S11.E09: Dear Santa, I Love You

[Sew Sumi]

  Quote

It's Christmas time and BIll goes all out with the decorations, much to Jen's dismay; Bill holds a pet adoption where Will and Zoey decide on a new puppy; family visits, toy drive shopping, and letters to Santa keep everyone busy.

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Edited November 15, 2017 by Sew Sumi
My guide said S9! Oops!

[ChiCricket]

I hate those big inflatable Christmas decorations. To me they are so tacky.

Plus during the day, when they're deflated, they all look dead.

YMMV :)

Edited November 18, 2017 by ChiCricket
Comma not needed

[Awfarmington]

This is the first time I noticed such blatant product placement. 

Second thing, and maybe my poor is just showing. But the toy shopping at the specialty shop  seemed  extravagant. Not only because the kids were just going to town filling the carts. But he could have gone to Target and gotten twice the toys for the same money. They did show the name of the business a couple times, so maybe the toys were 'donated' by the shop as payment. I'm to the point where I don't trust anything TLC shows as genuine lol. 

[ChiCricket]

 I noticed the product placement too. The tomato sauce for one. 

Now I'm jonesing for that yummy looking spaghetti and meatballs :::drool::::

[Awfarmington]

  On 11/15/2017 at 3:51 AM, ChiCricket said:

I hate those big inflatable Christmas decorations. To me they are so tacky.

Plus during the day when they're deflated, they all look dead.

YMMV :)

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I have to air a grievance with that. I totally agree that Bill's decor was tacky. When Jen said they agreed that he could decorate the outside, and she the inside, it seemed reasonable. Typically decorating for the holidays is something that the wife handles. But in the case where the husband has a strong opinion, there has to be compromise. What irritated me is that Jen accepted his tacky blow up decorations, then he comes inside and tries to force his tackiness on her. She kept telling him not to put it on and he persisted.   No wonder the kids don't listen to her, look at the example he gives. I know they make it sound endearing that Bill is a big kid. But I wouldn't be able to handle that in a spouse. 

[woodscommaelle]

I swear to you I've had spaghetti and meatballs maybe 5 times in my life. So it's not a food I really like. But that meal looked fucking delicious.

Zoey's heart to heart with the puppy.  She's so full of love. ❤️

[Sasha888]

  On 11/15/2017 at 3:51 AM, ChiCricket said:

I hate those big inflatable Christmas decorations. To me they are so tacky.

Plus during the day when they're deflated, they all look dead.

YMMV :)

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Ha ha ha! If I rode around with my Dad during the holiday season, he'd yell that at people's houses. "Hey, your snowman's dead!" LOL. (with the car windows closed of course, he didn't actually yell it so anyone outside our car could hear him.)

To each his own, but I don't care for them either.

[Sasha888]

  On 11/15/2017 at 3:58 AM, Awfarmington said:

But he could have gone to Target and gotten twice the toys for the same money. They did show the name of the business a couple times, so maybe the toys were 'donated' by the shop as payment. I'm to the point where I don't trust anything TLC shows as genuine lol. 

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God, I am so incredibly naive. This never even occurred to me. And I probably should know better by now. 

How ironic that the name of the store was Tomfoolery! Yep...may have been some tomfoolery going on there. ;-)

[woodscommaelle]

I forgot exactly how he said it but Will's "I want this for the other kids' when picking out gifts at the store was funny. Also 'let's get two so they don't have to share.' Lol!

And they spent a shit ton on those toys. Holy shit. 

[Sasha888]

  On 11/15/2017 at 4:10 AM, woodscommaelle said:

Zoey's heart to heart with the puppy.  She's so full of love. ❤️

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That was awfully cute. She seemed to really think the puppy would understand her explanation of why she couldn't take him home! Took him off into a corner too, like it was a secret. 

[Sasha888]

  On 11/15/2017 at 4:08 AM, Awfarmington said:

What irritated me is that Jen accepted his tacky blow up decorations, then he comes inside and tries to force his tackiness on her. She kept telling him not to put it on and he persisted.   No wonder the kids don't listen to her, look at the example he gives. I know they make it sound endearing that Bill is a big kid. But I wouldn't be able to handle that in a spouse. 

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I didn't much care for that either. I usually like Bill a lot and find him pretty amusing, but I agree...she let him have his way with the outside decorations, let her do the inside. Maybe to suggest it as a joke, fine, but he kept going and going with it. Taking the joke a little too far IMO.

