful and damaging, and ear plugs couldn’t mitigate it, then maybe he should have sat it out.  Not everyone can do everything.  If he never cried before, I would have hand-waved it, but it seems like he’s always crying. 

I’ll probably finish watching the season, as “going back to work” hasn’t taken up nearly as much of my time as I thought it would, and I’m bored, but, boy, do I miss The Little Couple.  Jen and Bill’s kids are so much younger and I feel like they—especially Jen—would die before letting their kids show their asses on TV like this, whereas it’s encouraged by Bill and Amber.  Just gross all around.  

[SunnyBeBe]

On 11/21/2018 at 12:58 PM, SunnyBeBe said:

So far, I'm in support of the parents.  Amber seems fine to me.  Her kids push lots of buttons. Glad she has lots of patience.

They have a reality tv show.  I see nothing wrong with their very kind words of wisdom to Jonah about his attitude and disrespect problem.  He doesn't want his attitude addressed on camera, then, he should not be so disrespectful on camera.   He really seems stubborn about it.  But, he's 18 so, I doubt it'll change. Maybe, they should have thought about getting the proper behavior, before giving him all he wants. If I was dissing my parents, would they still pay for my college education? lol Not even a little bit.  I think Amber and Trent speak honestly and from the heart.  Their kids seem to recognize this too. 

I just wanted to comment on this post I made some time ago.  Since, then, I have seen behavior from Amber and Trent that I do take issue with, especially, involving the treatment of Anna.  To me, their unfair treatment is obvious and I do feel for the girl.  Regardless, of her behavior, their attitude about her is just not right, imo.  

[CrazyInAlabama]

I don't watch much of this show, but I have watched the commercial about the RV trip over and over (it's running a lot on TLC, and other networks they own).   I don't think the father's remark about driving the RV off the road, and the whole family going together is funny.   

After that family in California (the Hart family, just over a year ago)  deliberately drove off a cliff, that's just not appropriate. 

[SunnyBeBe]

I haven't watched lately.  I just can't seem to get into it anymore. 

[Mahamid Frauded Me]

Jonah is an insufferable young adult. I would have left his ass at home, he is very disrespectful i think to his parents. Hopefully he continues therapy.

[camom]

This family is becoming difficult to watch.  The constant bathroom talk -- ugh.  Trent's deliberately swerving the RV while Anna was in the bathroom was just mean.  I wonder if he would have done that to any of the other kids.

If Alex is known to have a problem with getting water in his ears, why in the world wasn't he wearing ear plugs?  It's an easy problem to avoid.

 

[DkNNy79]

I still enjoy watching this show.  They are my favorite reality family and really the only show I'm watching right now.  For me the dynamics of the family seem quite real and normal if they are not put on display for the camera.

Is there too much bathroom talk?  Maybe, but I think thats just how families talk, well at least we did in my family growing up.  We teased each other about.  Now, would we talk about this in public?  Probably not, but if they're trying to be real and not "censor" themselves just for the cameras I didn't see issue with it.  I don't want to see a reality show where everyone is always on their best behavior.

Alex was my favorite when the show originated but he really just comes off as a spoiled crybaby who is afraid of his own shadow.  Amber does baby him so I put part of that on her.  I guess at least he's smart.  I didn't have any problem with Trent trying to force him to participate in kickball.  It was a safe fun family thing and honestly if you left it up to Alex he would never be outside or try new things.   When they've forced him to do something (like zip lining/roller coaster) that he genuinely has a fear of, that is more of what I have an issue with.

I think Emma is probably my favorite.  While I agree that they need to stop speaking for her and force her to speak for herself.  I don't like the way they are going about it.  I hate public speaking, so her fear is not irrational.  I've taken classes for it and it didn't help.  Its just something that I'm not ever going to be comfortable doing.  She does need to be able to talk for herself though and not rely on her family.

[druzy]

Between the spitting for their genetic tests and their gross bathroom talk, they are making this show hard to watch. Out of all the kids I think Anna will be able to navigate her way in the world better than the others. I liked Emma but this season I don't like the way she talks to her father. Liz is a pompous bitch, and the boys are spoiled brats.

Did Liz's boyfriend sleep at their house or did he just visit the house to feed the dogs? Is Liz going away to college? 

I didn't see the part when Alex went surfing but I did see the clip of him crying on his surfboard 😂.

This whole RV ride was producer driven and planned just like everything else on this show. I wonder if the show will get another season.

