And so the season of programmes is about to commence once again.....
Okay probably not my most popular of posts, certainly not if you are a lover of these types of programmes.
I struggle enough with writing a blog about my family. My husband isn't keen on me doing it, and I constantly think about deleting it.
But why these sorts of programmes.
As some of you may know we have been asked to feature on a few. I wonder where they find me? Someone said through a twins site, but I am not sure.
Find me they do.
No, I do not want my family featured in a magazine about how big we are.
So what!
No I do not want to appear on 15 kids and counting ( see my last exposition on this)
and no I do not fancy having TV cameras placed around my house and filmed for The Family, or the other recent programme we were contacted about.
Why on earth is just simply producing my children such a big deal?
To be totally crude, it shows I can reproduce! or rather reproduce on a bigger scale, or choose to do so.
It doesn't really make noteworthy, life changing TV does it.
Lord, I would be bored watching me!
I like documentaries and I like books about real people.
But I like the ones where people have done amazing things, or just THINGS.
I don't see having my family as fitting into those categories whatsoever.
Now take some of my friends.
They don't have my family size but they do wonderful things, and manage those things around their families and work commitments.
That's worth a TV show!
Then there's the issue of putting your children on TV.
Urgh, it makes me cringe. The more I study for my masters in Early Years the more I worry about this issue.
What signal are we sending them?
That they are more important because their mummy had loads of kids?
My younger children would not be able to have a say, so I would be making the decision on their part.
I once watched a programme about the Walton Sextuplets. They were filmed throughout their lives. When one was 14 she flatly refused to be filmed again. Her parents said in retrospect they would not have had the tv crews in, but did not know how else to finance their instant family at the time.
I think, looking at this child's face convinced me, if I needed any convincing never to place my children in this position.
Large families, do not have a good press.
The programme 15 kids and counting was filmed quite well and showed hard working and fairly normal families. Still there was a huge amount of negativity that convinced me, Joe Public is not in favour of my brood. I knew this already! having encountered a few not-so-nice midwives until I hastily explained I had a job!
This leads me onto my next cringe worthy point of those features of huge families claiming benefits. You know the articles, the ones most large, hard working, families read and want to die.
The worst, hands down, was the one about a mum of 10, who, like me had idiopathic scholliosis. Unlike me, after child 3 she was told not to have any more as it was making her condition worse. She went onto have another 7 and had to claim disability benefit, her husband had to give up his job to be her carer. They complained about the size of house not being adequate as well as they fact the breakfasts that were brought to the door each morning cooked for them, were not enough and cold.
Call me mean, but if I had been told after child 3 that my condition was worsening I would have stopped. We each have a choice and a moral responsibility to be able to look after the children we have and to provide for them. Articles such as these do us no favours.
In the long run, I chose my family, no as some marketing, money making tool, but because I love children and enjoy having them. Not to share with the world and his wife, to voyeur.
I know in The States these type of programmes are turned into series. I really hope we don't follow suit. If we do, I for one will not be switching on.
Okay probably not my most popular of posts, certainly not if you are a lover of these types of programmes.
I struggle enough with writing a blog about my family. My husband isn't keen on me doing it, and I constantly think about deleting it.
But why these sorts of programmes.
As some of you may know we have been asked to feature on a few. I wonder where they find me? Someone said through a twins site, but I am not sure.
Find me they do.
No, I do not want my family featured in a magazine about how big we are.
So what!
No I do not want to appear on 15 kids and counting ( see my last exposition on this)
and no I do not fancy having TV cameras placed around my house and filmed for The Family, or the other recent programme we were contacted about.
Why on earth is just simply producing my children such a big deal?
To be totally crude, it shows I can reproduce! or rather reproduce on a bigger scale, or choose to do so.
It doesn't really make noteworthy, life changing TV does it.
Lord, I would be bored watching me!
I like documentaries and I like books about real people.
But I like the ones where people have done amazing things, or just THINGS.
I don't see having my family as fitting into those categories whatsoever.
Now take some of my friends.
They don't have my family size but they do wonderful things, and manage those things around their families and work commitments.
That's worth a TV show!
Then there's the issue of putting your children on TV.
Urgh, it makes me cringe. The more I study for my masters in Early Years the more I worry about this issue.
What signal are we sending them?
That they are more important because their mummy had loads of kids?
My younger children would not be able to have a say, so I would be making the decision on their part.
I once watched a programme about the Walton Sextuplets. They were filmed throughout their lives. When one was 14 she flatly refused to be filmed again. Her parents said in retrospect they would not have had the tv crews in, but did not know how else to finance their instant family at the time.
I think, looking at this child's face convinced me, if I needed any convincing never to place my children in this position.
Large families, do not have a good press.
The programme 15 kids and counting was filmed quite well and showed hard working and fairly normal families. Still there was a huge amount of negativity that convinced me, Joe Public is not in favour of my brood. I knew this already! having encountered a few not-so-nice midwives until I hastily explained I had a job!
This leads me onto my next cringe worthy point of those features of huge families claiming benefits. You know the articles, the ones most large, hard working, families read and want to die.
The worst, hands down, was the one about a mum of 10, who, like me had idiopathic scholliosis. Unlike me, after child 3 she was told not to have any more as it was making her condition worse. She went onto have another 7 and had to claim disability benefit, her husband had to give up his job to be her carer. They complained about the size of house not being adequate as well as they fact the breakfasts that were brought to the door each morning cooked for them, were not enough and cold.
Call me mean, but if I had been told after child 3 that my condition was worsening I would have stopped. We each have a choice and a moral responsibility to be able to look after the children we have and to provide for them. Articles such as these do us no favours.
In the long run, I chose my family, no as some marketing, money making tool, but because I love children and enjoy having them. Not to share with the world and his wife, to voyeur.
I know in The States these type of programmes are turned into series. I really hope we don't follow suit. If we do, I for one will not be switching on.
My older children would point blank refuse to take part in those programmes. I don't think our family would be interesting enough (or "Jeremy Kyle" enough) anyway. And imagine all the teasing the children would get at school? No, not for me I'm afraid. Totally off topic, hope you don't mind me asking, but since having the m/c I've been considering having my progesterone levels checked with a view to having progesterone supplements. I was wondering did you ever go down that path and if you did how do you go about it? My local hospital is the Countess, don't know if you know it. I just worry my GP would turn me away as I've already got a large family. Do you have any advice?
ReplyDeleteHi Mum of nine,
ReplyDeleteI have quite a bit of experience with this.
Can you send me your email via a message which I can then deleate rather than publish as I would rather reply privatly than on a website. I know the Countess, I have just delivered my boxes there and also had four of my elder kids there as well!