To ask your view on the Radfords?

[Emlou07]

Sat with my morning coffee watching 20 kids and counting. Listening to my two children fighting over a toy, wondering how on earth that many children can get enough/equal love and attention?!

(I know it’s none of ‘our’ business how many children people have.. but when you put yourself out there, obviously people will have an opinion)

Only takes 5 minutes!

I don't suppose it's hard to find time when you lock your children in their bedrooms and remove the door handles

Its the older kids i feel sorry for as it seems to be once passed babyhood another pregnancy is announced to keep the "magic" of babies going and the older kids get pushed out

Yeah they dont do that now though. And to be fair what is the safest? Leave the door open and having very young kids going downstairs our out in the night, or leaving them in bedrooms? Yes a fire risk but kids that young wouldnt know where to go if the parents werent with them?

Virtually every other parent manages to keep their children safe at night without needing to lock them in a bedroom. If you have children likely to wander there are many, many other options that can be used.

Prob not when you have 16 tho

Ok they don't do it anymore on camera because there was such outrage.

That's the whole point though they can't possibly protect them all from basic things like not wandering off so they resorted in something no normal parent would dream of doing.

They didn't lock them in because they wandered about in the night, they did it because they wanted them out of the way at 6.30pm. The kids were bathed and then put into beds wearing only a nappy and their hair was still wet. There was a camera in with them and they were wreaking havoc in the room, pulling all of the bedding off and screaming and crying. I honestly don't know why/how they thought that was safe or acceptable.

I don't think the Radfords are something to aspire to. I definitely don't like the way they parent and actually feel sorry for the older kids looking after the younger ones. I'm not sure why but the dad really gives me the creeps. Sue always seems to be miles away/spaced out and I seriously think she needs some kind of therapy.
I also think it's highly irresponsible to have that many children from an environmental perspective too but each to their own.
I don't watch their program as it gives me the rage.

Raspberryice
Ha,...I meant ten years older
Got a bit mixed up!

I'm one of twelve. Oldest now in late forties - I'm in the middle.

I hated it growing up - no activities as there wasn't the money or resources to get us to them. No private space. Very little individual attention. A lot of fighting between siblings which continues to this day.

In our case my mother loved babies and children - she died when we were young. My father often says that he would have stopped at two but she always wanted more. They were religious but not excessively so.

I hate-and i mean hate- the mindless brain death that is looking after babies. Constant nappies feeds clothes changed peppa fucking pig baby groups rhyme time and the hell of messy play.
I hate the long hours of trying to occupy a toddler. Of tantrums being publically humiliating and no sleep. No nice clothes no me time.
No idea why people want to stay at that stage. Older kids who can hold conversations? Love it. Holidays and meals out. Being trapped at home is awful.

I think they both love the attention it brings. It's filling some kind of hole.

@Bumsnetnetbums I’m the same I find it dull. Though two of mine have autism so are developmentally delayed and one is still like a very young toddler.

Kate

I feel sorry for the kids really. Their parents don't give a shit about them. And one of those parents is a sex offender.

I just don't know why they would have so many. As I said on the other thread I don't think they do either really. There are no advantages to such a situation that I can see.

It's not fair on their older children, as they won't get the attention they need. Although they're a nice family, it's become an obsession.like hoarding, and they need counselling. It's bad for the environment and yet they get media attention and rewards for having so many children. It's irresponsible and it's not good to congratulate them about this.

I didn't know she was that young with her first. That puts a different slant on things

There are already too many humans destroying the planet - 20 is obscene...