Sister Wives, A Polygamist Family Reality Show

Wives: Bottem Meri & Robyn, Top: Janelle & Christine

First of all let me say that I would not normally be watching this show under any circumstances, but my older daughter is infatuated with this lifestyle and I watch it with her. That’s the kind of mom I am.

The show is about Kody and his four wives, Meri, Janelle, Christine and Robin; and 17 or so kids. He believes in plural marriage and so do the wives. I’m not sure the first wife, Meri, knew there would be more wives down the road, but now they are one, big happy family . . .or not. They moved from Utah to Las Vegas because they wanted to get four homes all together on a cul-de-sac. Each wife must have her own home and this arrangement saves Kody a lot of leg work, as he has to spend time with each wife and her children. Did I mention I can’t stand Kody? Although the wives seem to vie for his attention, I think secretly they are more than happy to share him and only see him once or twice a week. The wives all claim they are happy, but if you watch the show you can see that they are not for one reason or another. Let’s face it, a man has all to do to keep one wife and 2.5 children happy, let alone 4 wives and 17 children. Kody is not all that. In all fairness, as much as the show grates on my nerves, there are plenty of fans who love it and I will have to research why. So now to the current drama . . .

Meri is the first wife and was only able to have one child, a girl, who has now gone to college. She wanted another child, but that would require a surrogate and Kody is against doing things the unnatural way. Therefore, with her empty nest, all that is left for her to do is help the other wives. Robyn is the last wife and was married before, so she comes with three children in tow. As far as I know she has had another baby boy with Kody, making it four. Robyn has started an online business “My Sister Wife’s Closet.” They sell silver jewelry to women 18 to 50, so that leaves me out. Meri agreed to help her with the business. Recently, Meri had other ideas. Instead of pursuing Robyn’s dream of the business, she wants to go back to college and pursue her own dream. This didn’t sit well with Robyn, who was counting on Meri to be her personal business slave. After all, if Meri goes to college she might meet other people, develop other interests and go off and do other things and where will that leave Robyn and her “Closet?” Robyn is all about “me, me, me.” Meanwhile, while Robyn is stressing out about being overwhelmed with her business and resenting Meri’s need to pursue her own dream, she wants to have another baby. Yes, Robyn is overwhelmed and yet wants to have another baby! We suspect she is already pregnant and it hasn’t been announced on the show yet. Remember that last season Meri spent much of her storyline trying to convince Kody to let her have another baby, but that was nixed and she had all the time in the world to raise one. So what I gather is that Robyn was planning to dump more of the business responsibilities on Meri while she is off having her baby. Nice.

This week Meri broke the news to Robyn that she is going back to college, but will continue to help her with her business as always. Robyn seems skeptical or at least thinks she cannot rely on Meri 100%, as she is now doing. God forbid Meri has her own life. I decided to check out the website for My Sister Wife’s Closet. Like many other people watching the show, you can’t get on the website when the show is on because it is being bombarded with hits it can’t handle. I look at some of the customer reviews on their facebook page. One woman complains that her piece of jewelry came tarnished and when she called to complain she was told to go buy silver polish and polish it up. Another woman ordered a Christmas ornament for a friend that didn’t come on time. Meri, whose job is customer service and to make sure people receive quality jewelry, tells her she can always use it next Christmas. Some people complain the merchandise is overpriced. Obsessed fans don’t seem to care about quality, they just want something from the “Closet.”

The whole show revolves around Kody, who always meeting with all his four wives to discuss what direction to take the family in; or individually if they have an issue if their own they need to talk t him about. Maybe if Kody was more likable I could stand to watch it. I can see why plural marriage would fascinate my daughter. We are probably never going to know a family like this personally. That’s probably for the best. Instead of trying to borrow a cup of sugar, they would probably need a 5 pound bag! It’s not the worst reality show out there and it’s been on for 5 seasons so people are watching. I just don’t know why.

There Was a Painter and an Electrician . . .

Sounds like the beginning of a joke, but it’s not. Many of you have been following along with me on this journey of moving to the new house. There have been some ups and downs and lots of work along the way and, in July, we’ll be living here one year already. Hard to believe. Time flies . . . yada yada, yada.

Last September, for the entire month of September, we had the whole house painted by Jimmy/Eldin (for Murphy Brown fans). It was quite expensive, but it was a big job . . . 6.5 rooms and hallway with ceilings and closets. You may recall how complimentary I was of Jimmy’s work, how neat he was and how he paid attention to detail. You may also remember how much I appreciated my electrician/handyman, Frank, who did a lot of electrical work and anything I asked of him, as long as he knew how. While Jimmy was here working, I offered him drinks and meals, mostly which he declined. When Jimmy left we had paid him in full, over $5,000 (labor & materials) and we gave him a $400 bonus, which amounted to an extra day’s pay. We felt he earned it and he was very grateful. As he left he said if we had a problem with anything we should call him and he would take care of it. Of course I took him at his word, but didn’t expect to run into any issues. As the cold weather moved in, the caulking he used to seal cracks in the molding stretched and cracked. In the basement one of the walls developed a straight-line crack about 18 inches long. Not too noticeable, but I wanted it fixed. I texted Jimmy and he called in February to see what I needed. I explained what had happened and he said he would come over and take a look. While here he made a few notes and I also added a couple of other jobs I wanted done. He said he was busy at the time, but promised he wouldn’t forget about us and left. At the end of April I texted Jimmy to see if he had an idea when he might be coming to do these few jobs. No answer. I called and left a message. No answer. I emailed him. No answer. Needless to say I was upset, more hurt than angry really. He could have at least texted to say he was busy and hadn’t forgotten about me. But no, he couldn’t even spare the time to do that.

Now it’s June. We had a heavy downpour of rain and it was obvious the gutters needed cleaning. Frank had told me he would take care of them whenever I needed him to. So yesterday I texted Frank and asked him if he could call when he had a minute. He called me two minutes later. I told him the gutters needed cleaning and an outlet needed to be changed, and I also had a couple of other jobs if he could do them for me. He said he would come the next day and take a look. He showed up today two hours early. It was good to see him. We caught up quickly on our families and then I told him about the gutters, the gfi outlet, and all the jobs I had told Jimmy about. Frank took notes and said he could come next week on Monday and Tuesday. He apologized for the delay, but said they were having a big graduation party for his son on Saturday. I told him it wasn’t a problem, none of it was an emergency and he could even come evenings during the week so he could keep his weekends free. That Frank is such a nice guy and so dependable.

Meanwhile, I sent Jimmy an email back at the end of April so he doesn’t have to worry about coming back here.

Hi Jimmy,

Happy Easter. I hope things are going well for you.

I have to write this note because it's the only way I can communicate with you. I am very disappointed to say the least. I don't understand why you haven't returned my calls or texts over the past 3 weeks. When you came in February to check on the couple of things I had problems with, you said don't worry I won't forget about you guys. That was over 2 months ago. Maybe you haven't forgotten us, but what I think is worse than forgetting is not responding to a simple text message. I just wanted to touch base with you and get an idea when you could come. I thought we left off on good terms when you finished the job here. You said if there were any problems we should call. I waited to call until after the holidays because you said it was typically your slow period. Luckily you have been working steadily, and I'm happy for you. But I would have liked these minor things here fixed at some point. I'm getting the feeling it's not going to happen and it's upsetting to me, especially since I knew you to be a person who always tries to do the right thing. I don't get it.

Anyway, I hope you have a productive year with your jobs, your antiquing furniture, and have made progress with your invention. I wish you the best.

Nina