[BitterApple]

If I were Jen I would've been pissed when Judy egged Will on about adopting the puppy. Jen's already set up to be the bad guy in so many parenting situations as it is, there's no need to make it worse. I did think Zoe giving PJ the dog a detailed explanation as to why she couldn't have him was hilarious.

I also thought it was funny when Bill asked Will how he did with the yard decorations and Will was quick to remind him it was the employees who did all the work, lol. 

It was nice to see Bill's mom get to spend  time with the kids, sans the other sets of grandparents. It always feels like she gets overshadowed whenever Judy and Stepmom are around. 

[Sew Sumi]

Jen: "I'm not accustomed to manhandling balls." *giggle* 

I died. 

[Sasha888]

  On 11/15/2017 at 5:38 AM, BitterApple said:

If I were Jen I would've been pissed when Judy egged Will on about adopting the puppy. Jen's already set up to be the bad guy in so many parenting situations as it is, there's no need to make it worse.

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I wouldn't have appreciated that either. Knowing that the kids love animals, it was going to be hard enough to get out of there without a new puppy as it was! That's a line my parents never would have crossed (and if they did, they would've heard about it). 

I raised some kittens from my brother's acreage one year (he was deployed at the time) and knew a friend's little girl wanted a kitten soooo bad. But I just emailed my friend discreetly, I didn't mention it in front of their little girl. They have 5 kids, one still a baby at that time, so I knew it might not be the right time for them. Saying it right in front of a small child really puts the parents on the spot - I didn't feel right doing that. And it turned out they did not want a pet until their youngest got a bit older, so I'm sure they wouldn't have liked it if I'd blabbed that info in front of their kids.

[Awfarmington]

  On 11/15/2017 at 5:43 AM, Sew Sumi said:

Jen: "I'm not accustomed to manhandling balls." *giggle* 

I died. 

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Dinner prep soft core porn humor seems to be becoming a theme with Jen and Bill...one can only hope next week's meal doesn't include any meat or lettuce ?

[Snow8585]

It was not much of a visit for Judy and her husband. Stop by the house, no meal that we saw, no gifts even though it was supposedly christmas time, and then a business related visit to Rocky and Maggies. I go back and forth on Judy. She seems to be the only one that the kids really listen to when she wants them to behave but then she goes and does a dumb thing like encouraging the adoption of two dogs knowing full well that there are already two dogs at home and then to encourage the adoption of dogs that will be bigger than the kids when the dogs are full grown.  She put Jen and Bill in a terrible spot. She is not a dumb person so why on earth would she do something like that, I do not know.

[Kathira]

Does Bill normally do the cooking? Do they just eat a lot of take-out? Or those meal delivery things? Because Jen always seems so unfamiliar with making even basic stuff like meatballs. And WIll seemed like he'd never seen the can opener in action before. I think we've seen Jen doing breakfasts, but I wonder what their real every day routine is, when they aren't doing special events for the cameras. Obviously Jen works all day normally, so I can totally understand not being up for cooking at the end of a long day. It's just hard to imagine Bill cooking on a regular basis either. Maybe grilling meat, but everyday meals? Not so much.

Also, Zoe is adorable and sweet, but Will can really be annoying.

Edited November 15, 2017 by Kathira

[viewer]

I sure would like the recipe for the sauce!   Christmas shows are always cute.  I wonder what the actual Christmas was.

[Foghorn Leghorn]

  On 11/15/2017 at 12:20 PM, Kathira said:

Does Bill normally do the cooking? Do they just eat a lot of take-out? Or those meal delivery things? Because Jen always seems so unfamiliar with making even basic stuff like meatballs. And WIll seemed like he'd never seen the can opener in action before. I think we've seen Jen doing breakfasts, but I wonder what their real every day routine is, when they aren't doing special events for the cameras. Obviously Jen works all day normally, so I can totally understand not being up for cooking at the end of a long day. It's just hard to imagine Bill cooking on a regular basis either. Maybe grilling meat, but everyday meals? Not so much.

Also, Zoe is adorable and sweet, but Will can really be annoying.

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Bill is the cook but they do take out a lot as well as we have seen in previous episodes.  Growing up in a home with a kitchen made for regular sized adults is not very conducive to little people learning to cook.  I think Bill is a griller!  Hey throw some meat on the grill, “toss a salad”, add the rice from the rice cooker and dinner is served!

