A BLIND EYE
A great, nagging question and, yes, disappointment, for me regarding Beth Carson is that she chose to remain silent and hide in the shadows, rather than speaking up in an effort to protect those beautiful little children that she so lovingly took care of, and was going to raise as her own if anything ever happened to Jon and Kate.
Multiple Blessings was written in 2008. Kate’s journal, which she used to write both Multiple Blessings and I Just Want You To Know, was written from 2006-2007. Surely Beth had Kate’s journal and notes in her possession, and surely she read the same passages Kate wrote about physically harming her children that I read. Even on the outside chance that Beth never personally saw Kate abusing her children, she must have read the words Kate wrote in her journal recounting her verbal and physical ragings against them. So why would Beth ignore what she read, and write a book of lies about Kate being a loving, nurturing, God-fearing woman? If Beth knew what was happening to the children, how could she walk away and do nothing to help them?
It’s hard to imagine what Beth Carson, who was in the Gosselin house and around Kate and the children so often, was thinking and how, as a Christian woman, she was able to write a book that was so full of lies.
If you were an outsider reading Multiple Blessings, you would have no way of knowing it wasn’t an accurate portrayal of Kate. You might even believe that Kate Gosselin was handpicked by God Himself to walk the Earth and spread His word. As it turns out, at the time the sextuplets came home from the hospital, I lived less than 2 miles from Kate’s house in Wyomissing, and coincidentally, a close friend of my family was one of Kate’s “helpers” and was in that house on a daily basis. She tells quite a different story.
Multiple Blessings was nothing more than propaganda and an excuse for every bad thing that Kate Gosselin ever said or did, and for everything ever written about her in the early days of her pregnancy and life when the sextuplets first came home from the hospital. It was also a vehicle to elevate Kate among Christians by making her appear to have a special or “unique” relationship with God.
Multiple Blessings is filled with references to “miracles” from God, given specifically to Kate Gosselin. Miracles like getting a discount on an appliance at Lowes or saving money on strawberries.
Multiple Blessings is a book filled with lies and mistruths, and Beth Carson wrote it. Did she naively take Kate at her word and write everything she told her without question? Or did she know that much of what Kate wanted her to put on paper was untrue?
THE SOUND OF SILENCE
Kate always plays fast and loose with the facts. Here she is lying on Twitter in December of 2011. Kate’s tweets are in bold:
xxxxx @Kateplusmy8 are you still in touch with Beth and other old family friends???
yes… Have amazing supportive friends u may not c but r here :)
This was another Twitter exchange from December 24, 2011:
xxxxx @Kateplusmy8 Are you planning on writing anymore books? Or doing book signings? Would love to meet you! You are such an inspiration!
more books in my head… Looking for literary agent and help organizing onto paper :)
Reading these tweets brings up an obvious question. If Kate was still really good friends with Beth Carson, and she was looking for help organizing her thoughts onto paper to write more books, why would she not collaborate with Beth Carson again? Beth wrote Kate’s most successful, New York Times Bestseller List book, so why would Kate not turn to her “friend” again for help writing all those other books that were residing in her head?
The answer is: Kate and Beth Carson are no longer friends. This fact was made abundantly clear to me on Saturday, March 24, 2012. That day, I was grocery shopping at the Giant in Wyomissing, PA, where Kate also does her shopping. In the dairy aisle, I came across Beth Carson shopping alone. She didn’t see me, and I doubt if she would have even known who I am. In that very same aisle, at the very same time, within sight of Beth, was Kate Gosselin, looking uncomfortable, tense, and as angry as I’ve ever seen her. There was no contact between the two – no hellos or how are yous – just silence. There was absolutely zero contact between Kate and Beth; they both just looked uncomfortable to be in the same place at the same time. That made three of us. Fortunately, we were all pretty much finished shopping, so the whole encounter lasted only about 10 minutes for me.
No goodbyes were spoken or implied when both ladies left the store separately soon after. If there were still a glimmer of friendship between Kate and Beth Carson, they would have stood in line together, or at the very least, had a goodbye smile or wave as they left the store.
Beth just went about her business. Kate looked like she was ready to explode with rage.
WHERE’S AUNT JODI?
“Aunt Jodi” is Jodi Kreider, Kate’s sister-in-law, who is married to Kate’s brother, Kevin. Aunt Jodie and Uncle Kevin were featured often on Jon & Kate plus Eight. Despite having four children of their own, Jodi frequently babysat for Jon and Kate, and Kevin was on hand to help Jon with various projects. They were presented on the show as kind, loving and protective parents. They were also shown to have some common sense and respect for the Gosselin children. In one particular instance of this, Jodi refused to allow a film crew to keep the bathroom door open when one of the children was going to the bathroom.
In an episode most memorable for Kate’s viciousness, Kate called Jodi to admonish her for giving gum to the sextuplets. One of the little boys had gotten gum on his special blanket, and Kate went completely ballistic, screaming at the child and threatening to throw his blanket away. His older sister had to step in to try to help him. It was disturbing and horrible to witness a mother terrorizing her child.
