Kate Gosselin

Last Tuesday Kate Gosselin was voted off Dancing With the Stars. I'll have to admit I was very much relieved, because watching her dance the Paso Doble was like watching a drunk cat walking on stilts. Plus, I was tired of her weekly sob-fest and her dashing partner Tony Dovolani standing there looking all uncomfortable while she lamented over the latest drama in her life.

But through the cringing and rolling of my eyes, I still felt sorry for her.

I used to love watching the show where Kate made her debut, Jon & Kate Plus Eight. There were critics of her and her husband from the very beginning, accusing them of exploiting their kids for money. I understood their accusations, but my love for big families and my own dreams of being a stay at home mommy with my own brood of kids won out, so I watched the show.

I admired how they refused to abort any of their children even though there were serious medical risks to carrying and delivering six children, not to mention the financial strain. They weren't afraid to proclaim they were Christian, even though the channel that produced the show, TLC, didn't showcase that part of their life.

I cherished the episodes where Jon and Kate took their children to the pumpkin patch and to the zoo. When I saw the episodes of potty training adventures, Kate cooking soups and stews to freeze for the winter, their grocery shopping trips to Sam's Club and their cookie baking fiascoes during Christmas, my heart swelled, because I couldn't wait to do that with my own family someday. When Kate and Jon took their children to their hometown 4th of July parade and a family barbecue I was already picturing what cute little red, white and blue outfits I could dress my own kids in.

Sure, there were the not so glamorous parts of the show- Kate losing her temper with her kids and she and Jon bickering while being interviewed. I figured that's just how life goes when you have eight kids under the age of seven. All mom's lose their cool every once in awhile, right? Spouses get on each other's nerves sometimes, and I figured that was the case with Jon and Kate. (Although much later we learn that wasn't really the case with these two.)

I enjoyed the show because a majority of what I saw was the reality I dreamed for myself. Yes, the Gosselin family was unique because Kate had twin girls, then a set of sextuplets. But for the most part, the show seemed like the typical life of a family with lots of kids and a stay at home mom. Kate didn't always look so put-together, but her sweat pants with the disheveled-hair-look made me admire her. They lived in a modest-looking home, had a strict budget and faced the same challenges other parents do (the potty training, the chore charts, the sickness that hops from child to child.)

However, much to my dismay, I saw the show evolving to something not so pretty. Jon and Kate were getting their teeth whitened together. OK, maybe some married couples do that, but most people I know consider getting their pearly whites even whiter a very extravagant expense. Then they started getting free ski/spa trips to Utah. I thought, "OK, so that's a perk of the show" but it still didn't seem right.

Kate started to change as well. Soon the sweatpants were off, replaced with mini jean skirts, bikini's and chunky heels. She started to tan and soon was sporting some nice French manicured digits. There is nothing wrong with a woman embracing her feminine side and wanting to look nice, but she was starting to look like a 22 year old sorority girl instead of a down-to-earth stay at home mom.

Then they moved into their multi-million dollar home and things really began to change. Suddenly this "reality" show didn't seem like reality anymore. Do other regular families get Emeril Lagasse to come cook for them? Do other mom's have to worry about the paparazzi snapping pictures of her and her children as they go to the grocery store, therefore hires a bodyguard? I don't think so.

Then the dirty laundry started to be aired. Jon and Kate weren't being interviewed together anymore. Jon started sporting some rediculous diamond studs in his ears and had a custom-made motorcycle created for him. The tabloids started coming out all over the place and it was obvious their marriage was falling apart.

I started having issues with the show I once loved. I thought since they were going through a tumultuous time in their marriage it was time to shut off the cameras and work on their problems in private. Well that didn't happen. They got a separation, announced it on television and the media circus really began.

Jon became a person I lost all respect for. There are a bunch of names I could call him, but I want this blog to remain a Christian-type blog, so I will refrain for now.

Soon all the attention went to Kate. That's when I really, really felt sorry for her. Here she has lost the love of her life and the father of her children. Her own brother and sister in law, who had been featured on the show, suddenly came out and claimed Kate cheated on Jon and some other bogus claims. She had to face the cruel world essentially by herself.

This is when I was really hoping she would turn away from the spotlight completely and focus on regrouping herself and her kids. This was a crucial time to get her priorities straight and set goals for the future. Divorce isn't easy for anybody, but it has to be even harder when all those private details are suddenly made public.

But then came the People magazine cover stories. "It Feels Like I Failed" was one of the titles, I believe. It seemed like every other week she was on The Today Show, or Good Morning America, or *shudders/gags* Entertainment Tonight. Then came The Joy Behar Show and Larry King Live. And then another People magazine article shows up about her new hair extensions.

The crowning jewel of Kate Gosselin's latest schedule: Dancing with the Stars. I've already written about how I felt about that.

But here's where I get conflicted. Kate claims she does all this publicity to make money for her children. It kills her to be away from her children, but she has to pay the bills. It seems that Jon isn't doing much to help her out financially. Doing all this celebrity-type stuff seems like an easy way to make significant amounts of cash, but at what cost?

Leaving her children with nannies and babysitters can't be affecting her children in a positive way. Someday her children will be old enough to be able to see her interviews and read her articles. Hopefully they see her fierce love for them, instead of what looks like a woman possibly addicted to fame.

Does she really need all that money? Does she need those hair extensions, the tanning, the super nice clothes? Does she still need that multi-million dollar home, the bodyguard, the team of nannies? Yes, it does cost money to raise a big family, but I know of many large families that have gotten by happily, and they aren't guest co-hosting with Mary Hart.

I just pray she finds another way of supporting her children instead of jet-setting across America. I can't imagine the predicament she is in, but surely there is a reasonable solution out there. When I say "pray", I mean it. I do pray for Kate Gosselin and other celebrities. Lord knows they all need it BIG TIME!

Well, that's about all I have to say about that subject. Why did I contribute to the many other blog posts out there about Kate Gosselin? Because my preggo hormones are making it hard for me to sleep, then all these strange thoughts pop into my head (like Kate Gosselin's predicament) and I have an itch to write them down!