Edited November 15, 2017 by Foghorn Leghorn

[bichonblitz]

I liked the Christmas traditions. The kids tree, the pulling name out of the hat to see who does the tree topper, writing to Santa. I'm sure they have more. These are the things you will always remember about your childhood. Very cute. 

[camom]

Surely Jen has some latex gloves at home, I'm surprised she didn't think to use them to mix the meatballs.  I always use gloves for jobs like that.  Zoey trying to eat that big meatball was adorable.  Love Bill's mom and step-dad.

Like others, I didn't like the outdoor decorations, but did like the inside of the house.  Those inflatables were so huge, my thought was that Bill is trying to compensate.

[SMama]

  On 11/15/2017 at 12:06 PM, Snow8585 said:

She is not a dumb person so why on earth would she do something like that, I do not know.

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Producer driven?

[TwirlyGirly]

  On 11/15/2017 at 3:00 PM, Foghorn Leghorn said:

Bill is the cook but they do take out a lot as well as we have seen in previous episodes.  Growing up in a home with a kitchen made for regular sized adults is not very conducive to little people learning to cook.  I think Bill is a griller!  Hey throw some meat on the grill, “toss a salad”, add the rice from the rice cooker and dinner is served!

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Every time I see that kitchen, especially knowing neither Bill nor Jen are really into cooking, I want to scream. I would do ANYTHING for a kitchen like that. As I've mentioned before in other threads, I am short-statured and use a wheelchair full-time for mobility. My kitchen has NO adaptations whatsoever. My shoulders are level with standard kitchen counter height. I can't see into pots. I can't see into the bottom of my sink. I can't reach my freezer or my upper cabinets. My wheelchair gets in the way of my oven door. And despite all these issues, I LOVE to cook! (I know, I should have picked a different hobby, right?)

That wall oven Jen has is made by Blue Star and they start at around ***$5000.00***.

I get really frustrated when people who aren't all that into cooking to begin with drop all kinds of money on fancy kitchens with top-of-the-line appliances (and adaptive equipment if they need it) and then don't take full advantage of it. I understand why it would be annoying to drag a stool around the kitchen to reach normal-height counters, but I don't even have that as an option. Because I am constantly at battle with my environment, it takes me twice as long to make a meal as it would if I could cook in a kitchen like the Klein's. So why do I bother? Because I like good food, and to me, cooking from scratch with fresh ingredients is "good food."

(If you want an idea of what it's like for me to cook a meal, try making dinner tonight while standing on your knees the entire time. Welcome to my world).

Note: Medicaid pays for home adaptations (including kitchen remodeling) for people with disabilities. Medicare does not. Because I worked for a major airline full-time for 22 years despite being disabled, I do not qualify for Medicaid - just Medicare. Therefore, I can't get any help to pay for the type of adaptations that would make my life SO much easier - and safer. The system sucks.

Rant over!

[BitterApple]

One thing I forgot to mention was how incredibly rude that young boy was on next week's preview. I understand that kids don't have filters, but based on the editing it seemed like he was harping on Bill's short stature. If I'd ever done something like that, my mother would've dragged me out of the room by my ear and told me off. I'm hoping it doesn't play out as badly as it did in that short clip. 

[BalsoSnell]

I want an all Zoey, all the time show.

[walnutqueen]

Zoey having a most sincere heart-to-heart with the puppy was freaking adorable.  She is such a delight!

I was pleasantly surprised that the one item Will chose for himself in the toy store was a book.  To me, that is a very good sign.

[woodscommaelle]

  On 11/15/2017 at 7:20 PM, BalsoSnell said:

I want an all Zoey, all the time show.

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I would settle for a 'take Zoey to work with me' day....just once...a week...for the rest of my life ;) 

I'm 100% certain she'd do a better job than some of my co-workers.

[Abmis]

When I was watching Jen make the meatballs I thought of the old On Top Of Spaghetti song for the first time in years.   Apparently Will has heard it too with all his talk of sneezing and meatballs.  

[Sew Sumi]

  On 11/15/2017 at 2:10 PM, viewer said:

I sure would like the recipe for the sauce!   Christmas shows are always cute.  I wonder what the actual Christmas was.

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Vermont. Bill said that they were doing this a couple of weeks early because they were going to be out of town. 

[Sasha888]

  On 11/15/2017 at 12:20 PM, Kathira said:

Also, Zoe is adorable and sweet, but Will can really be annoying.

