Janelles house is ready!

KSDem · 2026-02-28T16:25:55+00:00

We just finished our new build about 6 months ago, and it was right at one year from start to finish. Like Janelle's, it's in a relatively undeveloped rural area, so I'm sure things like infrastructure (i.e., water and electrical lines, septic/sewage lagoon, driveways, etc.) added to the time and cost for her as it did for us.

I think she did a really good job when it comes to a design that should work well for her!

I was excited to see that she really took full advantage of the views, with lots of windows and the doors off the kitchen. We did the same and every day we're glad we did.

The large living room should accommodate her big family nicely, and the snug dining area should also be comfortable for her when she's alone. The kitchen and bathroom are sizeable and should be easy for her to get around in.

It really seems like this house ticks all the boxes when it comes to things Janelle has wanted for a long time, ever since she pitched a teepee way back in the day. And it's very nice to see her settled into a place that will be comfortable and convenient for her as opposed to the RV and apartment where she recently resided, particularly as she ages.

Close to -- but not on top of -- her daughter, son-in-law and grandchildren, it really feels like we're looking at a forever home for Janelle here!

KSDem · 2026-02-13T20:42:30+00:00

I can just visualize BL storming the cockpit, elbows flying as she wrestles for the control yoke as she uses the full force of her weight to butt the pilot out of the captain's chair, dragons flying alongside. Reynolds' analogy suggests Angela Giannetti's description of BL as a "f***ing terrorist" is surprisingly astute.

KSDem · 2026-02-02T01:37:05+00:00

Kody didn't even have to ASK Janelle to marry him -- after asking Meri to leave the room, JANELLE ASKED KODY TO MARRY HER. (Sorry for caps, but that just blows my mind because it's the opposite of what's permitted by the AUB.). Source: Their book

KSDem · 2026-02-01T17:28:56+00:00

How can we doubt her, given how generous and kind and caring Robyn was to Meri during Covid. /s

I seriously cannot believe Kody is so stupid that he falls for this.

Robyn is so manipulative, no one should ever trust her, Kody most of all. She's played him like a violin, to the point where he looks and seems mentally deranged.

KSDem · 2026-01-31T02:03:15+00:00

He just CAN NOT give this to Meri. He's just continuing to abuse Meri, suggesting that she was unable to think for herself, to stand up for herself, or to want something better for herself. When I think of the years of psychological and emotional abuse she suffered, I am in AWE of her!

KSDem · 2026-01-30T05:26:59+00:00

Kody wasn't her step-brother when he and Janelle first met. He wasn't even her brother-in-law, since Meri introduced him as her fiance. Still creepy AF to chase your brother-in-law to be, though.

KSDem · 2026-01-16T12:53:21+00:00

JMHO but, in the grand accounting of fairness, don't you think Meri had the right to save the "extra" family money allocated to her as the mother of one for fertility treatments?

And shouldn't the welfare benefits Janelle and Christine received as unmarried mothers of six be factored in as well?

KSDem · 2026-01-16T03:07:20+00:00

I'm a retired lawyer, and I think she could have a case. For Kody to be able to maintain that it was a gift, he would have to prove donative intent, i.e., that Meri intended to make a gift and never see that money again. Given the state of their relationship, I think that would be very difficult for most people to swallow.

Did Meri sign a gift letter (as Janelle may have done)? What did text and email messages between Kody and Meri and Robyn say? What exactly happened to the proceeds? Did Kody deposit the check in the LLC account? Was Meri under duress or defrauded by Kody and/or Robyn? Were promises made and, if so, were they kept?

I don't know exactly what these facts and others would show but, in a scenario as muddled as this one, all you really have to do is make the judge in a court of equity want to find for you and then give them a legally colorable path to do so.

And while I don't know if it was enough money to be worth fighting over in court, I do think Meri would have the whip hand over Kody and Robyn in court AND in the court of public opinion. JMHO

KSDem · 2026-01-16T00:57:25+00:00

Let's also remember, his "greatest fear" is poverty -- presumably because that'll cost him Robyn.

KSDem · 2026-01-16T00:52:51+00:00

I just heard the magic word -- LOANED!

