"Little People Big World"

[tpayne]

I think they may have a government funded disability insurance of some kind, such as Medicare. No family could withstand the medical bills they encounter and still have all that they have. I love the show and I also wondered about their finances.

 

[RC Fan]

My boyfriend and I enjoy the show as well!

I do find the family very likeable. I find Matt can sometimes be overly enthusiastic at times, but I think he means well. If you want to see a wacky reality show dad, check out 'Driving Force'.

Probably the Roloff I find most grievious is Amy--I find she seems very hard to please.

 

[zalansky]

I've been watching the show since the beginning and after hearing Amy complain so much about money and THEN seeing them go to Hawaii, I went to the TLC website and read the LPBW message boards and it seems like TLC did pay for the trip to Hawaii. I'll try to find the exact place in which I read that, but I'm almost 100% sure that's what it said.

I have watched the show since the beginning too. I try to get my friends and DH into it, they just won't watch! But TLC must give them money for these vacations - I actually have been on the LPBW message board too (what a dork I am I know) and I also went to the website for that hotel they stayed in Hawaii and that room they had goes for something like $10k a night. I see a huge difference in how they spend money now as compared to when the show first started. I am always wondering where they get the money for all those big $$$ projects they are doing.

 

[zalansky]

also - for those who are super dorky like me and find this entertaining, here are Zack & Jeremy's MySpace.com pages:

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=16716797

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=9307773

 

[C.Ann]

My DD was the first one that suggested to me that it was probably royalties from the show that was supporting their current lifestyle, but since I had never seen this show until recently I had no background information in regards to what their prior financial situation was..

My DD also mentioned some kind of disablility payments, but I'm assuming they wouldn't be eligible for them if they are pulling in money from other sources: Matt's job; Amy's job; the farm; royalties from Matt's book; royalties from the television series; etc..

Whatever the case may be, I think it's a very interesting show! And this from a person who doesn't really care much for "reality" type shows..

 

[Chicago526]

As far as the major medical bills go, I wonder if their hospital works with people that have no insurance. My friend had to have major surgery last year and had no insurance at the time. Not only did she get top notch care, but they cut her bill to less than half what it would have been when she explained her situation. They set her up on a payment plan for the rest at either no or low interest.

 

[BillSears]

I heard abou the comment that it's tough for little people to get insurance but I still don't understand it. Sure individual coverage might be tough but group coverage would be easy.

Where I work you get health insurance. There is no exam necessary and everyone is covered. Pre exisiting conditions are covered after 6 months. If insurance is really that big a deal to them then maybe they should switch jobs? I know many people who work at a specific place more for the benefits then the pay.

 

[WaltD4Me]

I went to the TLC website and read the LPBW message boards and it seems like TLC did pay for the trip to Hawaii. I'll try to find the exact place in which I read that, but I'm almost 100% sure that's what it said.

I wondered about the Hawaii vacation too. That could NOT have been cheap!
But then I figured TLC was footing the bill to give the show a little pizzazz
Have them in different setting.

But then I remember Matt saying on the show a couple times that they saved a long time to take that trip...and he commented that the hotel was expensive and a couple of the activies they did being expensive, but he decided it was worth it, sort of once in a lifetime thing, so I don't know?

 

[disneysnowflake]

Did anyone else notice that when this family goes to a hotel or a store that the camera makes sure to get a big old closeup of the store or hotel's logo?

They did this when Amy and Matt went to get the patio furniture. They did this when Jeremy had to get his haircut after the first day of school. They did this with the hotel when they went to Hawaii.

Perhaps these stores give merchandise to this family in exchange for the advertising of having their store logo on national tv. KWIM?

 

[Jenn Lynn]

Maybe they have to promise promotion in order to film in there.

 

[mytwotinks]

I am sure that they make money on the show, but I really think that they were pretty "comfortable" before that. Their farm and the play structures that he built for the kids are very impressive. I saw articles in magazines and specials on t.v. shows featuring the farm years before they ever had their TLC special and then series. I think that Amy is just a stress case and that no matter how much money they had she would probably worry. Nothing wrong with that I just think it is her personality though. Maybe when they were younger they were broke and it has stuck with her.

 

[emmabelle]

also - for those who are super dorky like me and find this entertaining, here are Zack & Jeremy's MySpace.com pages:

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=16716797

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=9307773

That is so weird to be able to see their myspace pages, you forget how accessible everyone's lives can be with the world wide web.