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I agree, and to me it's his screaming that is the most annoying. He screamed right in Judy's face. I guess the good news is, she did try to correct him a little. 

I was also disappointed that during the dinner with Bill's Mom & step-dad, Will was being pretty loud - he was interrupting when Jen was saying what she was thankful for, and also kept talking over Zoey when she was trying to say that she was thankful to be with all of them (how cute was that by the way) - I thought he should have been told "You had your turn to talk, now your mother is speaking, your sister is speaking" etc. Just my opinion, but when Zoey was so frustrated and yelling at Will to stop it so she could have a turn to talk, Bill or Jen should have stepped in and told him to be quiet, it is Zoey's turn to talk right now.

Also they were worried Zoey might put too much cheese on her spaghetti, then Will gets the cheese and dumped the entire thing on his spaghetti - on purpose, and thought it was funny. No cheese for anyone else, I guess! And no correction for doing it.

At any dinner at our house, that would not be allowed - and definitely not at a special Christmas dinner with the grandparents present. 

[Sasha888]

  On 11/15/2017 at 6:20 PM, TwirlyGirly said:

Note: Medicaid pays for home adaptations (including kitchen remodeling) for people with disabilities. Medicare does not. Because I worked for a major airline full-time for 22 years despite being disabled, I do not qualify for Medicaid - just Medicare. Therefore, I can't get any help to pay for the type of adaptations that would make my life SO much easier - and safer. The system sucks.

Rant over!

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The system most definitely sucks, and I think you are entirely justified to rant a little about it! :-) I am on disability, but mine does not require any home modifications (not yet, anyway) - and I know I'm one of the lucky ones. I've run into some frustrating things with the system, but not anything nearly as frustrating as what you described.

Seems sometimes like it's almost set up to punish people who try to work as long as they can, and that's just messed up.

[Snow8585]

During dinner, Bill's mom told Will to stop talking so Zoey could talk. I also was unhappy to see Will dump all the cheese on his spaghetti and laugh that there was none for anyone else.  Thank goodness I will never have to eat dinner with them.

[Sew Sumi]

I walked back to the teevee when Will dumped the cheese, so I didn't realize that everyone else was deprived. When you're 3, that might fly. Not at 6…almost 7.

[SMama]

I'd love to see the unedited version of the incident. I'm going to give the parents the benefit of the doubt that there was at least scolding. If not, that is reason number 1,564,634 I would never subject my child to such public scrutiny. Maybe they let a lot of things go for the sake of filming. My experience has taught me it does no favors to the children. This is coming from a mama who is still on a HUGE guilt trip over depriving SDaughter the opportunity to go on a field trip. She spent the day in another classroom while all other kids went to the zoo. It was not behavior related, but she did not keep up with her accelerated reading. Her teacher sent us a lovely email stating she was so proud there were consequences to her actions. The teacher went on to say she hardly sees that anymore. For real? SBaba and I could not get away with anything. That being said I still feel shitty about what we had to do. We are confident SDaughter won't be missing future field trips.

Can you imagine disciplining your child like that on national TV? Wills, prove me wrong and become the first dwarf astronaut, or first whatever you want to be. You are my daughter's little brother, we are worried but cheering you on. 

Edited November 15, 2017 by SMama

[Jeanne222]

Maybe Judy was giving Bill a gotcha with the two new dogs talk to the kids!

[Foghorn Leghorn]

Will “this is a good dinner” makes me laugh as he loves food so much I will bet he says that or something similar every meal!  Zoey has Bill wrapped around her finger and the telling is her asking “Dad, can I have” in ever such a sweet voice and I love the angry look and crossed arms when it’s a no...hilarious about the puppy conversation.  I am noticing Will being affectionate with Jen asking to sit beside her at dinner and hugging her a couple of times.  I think though he would have wanted to sit beside anyone who cooked “this is a good dinner!”  Will follows the cook and Zoey follows the money or yes man!  

I didn’t like what Judy pulled in the pet store telling Will he could have that particular puppy and continuing to encourage the relationship between them by saying how much the puppy liked Will.  Then Zoey gets told something similar causing her to become angry in her way.  And we have Jen smiling through gritted teeth...seemed unkind to the kids though.  

Edited November 15, 2017 by Foghorn Leghorn

[Bunnyette]

  On 11/15/2017 at 2:10 PM, viewer said:

I sure would like the recipe for the sauce!   Christmas shows are always cute.  I wonder what the actual Christmas was.