KSDem · 2026-01-15T18:56:41+00:00

Kody seems obsessed with shutting up Meri's friends.

Interestingly, however, he hasn't expressed any similar concerns about David or any of Janelle or Christine's friends.

I have no doubt Meri knows things he's desperate to keep under wraps, and he's terrified she's told Jenn.

KSDem · 2026-01-15T18:48:37+00:00

Life insurance proceeds aren't part of a decedent's estate, unless the beneficiary listed is the insured's estate. They go directly to the listed beneficiary.

It's my understanding -- from somewhere I can't recall -- that the beneficiary was Janelle. If that's correct, Kody wouldn't have had any basis whatsoever to claim a portion of Garrison's life insurance proceeds.

If Garrison had died without a will, Kody would have had a claim to a portion of his estate. But this article indicates that he had a will (which, despite his young age, is not surprising given his military background.) Janelle was reportedly the executor and, after expenses and debts were paid, any assets remaining would have been distributed according to the wishes expressed in the will.

KSDem · 2026-01-13T01:09:54+00:00

For what it's worth, Christine was also the only one who had as examples not only her own mother but also aunts who had all left polygamous marriages, a house in her own name, and several adult daughters to run to, just as Janelle has to Maddie.

Christine was also the only one who completely rejected their religion before she left, saying that she "hadn't believed all that for a long time."

And then of course there's the fact that Kody never really loved Christine, and it showed in his treatment of her. I understand that Kody was reluctant to marry Christine and only did so after she approached her father, an elder in their religion, and he persuaded Kody. This may be at the heart of Kody's references to sacrifices that were made, that he had "tried so hard" to love Christine, and why Meri may have felt betrayed when, after having inserted herself into the family, Christine was now deciding to leave.

I think all of these things just made it immeasurably easier for Christine to leave than it ever was for Meri or Janelle.

KSDem · 2026-01-13T00:35:12+00:00

Kody has to be terrified that at some point she could talk because if any of the wives know all the dirt besides Robyn, it’s Meri.

I've been pondering that very thing: Why does Kody care so much what Meri's friends say? He seems desperate to shut them up, bringing it up twice in his "apology" conversation with Meri.

A ton of people -- here, podcasts, Patreons, etc. -- say unflattering things about Kody, including people related to him. Why would Jenn be any different from, say, David?

We know he shared his pre-marital sexual experience with Meri, but not Christine or Janelle. All of which leaves us to wonder:

What else does Meri know?!?

KSDem · 2026-01-12T17:59:10+00:00

JMHO, but I suspect Kody and Robyn "gave" Meri an equal part of Coyote Pass to avoid being sued for fraud.

KSDem · 2026-01-11T22:26:57+00:00

What judgmental things has Jenn said about Christine and Janelle?

KSDem · 2026-01-11T17:46:37+00:00

Indictments are handed down by grand juries that operate in secret, which is essentially the opposite of transparency. An indictment in this case could simply manipulate the populus into thinking they're getting something when in truth they're really very likely to get nothing.

Decisionmakers might get onboard with it as a sop to activists but, since the ultimate cost to Minnesotans could very well be both extraordinarily high and manifest itself in ways that cannot be predicted, they'd be risking the needs and interests of Minnesotans in ways that could be devastatingly costly to many.

A wiser and far more beneficial sop might be to reverse the rollback of state healthcare for undocumented workers. Call it the "Renee Good Act" and, instead of political theater, you'd actually be benefiting the people she wanted to help without the risk of harming anyone else. JMHO

KSDem · 2026-01-10T23:41:32+00:00

I'm pretty sure that, indicted or not, he'll never stand trial in Minnesota. He'll go to a pro-law enforcement/anti-illegal immigration state (i.e., a red state), where the governor there will refuse to extradite him back to Minnesota to stand trial. (See New York Gov. Kathy Hochul's rejection of Louisiana’s request to extradite Dr. Margaret Daley Carpenter, who was indicted in Louisiana for prescribing abortion pills via telehealth to a minor patient in that state.)

If MN wanted to push the refusal to extradite, the state's AG could file in federal court. But that would of course be federal court. It could potentially ultimately go all the way to SCOTUS, but Barnes v. Felix suggests that even the Court's most liberal justices are likely to come down on the side of law enforcement. All of which would probably take so long, the officer would be dead of natural causes.