[sATL]

1 hour ago, druzy said:

Between the spitting for their genetic tests and their gross bathroom talk, they are making this show hard to watch. Out of all the kids I think Anna will be able to navigate her way in the world better than the others. I liked Emma but this season I don't like the way she talks to her father. Liz is a pompous bitch, and the boys are spoiled brats.

Did Liz's boyfriend sleep at their house or did he just visit the house to feed the dogs? Is Liz going away to college? 

I didn't see the part when Alex went surfing but I did see the clip of him crying on his surfboard 😂.

This whole RV ride was producer driven and planned just like everything else on this show. I wonder if the show will get another season.

I think Liz has a year of high school to go - meaning she is class of 2020 (now) and we are looking at 2019.

Everyone looked miserable in the RV. I know the point was to see family , save on a overnight hotel room(s), save meal prep costs,  and build memories. I would have to be on the interstate. Mr. Google has the trip in 8 hours via Interstate. 

Since this family talks about the bathroom so much, maybe there is a medical issue where quick access to a bathroom is necessary - as opposed to maybe driving 20 miles to the next free-way exit. The kids are old enough to "hold it" for a couple of hours - watch eating/drinking/snacking and take a 1/2 dose of pepto to "stop progress". 

 Did anyone catch the previews for next week? Do they fly from San Fran back to ATL, after the convention ?

 

Edited May 6, 2020 by sATL

[Mattro76]

I have been a fan of the show from season one until now. My biggest complaint is the way Amber has changed and has turned into a want to be Deva! She thinks she knows everything and she seems to love to belittle Trent in front of their children. She baby's Alex which is spoiled to no end and lazy to boot. She seems to be jealous of her own daughter Anna and starts arguments with her at every turn. 

     I also can't believe how they allow Jonah to run all over them and talk to Trent and Amber like a dog without any repercussion. It seems to me as a father myself that the boys in the family need to learn humility in a big way!

                           Thank You!                                              

[humbleopinion]

The next episode steals the name from the ear wormest ride at Disneyland ...don't say/sing it because it will infect your inner consciousness...you have been warned...

They returned the RV before they got to SF, thankfully....

Cannot imagine how many vehicles Trent would side swipe if he tried to drive the behemoth RV into SF.

In SF, there are blind hills that you ascend and go airborne as you crest the top....plus you share the road with the cable cars, the electric buses, regular buses, bikes, pedestrians walking while texting...it is a nightmare maze to drive with blocked off streets,  narrow streets and one ways if you are unfamiliar with The City.

Curbing your wheels when parking on SF hills with a grade over 3% is a charming requirement that visitors get ticketed for since they don't know the local rules and fail to notice the other cars doing it.

The coastal drive from LA to Santa Cruz is more than 8 hours in a sedan...from San Diego add another 3 hours...add the RV slowness you have to pad more hours on.

The drive can take longer at the height of the summer vacay season because you get stuck behind a string of slow RVs chugging up the sustained inclines...

Safe assumption is they flew directly back home since they repeat all plans and itineraries umpteen times in THs.

Lucca and his family are nice people so the bathroom talk is shelved.

 

Edited May 7, 2020 by humbleopinion

[SideofSlaw]

On 5/6/2020 at 9:41 AM, Mahamid Frauded Me said:

Jonah is an insufferable young adult. I would have left his ass at home, he is very disrespectful i think to his parents. Hopefully he continues therapy.

And he needs to wear a size larger pants and shorts. He has the equivalent of female camel-toe and it’s not a good look. 

[Bridget]

I’m catching up and just watched the episode about Emma & her speech issues.

I’m a teacher (credentialed K-12 and I’ve got my Special Ed credential too) and from what I saw, I’d agree that Emma is probably shy, but that’s not the reason for her struggles.

Without going into boring detail, simply put: there is a delay in Emma’s speech because it takes longer for her brain to process speech. When her brain receives incoming speech, as well as what the brain comes up with as output, it takes a wee bit longer than “normal”, but isn’t something that is make or break. Speech therapy (to work on fluency and pronunciation) is an amazing resource and should be coupled with reading. People who regularly read have a larger vocabulary and don’t usually struggle when it comes to verbal communication.

I noticed that Emma said she “couldn’t think of the right words” when it’s her turn to say something. To me, that indicates she understands why she goes to speech therapy.