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From the preview, it looks like shoving Jen in a sled & pushing her down a hill covered in snow.

[woodscommaelle]

  On 11/15/2017 at 11:29 PM, Bunnyette said:

From the preview, it looks like shoving Jen in a sled & pushing her down a hill covered in snow.

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She sounded totally terrified in that clip. 

[Jeanne222]

  On 11/15/2017 at 11:50 PM, woodscommaelle said:

She sounded totally terrified in that clip. 

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Jen has had many surgeries.  On sure she was terrified!

[humbleopinion]

Will's behavior at the dinner table made me cringe...

Will's disrespectful behaviors this season is grating...only keep watching because Zooey is a firecracker...

[pinguina]

I absolutely loved Zoey's conversation with the puppy!! "I love you with all my heart and I know you love me too."  Adorable!! Then her explanation of why he couldn't come home with her.  I like her so much!!!

I thought Judy telling them both that they could have a puppy was totally wrong!!   I know because I have to stop myself from saying things like that and repeat to myself, "I am not the parent, I am not the parent."   Might be a good mantra for Judy.

[Absolom]

Ratings:  1.241 M viewers and a .23 rating. 

My grandkids' other grandma pulls that kind of stuff.  I've been told by my daughter to go ahead and call her out gently and stop it as one grandma to another. 

Edited November 16, 2017 by Absolom

[woodscommaelle]

"There's amazing stuff here." What kid talks like that? Zoey is an old soul for sure. ??

"So we only use natural ingredients."...as she hands some canned Hunts tomatoes to Bill.  Wha???

Edited November 16, 2017 by woodscommaelle

[SMama]

I thought she said at home they use natural ingredients. To me it meant she uses fresh tomatoes at home. The sauce and meatballs looked delicious. Too bad we won’t get the family secret recipe.

[Sasha888]

  On 11/15/2017 at 10:49 PM, SMama said:

that is reason number 1,564,634 I would never subject my child to such public scrutiny.

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I LOVE your very exact number for this. :-) 

 

  On 11/16/2017 at 1:11 AM, pinguina said:

I thought Judy telling them both that they could have a puppy was totally wrong!!   I know because I have to stop myself from saying things like that and repeat to myself, "I am not the parent, I am not the parent."

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Yep...I have to remind myself, when I'm around my nephew, that I absolutely must not interfere with my brother and SIL's parenting. Mostly because he's so stinking hilarious, but I know I can't be laughing at him and encouraging behaviors they don't agree with.

One time (thank goodness I wasn't there, or I would have burst my spleen trying not to laugh) my SIL told him he needed an attitude adjustment and sent him to his room. When his time out was up, he came out with something built out of Legos. She said "Oh, what's this?" and he said "It's an attitude adjuster. FOR YOU!" He got sent right back to his room! 

Even she thought it was hilarious, she emailed it to the whole family - we all still laugh about it, but not in front of him. Someday when he's over 18, I'll tell him how funny I thought he was, but right now is not the time for me to be interfering with their parenting.

IMO this is something Bill & Jen could work on - not laughing at bad behavior, even though that is difficult. Their kids come up with some hilarious zingers, as most kids do, but you just can't laugh and still expect kids to listen to you and respect you.

[viewer]

I kind of wonder if Will wasn't prompted by TLC to pour the cheese on his food.  It was weird that Zoey was told not to do it and then he did.  I immediately thought of the cupcake sprinkles.    I think a lot of this is phoney.  If so who does that to their kid?

[bichonblitz]

  On 11/16/2017 at 2:59 AM, SMama said:

I thought she said at home they use natural ingredients. To me it meant she uses fresh tomatoes at home.

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I don't think Hunt's would be very happy if that's what she meant. There was product placement going on there, Hunt's most likely wanted her to advertise that their ingredients are natural, meaning even thought the tomatoes are canned, they do not contain any preservatives or chemicals. 

[SMama]

Oops ?.

[toodles]

  On 11/16/2017 at 2:41 AM, woodscommaelle said:

 

"So we only use natural ingredients."...as she hands some canned Hunts tomatoes to Bill.  Wha???

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I chuckled when she said that.  I use Hunts too, but natural? No.  Tasty, yes.

Edited November 16, 2017 by toodles

[Foghorn Leghorn]

I wondered if natural referred to the spices being added? Were they fresh or dried, I can’t recall.