One of my guilty pleasures has been MTV's 16 and Pregnant and now Teen Mom ever since it started.
Before you roll your eyes, a study released by the National Bureau of Economic Research, says "16 and Pregnant" ultimately led to a 5.7% reduction in teen births in the 18 months after its premiere on TV. This would account for about one-third of the overall decline in teen births in the United States during that period, researchers Melissa Kearney and Phillip Levine concluded.
Not bad for a guilty pleasure!
Of all the couples featured, Catelynn and Tyler have been my favorite. They placed their daughter Carly for adoption when they were 16 years old.
Video of placing Carly for Adoption at the Hospital
They are also the only couple on the show who remained together. It also showed how their decision for adoption had an effect on every single one of their family members.
It was really neat getting to watch the Adoptive Parent's Adoption Profile Video.
The most recent episode of Teen Mom OG showed Catelynn and Tyler's wedding. It was beautiful. The adoptive parents attended with Carly. I also love how it showed the wonderful parts of what adoption can become but also some of the hurdles.
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| Tyler and Catelynn |
It was also interesting to see that earlier in the show, the adoptive mother Teresa had mentioned she didn't want Tyler's father Butch to interact with Carly. I find that completely understandable as Butch had just gotten out of prison. Tyler had the conversation with his dad but Butch went up and introduced himself to Carly anyways. It was awkward and disrespectful.
Throughout the years it has been interesting watching the birth parent and adoptive parent relationship.
They've been amazing role models and I love how they show what open adoption can be.
Duck Dynasty
I was flipping through channels as I was packing and stopped on Duck Dynasty, they are usually good for a laugh. The episode announced a new show called Jep and Jessica: Growing the Dynasty.
Jep and Jessica were in the process of adopting a baby.
According to an interview with US Weekly:
"The road to Gus wasn't easy, though. Jessica called the adoption process an "emotional roller coaster." One adoption fell through and, in a second case, the birth mom changed her mind and wanted an open adoption instead.
"We just felt like for us, a closed adoption was the best thing that fit our family, and just the protection of our kids and even [Gus],” Jessica says. "But [the process is] so worth it. We recommend it. It’s not the easiest journey, but it’s definitely worth it in the end."
I'm not a big supporter of closed adoption but I think it will be interesting to watch their story. It will bring to light interracial adoption and family dynamics with them having four biological children.
I hope they'll be a positive influence and bring light to the uniqueness of their family adoption story. They have one heck of a platform as adoptive parents.