However, Emma also said she was shy and used that as the reason she is so quiet. I’ve taught middle & high school for 10 years and I know when kiddos are self conscious and try to deflect, especially when they’re worried what their peers might think. Middle schoolers are a lot more empathetic than people would think (trust me!), so I can’t help but wonder if Emma feels more pressure at school or at home when it comes to speech.

It’s possible to be both shy and have a speech delay, but being shy doesn’t cause a deficit in processing speech. 
 

Speaking of speech, listening  to Jonah slaughter the English language while concocting some BS story about his math classes was straight up painful. He doesn’t know a noun from an adverb nor is he able to clearly articulate an explanation for his academic suspension. Either give us the real scoop without any exaggerations and half ass answers or don’t engage in the storyline! 

Based on my own struggles with math, taking a full course load in college and working at a community college, failing two classes in two semesters doesn’t translate into academic suspension, especially if he allegedly passed every other course he took. There is no rule that says students must pass every math class they take!

The only scenarios that make sense to me:

1. He was on a specific academic track that required a certain level of math proficiency and he couldn’t keep up.
However, if that was the case, it doesn’t mean he couldn’t go back to school. 

2. See #1

 

 

[Kroliosis]

Just finished It’s a small world episode and don’t understand 1) what those guys were doing in the park to piss off the family 2) why does Trent feel the need to get involved!!??  Production & Security was right there. He is an asshole and it has nothing to do with being a little person. 
Anna’s date was painful to watch. 
Emma & Alex can’t date until 16-but those were dates. And the ‘I love you’s’ were so cringe worthy. 

Edited May 9, 2020 by Kroliosis

[Annifran]

I was astonished to see Trent, an inexperienced RV driver, choosing to drive an RV north on the Coast Highway from Los Angeles to San Francisco.  They're lucky they made it without incident.  The road is two lanes with twists and turns as it hugs the mountains.  It's a very frightening ride, and very slow even in a car.   (At least they were going north which hugs the mountains as opposed to going south with sheer drop offs to the ocean. ) 

They would have been much wiser to take the interstate that goes north through the center of California which is a minimum six-hour drive under the best of conditions.

 

 

[LibertarianSlut]

12 hours ago, Kroliosis said:

Just finished It’s a small world episode and don’t understand 1) what those guys were doing in the park to piss off the family 2) why does Trent feel the need to get involved!!??  Production & Security was right there. He is an asshole 

Right?!?!  There was absolutely no provocation showed.  What I saw was a few young people being sort of loud in a public park.  If there had been any micro aggression whatsoever, it would have been filmed and picked up by mics and re-played over and over and over.  TLC is obsessed with manipulating that type of shit.  The fact that they had nothing to go on tells me that Trent wanted to get into an argument so that Amber could have a narrative about people who are “ignorant” and anti-little people.

It is like, on Sister Wives, also a TLC show, when Meri moved into her first home in Flagstaff and had to immediately move out because of the awful, hate-filled, venom-spewing anti polygamist neighbors...that were never shown.

When Trent went over to talk to the guys, they listened to Trent, but Trent wouldn’t let them get in a word edgewise.  Trent said he didn’t want to say “bullied” or “picked on.”  First of all, if you don’t want to say things, then...don’t say them.  Saying them without saying them is passive-aggressive.  Second of all, if anyone was being a bully or picking on anyone else, it was Trent.

The civilized part of me was glad Jonah didn’t go over there, and was spared of making a further ass of himself, and the reality TV watching part of me felt like it was a missed opportunity. 

This is some Jussie Smollett-type psychotic shit to pretend people were hating on them when there is no evidence of same.  

Other than that, this episode was a lot less boring than usual.  I wish they would get out and socialize with people more often.  The usual family dynamics in Forsyth is like watching paint dry.

On the upside, since there was no Russian food in sight, Alex didn’t cry one tear.  I still can’t believe how underdeveloped he is mentally though.  When he did that talking head that a good fortune cooking would say “your future is going to be great” or something, I was like, these are the musings of a six year old.  I really think if Alex were of normal height, much more attention would be paid to the fact that he acts years younger than his age.  It seems a lot more attention-worthy than Emma having a quiet disposition.  