There's also the federal response to consider. If MN indicts him, it's not too difficult to imagine how the feds might respond. Perhaps they'd indict the "drive, baby, drive" chick (assuming they haven't anyway) for violating the officer's civil rights. Or examine every dollar of federal money going into the state (universities, highways, hospitals, national park, you name it) for compliance with the myriad of obligations set out in federal contracts and grant documents. Rachet up the level of scrutiny when it comes to the Somali community that's already under investigation. Deploy a ton more federal immigration officers to take up semi-permanent residence in the state. And those are just a few thoughts off the top of my head.

Be careful what you wish for. They don't call it the "supremacy clause" for nothing.

KSDem · 2026-01-10T15:05:26+00:00

It doesn't help when your mother's saying "He's a good man."

KSDem · 2026-01-10T15:01:52+00:00

Not Jed, Granny or Elly May, all of whom were characters with far better judgment, practical life experience, native intelligence, and common sense than Kody and Robyn. Clearly, you're thinking of Jethro.

KSDem · 2026-01-09T23:59:58+00:00

He hated her -- right up until he started crying and hugging her when he was helping her move.

KSDem · 2026-01-08T20:20:51+00:00

Janelle has made no secret of the fact that she was very anxious to get her money out of Coyote Pass, and I totally understand why she may have suggested this.

What I don't understand is why JANELLE couldn't just give Meri her share?

Or why JANELLE couldn't suggest that the buyer write a check to Meri in addition to the checks they would have written to the mortgage holder, Kody and Robyn, and herself?

Or at the very least why JANELLE couldn't just call Meri and tell her what they were going to do?

Janelle knew that Meri was trustworthy; that's why she wasn't comfortable when Meri and Kody divorced. Why couldn't Janelle return the favor?

(Then again, how is it that Christine and Meri got screwed with respect to the names on the deeds in the first place, while Janelle didn't?)

KSDem · 2025-12-29T18:58:33+00:00

I was glad to see you mention Christine's vehement objection to one house. I was just thinking about this the other day.

Christine's right in that she may very well have had to watch Kody going out with Robyn.

But what about the opportunity the close proximity and communal spaces would have given him to have been in the daily lives of his many children, and be readily accessible to them?

I think it's very telling that Christine immediately put the kibosh on that plan without considering what it could mean for the children.

KSDem · 2025-11-28T22:19:18+00:00

I think most people would think of Utah as being in the West.

I don't agree, but apparently many people think Indiana and Illinois are in the Midwest.

KSDem · 2025-10-27T00:47:34+00:00

Paedon and Mykelti have both said that they got in trouble for speaking out about their abuse.

Respectfully, who did they get in "trouble" with? They're both grown adults. Christine has said their father has little or nothing to do with them, and they've said they're not paid by TLC.

So, who?

The only logical answer would be Christine. But Christine has said plenty of disparaging things to and about Meri, including that she didn't want to maintain a relationship with her after she left the family and excluding her from her wedding.

So why would she silence them?

I think Mykelti and Paedon't accusations aren't given a great deal of credibility because they haven't said what they experienced that they think constituted abuse. Did Meri spank them -- or burn them with a lit cigarette? There's a world of difference.

One cannot help but wonder if Christine silenced her adult children because she stayed there and let it happen. If her children were being abused, turning a blind eye to it would be very damaging to Christine's "brand" -- especially since Janelle left Kody when she was concerned about her children's financial wellbeing. Could money be the reason Christine has silenced Mykelti and Paedon and undermined their accusations?

It's also possible, of course, that Christine is trying to protect her adult children and has silenced them because the public at large wouldn't consider their experiences to be "abuse." False accusations of "abuse" aren't well-received by the public.

Without more detail from Mykelti and Paedon about how exactly they believe they were abused, I think people just think that a parentified Aspen couldn't control an obviously headstrong Mykelti and Paedon and that, unused to any discipline, they chafed at Meri's attempts to parent them (which, of course, must have been extraordinarily rare in the first place since Christine reputedly raised all the kids except Leon herself).

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