 

[Brise Nannie]

In the past I had seen a few of the episodes a long time before this series became highly advertised. On one particular early episode Matt and Amy were in danger of losing their farm. Matt invited both his parents over to the farm to discuss financial issues and ask for financial help from them. Amy worked two jobs while Matt worked the farm and then things got much better for them IMHO when he got the traveling job. I sympathize with Amy because Matt seems to take matters into his own hands with his "bright ideas" and there seems to always be a little drama before all is said and done. His heart seems to be in the right place but who in their right mind tears up the entire kitchen during the holidays or special occasions? I guess I hate surprises. I think Matt starts off with good intentions but his timing is off most of the time.

 

[momsgoofy]

That is so weird to be able to see their myspace pages, you forget how accessible everyone's lives can be with the world wide web.

Did ya'll notice that on Zack's myspace you could see their sister's? I clicked the link (MollyJo)...interesting, but Zack by far is a self-proclaimed "nerd" and from the quantity of friends he's got on that page...a pretty social nerd. Casey, the girl he took to the winter formal on the last season...she's one of his friends (naturally)...her page is private though, which is a good thing from this parent's point of view.

Oh, well...gonna see what trouble happens this week when Matt buys that old VW bug.

 

[TheOtherVillainess]

Did anyone watch last night's ep "Little Fish, Big Apple", where Matt and Amy basically left the kids alone while they went to NYC?

What was the deal with Jeremy and his friend trying to catch bees in a jar? What does that serve, other than to possibly get you stung or cut up from a broken jar (like Jere did)???

TOV

 

[momsgoofy]

Hey TOV!

It only proves that they are typical teenage boys with nothing better to do...I've got one that is 14...OMG sometimes....to the moon Alice...to the moon!!!!

 

[flipturngirl]

I watch this show.. I live in oregon... and wow it is weird to see what other people live like. The father seems to be cool but uptight a little. What I want to know is why is he always trying to get Zach to go with a girl or dance with a girl at LPC's. He will mature at his own rate..... I have noticed on alot of TV show's lately they have been doing an upclose on the stores name and not just LPBW.
The messy house.. I think it is nice that it is messy... It shows that not everyone is perfect. It would not be a reality show if it was clean all the time.... you would not like it if it was clean because of the families personalities.

I hope that they will continue the show....


Also the property values here in Oregon are expensive....Well at least where I live but them living in the West Hills it might be different but oh well what do I know right?

flipturngirl

 

[Swimnoid]

Hey TOV!

It only proves that they are typical teenage boys with nothing better to do...I've got one that is 14...OMG sometimes....to the moon Alice...to the moon!!!!

No kidding! My friend told her teen son to go trim the edges of the yard. A little while later she looks out to see him on roller blades with hedge clippers!

 

[flipturngirl]

I LOVE this show! I've been watching for awhile now and I can't believe Jacob got hurt by the pumpkin launcher! -- I bet Amy had a FIT...the launcher was one of Matt's inventions and I remember her worrying about if it was safe or not...at the time though, she was worried about someone getting hit by a pumpkin, not the 2,000 pound concrete block! Scary!



Glad to hear Jacob is okay!

After this incident had happened there was an article in the Oregonian about it. Apparently the neighbor's are really tired of all the nonesense and they have had to call the police several times becuase of things like this happening. Not only getting hurt but large masses of people. If someone else gets hurt it says that they might close the farm down. That is just what I read in the newspaper and nothing is ever true..

 

[barkley]

one of the things that strikes me about this show is how reliant matt is on his parents and his kids to do things around the farm. the kids drive/operate heavy equipment and seem to be expected to enlist free labor from their friends for the operation of the farm. i have to wonder, as these kids reach adulthood if they will want to 'break free' of this type of life and pursue college (away from home) and careers-how this combined with the natural aging and loss of matt's parents will impact matt's ability to operate/maintain the farm.

i also wonder when i see the episodes where the kids in clearly unsafe manners (barefoot/without appropriate protective gear) operate the machinery/vehicals-and left to their own engage in unsafe activites that sometimes result in televised injuries (rusty nail wounds, gashes, heads getting slammed)-how many calls the local social services agency must receive. i am always floored at the heavy equipment and power tools that just seem to be openly available to the kids to use unsupervised at their own discretion.