I like Emma and Elizabeth a lot more with boyfriends and friends.  I think Elizabeth got very lucky with her current boyfriend.  He seems like a really nice guy.  I’m not sure Emma’s boyfriend is really her boyfriend if they don’t get to see each other, but they seem to have a sweet relationship too.  Here’s hoping Trent doesn’t fuck it up by asking about their bathroom habits (something he said he was going to ask all of his daughters’ potential boyfriend about, in an episode that was otherwise blissfully absent of bathroom-speak).

Two episodes in a row with Trent for the win as Biggest Asshole (although he struck me as BA pretty much since I started watching this show).  

[GladysCravits]

The previews for next weeks program, show further insistence from Amber that Anna go away to school to ‘learn how the real world works’.  Anna doesn’t want to go away.    Amber doesn’t apply this philosophy to Jonah who’s already flunked out of his first year of college and will be permitted to stay home again and go to school.  He seems less aware of the way the world works than Anna.  He’s coddled by Amber, who’s obvious disdain for Anna has always been troublesome to me.  She tends to think her natural born children are quite superior to the others in my opinion.     I hope things turn out better for Anna in the future.  

[GladysCravits]

On 5/6/2020 at 10:57 AM, camom said:

This family is becoming difficult to watch.  The constant bathroom talk -- ugh.  Trent's deliberately swerving the RV while Anna was in the bathroom was just mean.  I wonder if he would have done that to any of the other kids.

If Alex is known to have a problem with getting water in his ears, why in the world wasn't he wearing ear plugs?  It's an easy problem to avoid.

 

Alex always claims some kind of injury or illness when he can’t do something or embarrasses himself doing it.  He’s such a baby.  His behavior seems to be encouraged by the whole family.

[SunnyBeBe]

I actually thought the previews of the LP convention looked interesting, but, I wasn't able to catch it.  Maybe, later. 

[camom]

It was good to see the kids with friends and just enjoying themselves.

The incident in the park was stupid.  If anyone was a bully, it was Trent.  Just because young men are being loud doesn't mean it has anything to do with you.  If anything, they may have been rowdy because there were cameras present.  Before this incident, those people probably didn't have much of an opinion about little people at all; now their impression is negative.  Good job, Trent!

[Kid]

7 hours ago, GladysCravits said:

The previews for next weeks program, show further insistence from Amber that Anna go away to school to ‘learn how the real world works’.  Anna doesn’t want to go away.    Amber doesn’t apply this philosophy to Jonah who’s already flunked out of his first year of college and will be permitted to stay home again and go to school.  He seems less aware of the way the world works than Anna.  He’s coddled by Amber, who’s obvious disdain for Anna has always been troublesome to me.  She tends to think her natural born children are quite superior to the others in my opinion.     I hope things turn out better for Anna in the future.  

I feel sorry for Anna.  She obviously has abandonment issues stemming from her early childhood and her parents’ love appears to be conditional and Anna appears to realize that.  
One of her mother’s first comments about the conference this year was that Anna got in trouble during the conference last year.  Yes, WE KNOW.

The problem Anna will have is that she will never trust enough to truly love anyone because she believes she will ultimately be abandoned.  My heart goes out to her.

Edited May 13, 2020 by Kid

[humbleopinion]

Emma is Anna's closest sib and they have a fond sisterly relationship.

Anna is just going to have to accept that her parents will not forgive her for her youthful transgressions even a year later with good behavior since they throw her wrongdoing in her face every chance they get on camera.

Predicting more gloom and doom for her future is nonproductive but that is their way of dealing with her...pretty crappy and a double standard....

She is the quickest with a snark and honest comment and is the production crew's favorite.

Anna is a survivor and will suck it up and make the best of the hand dealt to her....do not expect her to ever have an affectionate relationship with her parents.

Hope she gets the hell outta that house as soon as she can afford her own place...

 

[Fostersmom]

What the hell did Anna do? Was she running a teen age brothel and dealing drugs to preschoolers on the side? I've only caught this show in bits and pieces, but actually watched last night... too lazy to turn the channel. But I've caught the Anna is a miscreant soundbite before. 

[DkNNy79]

Anna seems to have a better relationship with Trent than Amber.  Really the only things she's done that I remember is being caught spray painting the school.  Although I thought later Anna said she didn't really do it but panicked when caught and admitted it.  Am I remembering that right?  That was one of the reasons she switched high schools her senior year?  She did much better in the new school because it was smaller.  I think the implication was that Anna sometimes is a follower, not sure if its to fit in given her stature or what not.  