I don’t know what happened between Kate and Jodi and Kevin. I know what Jodi and Kevin have said, and I know what Kate has said about them, but only they know what really went on. The following are various sides to the story of what happened and differing versions of why Aunt Jodie and Uncle Kevin are no longer a part of the children’s lives. I gave Kate the final word at the end of this chapter because, well, this book is about Kate.
The message below is from Aunt Jodi’s sister, Julie. It was taken from the blog, “Gosselin’s Without Pity,” also known as GWOP (http://gosselinswithoutpity.blogspot.com). To be clear, I have never had a conversation with anyone involved with GWOP, nor have I done any research directly from their site. But in doing a little background research on who Aunt Jodi is, for the people unfamiliar with the Gosselin story, I followed a Google link that led to this posting on GWOP. It would seem to accurately portray Aunt Jodi’s side of the story since the author of the message, Jodi’s sister Julie, was, at one time, involved with the GWOP website.
A Message to the Group:
****I'm sorry to announce that Aunt Jodi will no longer be part of the show Jon and Kate plus 8. Jodi was not given the option, and although she loved being part of the show, Kate decided it was in her best interest (Kate's) to cut Aunt Jodi from the show. She may still be in a few episodes that have been previously taped, but she will not be in Season 4 which begins filming in May.
I now feel comfortable with letting everyone in on who I am–I am Jodi's sister. Maybe those of you who felt I was being cruel or was taking some things a little too personally will now understand where I am coming from.
Please show your support for Aunt Jodi and let her know how much she'll be missed on the show. This is her actual email address (created for this group).****
This is how Julie describes herself and her purpose on her blog, Truth Breeds Hatred:
“Truth Fears No Questions” — “I am Aunt Jodi’s sister, and hopefully what I have to say will open eyes and help raise awareness for the need for laws to protect children in the entertainment industry. This is a tragic example of how money and fame can blind parents, preventing them from making decisions that are best for their children. I urge you to realize that these children were not brought into the world to be used
for anyone’s entertainment. Just because this is all they know doesn’t make it ‘normal’. They deserve privacy and protection.”
http://truthbreedshatred.blogspot.com/
SISTER JULIE SPEAKS UP
On June 29, 2008, the following was posted on GWOP based on information given to the author of the post by Jodie’s sister, Julie:
Aunt Jodi: The Tribe Has Spoken
While the Gosselin children may have many material "blessings", thanks to being exploited by their parents and complicit others, nothing can compare to their Aunt Jodi.
Jodi is married to Kevin Kreider – Kate Gosselin's brother. Jodi and Kevin have four children of their own, but live near Jon and Kate and have been relied upon heavily to babysit the Gosselin children while Jon and Kate tend to the heavy demands on their time that frequently take them away from some or all of their children.
We have seen quite a bit of Jodi and her interaction with the Gosselin children, and although she is wonderful to behold on her own merits, when contrasted with her shrew of a sister-in-law, she seems even better. We've seen Jodi play with the children – actually play with them in a natural, spontaneous way, with no tension about grass stains or melted ice cream. We've enjoyed the children cooking with her in the kitchen, playing dress-up, chilling in front of a video, going for walks around the neighborhood, etc.
Jodi seems to have this refreshing mixture of humor, grace, patience, gentleness, and above all an essential maternal nurturing that we feel starved for when watching the children under Kate's jurisdiction. But we've seen her ability to be stern, too, when Mady needed it, although even that situation she approached (physically) on Mady's level, on her knees and locking eyes with her niece and speaking firmly and directly.
Not only is Jodi a joy to watch, but when the children are in her care, they are like different people… we don't see the tension, the pathologies, the whining, the overall desperation displayed so often when it is only Kate herding them through the day. Many of us will never forget how relieved we felt when we saw sick little Joel finally getting a kind word, a rub on his back, a hug and some reassurance when he was feeling so ill... it helped remove the sting we felt at seeing that same little feverish boy berated for vomiting on his comforter and banished to the laundry room floor lest he add any more to Kate's laundry.
Now for the pale underbelly of this scenario. Before filming began for the Jon & Kate Plus 8 second season, Figure 8 Films wanted to pay Jodi for her role in the series. Not only for her babysitting time, of course, but also for the intrusion of the camera crew and equipment into her home... the disruption to her own home and family.
This never reached Jodi's awareness at the time because of Kate's response – an adamant NO. Her reasoning? In summary and to paraphrase, 'No way! No one gets paid but us!'. The issue of remuneration for the Kreiders was dropped, with Jodi never being aware of it and continuing to help out with the children as she had been doing even back when Jon and Kate were nobodies and the children weren't the nationwide stars they have become; they were simply the nieces and nephews Jodi and Kevin adored.
Fast forward to Season 3, and this time Jodi was approached directly with the offer of a paying contract for continuing to do the show. By now Jodi had seen the scenes in which she was filmed aired on various episodes – footage that included both Jon and Kate badmouthing her to the camera, characterizing her as an irresponsible ditz, saying condescending things about her way of handling the Gosselin children – "She tries, bless her heart!".