The only other thing I remember is that at the LPA in Orlando one of the rules was not to go into anyone's hotel room which Anna did and then lied about when confronted by her parents. 

I personally don't see going away to college as a punishment.  I think all kids should go away to college (if financially able to).  I had so much fun in college.  I was chomping at the bit to go away to school and it truly is a great way to learn about being independent. 

Regarding the differential treatment with Jonah regarding college: I think they said initially that they wanted Jonah to prove to them that he was serious about his studies.  They didn't want to spend all that $$$$ on a more expensive school.  So maybe this means they are more confident about Anna doing well in school?

This episode was one of my favorites outside the park incident.  Yeah, the guys were being obviously obnoxious and they were obviously acting out because the cameras were there.  I guess the way they shot the incident you couldn't really tell if thats all they were doing or if they were shouting other stuff.

Lucca was beyond adorable.  Emma and Lucca's interactions were beyond cute and I hope those kids make it.  I"m curious as to where Lucca lives.  I also liked meeting Anna and Liz's LP friends and their interactions.  Liz's friend Dace was really gorgeous - her face was flawless.  I was worried for her poor ankles though, they seemed to be really small in comparison to the rest of her figure.  I wonder if Liz also tends to go for average sized guys because she's on the taller side for a LP.

Poor Anna, but her date was cringeworthy.  She said one of the qualities she looks for most in a boyfriend is someone who can hold a conversation.  Then they show the date she went on and it was just awful.  Anna was clearly smitten but that was 100% based on the way he looked because everything else was painful.

[Kid]

2 hours ago, Fostersmom said:

What the hell did Anna do? Was she running a teen age brothel and dealing drugs to preschoolers on the side? I've only caught this show in bits and pieces, but actually watched last night... too lazy to turn the channel. But I've caught the Anna is a miscreant soundbite before. 

I have been watching the show and I wonder the same thing.    I think she just does stupid things that most teenagers do.

When Trent and Amber were talking to the counselor, Amber made the statement that. when Anna gets into trouble,  their son and the two parents rush in to fix it  and make sure NO ONE FINDS OUT about it.   First of all, what could Anna be doing that is so shameful and, second of all, a family is only as sick as it secrets.

Edited May 13, 2020 by Kid

[ShowsILoveToHate]

They have the next episode OnDemand called “That’s Cringey”.  I watched it, and I have a lot to say, but I’m not sure if that’s ok to do, yet. Would talking about the next episode be considered a spoiler? 
If someone could let me know, I’d appreciate it! 😎

[seasons]

10 minutes ago, ShowsILoveToHate said:

They have the next episode OnDemand called “That’s Cringey”.  I watched it, and I have a lot to say, but I’m not sure if that’s ok to do, yet. Would talking about the next episode be considered a spoiler? 
If someone could let me know, I’d appreciate it! 😎

Lol i watched the new episode on demand too! 😉

Edited May 13, 2020 by seasons

[seasons]

during the outside camping episode, I do remember t and a saying that anna was their hardest worker of all the kids, might even have said "workhorse" . Maybe that is why they feel she can handle the away college experience. Maybe she does need to be on her own and give it a try. It just seems like they need to have more close talks about it together. Good start with the psychologist. Anna needs to hear much more from them. 

[Guest]

1 hour ago, ShowsILoveToHate said:

watched it, and I have a lot to say, but I’m not sure if that’s ok to do, yet. Would talking about the next episode be considered a spoiler? 
If someone could let me know, I’d appreciate it! 

If it's available legally, it can be discussed! 🙂

[humbleopinion]

Enjoyed Emma's 14th birthday celebration in SF.

Those fortune cookies hot off the little grills are delicious...once you had those fresh you will never be satisfied with the stale, artificial tasting ones in the cellophane packages after your Chinese dinner....If you buy 2 bags of the rejects you will chow through those PDQ and wished you bought 4 bags...they are that light and crunchy....

Lucca is such a gentleman...when they hit a bump in the pedicab, his arm was there to prevent her from falling off the bench, adorbs. The pearl necklace was just right.

He speaks so sincerely and glowingly of her...it warmed my cold dark heart.

Liz's galpals are hilarious...bring them out to Forsyth TLC!

Hope the virus doesn't cancel their conference this summer.

 

 

 

[PradaKitty]

The conference has been cancelled.  I looked it up immediately after watching this episode. Poor Emma! She won’t be seeing Luca this summer. 
it also seems Elizabeth’s senior year has been a little different than she expected due to the Corona Virus.  I feel for her. 

[Waldopepper]

Anna will be stripping at one of those truck stop strip clubs along I-75 in Georgia as soon as she fails out of college. They would love her up there. Something different. She could make some real $$$$$$$

[Waldopepper]

Anna is from a Russian Orphanage, A siberian one at that. She was not meant to be a brain surgeon. The fact that she graduated high school is a huge accomplishment considering what she was born into. She just needs to find herslef a nice redneck guy with a good job and she can become a mom of 2 dwarf kids and spend her time raising them and living the good life.

[MissT]

9 hours ago, Waldopepper said:

Anna will be stripping at one of those truck stop strip clubs along I-75 in Georgia as soon as she fails out of college. They would love her up there. Something different. She could make some real $$$$$$$

I don't understand this comment.  It's such a horrible thing to say. 

I think Anna will be just fine.  She is good at camp with children and she seemed to enjoy it.  I could see her working in a camp or daycare. 

[SideofSlaw]

I think Anna and her parents need on-going therapy. I enjoyed when the counselor commented that she was being “shipped away” while Jonah was allowed to stay at home at attend college. Are her parents really that dense that they don’t see how it would look to her? Or can’t they admit to themselves that having her gone is what THEY need, not necessarily what Anna needs? She’s a home-body. She has attachment issues from living in Siberian orphanage until she was 4. That’s not going to magically go away. I think Anna got the nail on the head. Her parents think she will develop independence by going away AND they want their home free of her. The whole situation was sad. Why did she not get any say in her college choice? Are they going to choose for Elizabeth, too? Probably not. 

[readheaded]

13 hours ago, Waldopepper said:

Anna is from a Russian Orphanage, A siberian one at that. She was not meant to be a brain surgeon. The fact that she graduated high school is a huge accomplishment considering what she was born into. She just needs to find herslef a nice redneck guy with a good job and she can become a mom of 2 dwarf kids and spend her time raising them and living the good life.

The beautiful thing about humans is that they can exceed other people's low expectations and their own humble beginnings.  None of us knows what Anna "was meant to be."  She'll figure that out.

[druzy]

1 hour ago, readheaded said:

The beautiful thing about humans is that they can exceed other people's low expectations and their own humble beginnings.  None of us knows what Anna "was meant to be."  She'll figure that out.

I wish I could give this a million hearts ❤️.

[LibertarianSlut]

What I don’t understand is why Anna doesn’t want to go away to school.  I thought everyone wanted to go away to school, even if it’s harder for some people than others.  I would want to get the hell out of that house, for one.  I think the parents are right for once that this is the best thing for her.  

I don’t fault Amber and Trent for making her go away.  There is this little bargain that parents make when they bring children into the world (or in this case, adopt them), that they will raise them for 18 years and then off they go.  She’s super lucky her parents are paying for it.  

If Anna was driving, which I’m not quite sure why she’s not, it’s only two hours away.  It’s close enough that she could come home every single weekend and even a few times during the week.  They’re not exactly shipping her off.  

I was kind of embarrassed for Anna that her mom was there for her orientation.  I’m not being snarky, but is she developmentally delayed?  I would have died of embarrassment if my mom attended orientation with me.  She’s 19, right?  My friends and I were all barely 18 when we went to college, and some were more ready than others, and not all of us were that mature or smart, but we weren’t remotely like Anna.  She is displaying more of the mentality of a 13 or 14 year old. 

If I was going to prognosticate anything, I would have thought Trent and Amber would have mandated that they’ll only pay for college if the kid lives at home, and I would have thought that was unfair.  I think the opposite is totally fair.  

I don’t know that Anna isn’t going to fail out of college—she seems woefully unprepared—but why not give it a shot?  If she fails out, I think they should let her move home, but then she needs to make a plan ASAP.  Anything short of that, they’re infantilizing her. 

Did Trent and Amber actually not pay Brice to watch their pets when they were in CA?  Cheapskates, my God!

I must be on drugs, because I thought Amber and Trent had a point about Elizabeth and Brice and their PDA.  They weren’t saying they couldn’t snuggle, they were saying they couldn’t snuggle to that extent around the family, just as they wouldn’t snuggle that way in front of their kids.  When I saw the preview for this, I thought they were going to tell their 17 year old daughter she wasn’t allowed to cuddle with her boyfriend, and I rolled my eyes so hard. 