To her credit, Jodi cared more about her relationship with her nieces and nephews than she did about what Jon and Kate had to say about her and, even though Kate AGAIN vetoed the idea of compensating Jodi, Jodi said that she loved her nieces and nephews and wanted to be in their lives regardless. She said that it wasn't about the money; as long as she could maintain a relationship with the Gosselin children she wanted to keep doing so.
This wasn't good enough for Kate, who was also suffering from the nagging realization that Jodi made Kate look pretty bad by comparison, so a third party was hired to provide the babysitting (and other) services and Jodi is seemingly no longer of use to Jon and Kate.
You know how they do that little ceremony at the end of each season of Survivor, where the remaining two or three players reminisce about all the players who are no longer in the picture? The list of players voted off of Jon and Kate's island continues to grow, with Jodi being only the most recent fatality.
I hope Jodi's replacement doesn't make Kate look bad or her days may already be numbered. I am 48 years old and I wish I had an Aunt Jodi. As much as I am going to miss seeing her on the show, I'm sure it can't compare to how much the children will miss having her in their lives.
Posted by Serena on 6/29/2008 based upon information granted with permission by Jodi's sister, Julie.
http://gosselinswithoutpity.blogspot.com/2008/06/aunt-jodi-tribe-has-spoken.html
INTERVIEW WITH JODI AND KEVIN
This transcript is from a CBS Early Show interview co-anchor Harry Smith conducted with Jodi and Kevin Kreider.
HARRY SMITH, CO-ANCHOR: And joining us now for an exclusive interview are Kate Gosselin's brother and sister-in-law, Kevin and Jodi Kreider. Good morning to you both.
JODI KREIDER, KATE GOSSELIN'S SISTER-IN-LAW: Good morning.
KEVIN KREIDER, KATE GOSSELIN'S YOUNGER BROTHER: Good morning.
SMITH: This is very interesting because over the weekend a lot of people were saying, I don't even know who these people are, and suddenly they have really exploded into the American consciousness. And years ago, when this reality show started, you all were sort of involved in it, weren't you?
K. KREIDER: yes, we were.
J. KREIDER: We were.
SMITH: And what was the idea initially? Here's this family. They have eight children. We'll do a reality show. Was it almost like a – sort of a documentary process?
J. KREIDER: Exactly. It started out that way. And that was a really neat thing to be a part of, thinking that, you know, the children are – a little bit of their life is being captured, but it quickly – we thought it was very innocent at the time.
And it – the first season started, I think, eight episodes. And it quickly turned into more and more demand from Jon and Kate from the network, and it turned into 40 episodes in a six-month span. And also it – there were cameras in the children's bedrooms at one point. And they were filming all year around. And these were very huge concerns for us.
SMITH: Right.
J. KREIDER: We spoke to them about that. And...
SMITH: You talked to Jon and Kate about it?
J. KREIDER: Yes, oh, of course. And their response was, you know, this is our choice, this is what we want to do, just respect that.
SMITH: What do you think changed as those demands grew, as the camera time grew, as the sort of visibility grew? What was the change that concerned you the most?
K. KREIDER: Well, I think we're speaking out now because we want to be the voice of our nieces and nephews. And we're seeing it turn tide that they're being viewed as a commodity, that – I'm sorry. That they...
SMITH: This is clearly an emotional issue for you. Do you want to go ahead?
J. KREIDER: They're being exploited. And it's time for America to see the situation for what it really is, which is unfortunately, there are no laws protecting children in reality TV shows. And it's time for the public to be aware of this.
And that these children are very aware of the cameras in their homes. Their home is their workplace. And this is not a healthy environment for kids to be raised in.
SMITH: When you tried to broach this subject with your sister and her husband, what has their reaction been?
K. KREIDER: We have talked to them many times about, you know, about the subject. And they have often said, you know, hey, you know, this is kind of our lives, this is what we chose, this is how we're going to provide for them. And we feel that they have chosen this path with disr
egard to their children's safety, security...
J. KREIDER: The effects it's going to have. Now there are effects already being – you know, signs already. And the life...
SMITH: Like what?
J. KREIDER: Like they don't want the cameras around. They have told me personally, I don't like...
SMITH: Your nieces and nephews.
J. KREIDER: Of course, yes. We watched them quite a bit about a year ago and further back. And, you know, they would say, Aunt Jodi, I don't like the cameras on every vacation with us. I don't like them, you know. And, too, you know, kids have bad times, bad moments, they cry, and having the camera zoom in on a crying child. I mean, this is just – this is – this should not be a form of entertainment.
SMITH: Are you estranged now from your sister and her husband?
K. KREIDER: I do talk to Kate and Jon. We haven't seen the kids in a while, which is hard. But, yes, our relationship has definitely been strained now. What we hope is that they will kind of come around, see the effects, see what's most important and...
J. KREIDER: They're very lost right now. They're very blinded by all of this media and this – you know, the fame and the fortune, and...
SMITH: Every time you go to the newsstand, there's another cover and another cover.
J. KREIDER: Of course, of course. And it is time to really put priorities first, which is they say their children, but clearly their actions are showing something completely...
KATE GOSSELIN: HOW SHE FOOLED THE WORLD - THE RISE AND FALL OF A REALITY TV QUEEN Page 44