Trent handled that one ok, and everything Liz said about never doing that stuff in front of other people was given a lie by the cameras.  I don’t know what it has to do with being in front of the “little kids” (13 and 14 is not “little kids,” it’s “big kids” and I think it’s bad for them to refer to refer to them as “little kids,” especially Alex; it lets him off the hook for so much shit), I think it has to do with respecting your parents’ rules and household.  If Trent was walking around in his boxers around Brice, um, no, that’s totally inappropriate. 

I think they made a good decision to lower the house to suit their needs.  I don’t think they need to give anyone an explanation about that.  I’m just so glad the shit about cooking and washing food in the bathtub is over.  That was gross.  I don’t know why their appliances would be delayed.  I think that was for storyline.  

Pretty solid episode two weeks in a row.  What is going on??

[ShortyMac]

If anyone needs to go away to college to mature, it's Jonah. He seemingly has no issue with flunking out of community college, on his parents' dime, staying at home, having his room cleaned for him, etc. 

[SideofSlaw]

11 hours ago, ShortyMac said:

If anyone needs to go away to college to mature, it's Jonah. He seemingly has no issue with flunking out of community college, on his parents' dime, staying at home, having his room cleaned for him, etc. 

This! I have been dying for them to give a clear answer as to why Anna needs to leave to grow up, when she is already a workhouse. They alluded to social immaturity, which yes, all your children suffer from that (see: Alex).  Meanwhile, Jonah is so immature that he refuses to make his bed, help with house projects, wear properly fitting shorts, and fails his classes but NBD.  Jonah would benefit from having to live on his own- and if he failed out, he can get a job and live on his own. 

[readheaded]

The Johnston kids aren't perfect by any means, but they are pretty good kids finding their way.  

Jonah definitely needs to get some help with this math, but all isn't lost.  My own son just finished his sophomore year and a subset of his friends had a hard time their freshman year and had to come home to learn how to regulate themselves because they just weren't ready to be on their own at college.  I don't think it's something parents should tolerate, but at the same time, it doesn't have to be the end of the world or the end of college.  But, if Jonah's figured out that college isn't for him, then he needs to come up with another plan for earning a viable living.  Sometimes, kids that age get in over their heads, can't admit it, and then can't find a way to recover.  

Anna might need to go away to college.  We insisted that my oldest son live away because otherwise, he would have stayed in his room for all 4 years.  He was a great student, but definitely needed to practice his social skills. At first, he wasn't happy about it, but once he graduated, he thanked us for pushing him because he was much more confident than when he started college.

Anyway, whatever Trent and Amber's parental failings, I think they love their kids and that their kids will be fine.  We all have our blind spots as parents and as people.

[woodscommaelle]

My god what did Anna ever do to Trent and Amber?  They are really shitty to her.  Did they ever ask her what she would like to do instead of going to college?  Maybe she could work at a pre-school or something.   She seems so sad to me.     

[AryasMum]

On 5/14/2020 at 11:02 PM, ShortyMac said:

If anyone needs to go away to college to mature, it's Jonah. He seemingly has no issue with flunking out of community college, on his parents' dime, staying at home, having his room cleaned for him, etc. 

And yet while they were sitting around the pool, Jonah climbed on his high horse and railed at Anna about wasting their parents’ money. How is he so clueless, and why do they let him get away with it?  Jonah seems to have a victim mentality. He needs to go away on campus and learn to be a big boy.

[humbleopinion]

Anna and Emma are not the favorites of their parents so they will not be given chance after chance to mess up.

Jonah gets blanket immunity because he was a premmie. He gets to be sullen, disrespectful, impertinent and sloth like. 

Liz is a suck up...Obedient, pleasing, camera ready

Alex is the family jester, the bottomless pit of hunger, quick with a quip and a laugh.

Anna is the most interesting kid to watch among the family shots, when they zig...she zags.

Now that Emma is finally voicing, her mumblings under her breath are entertaining.

Last episode of the season...Did 7Little get picked up for another season?

They should do a Q and A clip show to squeeze another episode from this turnip...easy to shoot with the crew at a safe distance.

 

 

Edited May 17, 2020 by humbleopinion

[seasons]

Did Trent ever find out what was causing his abdominal pain? Tough process with lots of tests to rule things out. Maybe anxiety?

[humbleopinion]

The show hinted to the gallbladder as the source of the intermittent but severe episodes of pain.