Who was this family on kids by the dozen?

[ladypuglover]

Who was the family from kids by the dozen who lived in Penn and seemed really weird by not knowing what faith they were? They acted Amish but some of the kids had faux Jewish names? Here is a video of them but this is all I can find and no name goes with it.

ITDYjZ5bkeE

What I want to know is do they have a blog? This family is so weird even by fundy standards that everyday life must be a freak show. I am needing a new freak show since you all reminded me of my love for Emily and Dna.

[Jade]

The Winters?

[ladypuglover]

The Winters?

Yes! Thank you but do you happen to know the parent's names?

[ladypuglover]

Is this the family?

http://www.csmonitor.com/2001/0919/p15s1-lifp.html

[Witsec7]

Tzipporah, who the fuck names their kid that?

edited to add: I tried to follow these folks, but never could find a blog. They have an online 'school' but no web presence and do day care. She was in the news for stealing books from the local library about 12 years ago.

[CC3]

I saw this family. I remember the mother was starting a little shop with homemade little girls dresses, candles, gift items. That's all I remember.

[Jade]

That is them. They were really odd I remember some part of the show where they couldn't find shoes so they painted their feet to go to town. I also seem to remember the oldest two had a different dad and he had a blog or website but I can't find it so maybe I am thinking of someone else

[TheJewAmongUs]

I also seem to remember the oldest two had a different dad and he had a blog or website but I can't find it so maybe I am thinking of someone else

That was them. I think it was the oldest 2-3, and after the show aired the father posted a letter on his website saying the mother hadn't allowed him to see the kids and put up some pictures from an old birthday or some party and asked them to contact him.

I don't think the family maintains a blog or website.

[Witsec7]

That is them. They were really odd I remember some part of the show where they couldn't find shoes so they painted their feet to go to town. I also seem to remember the oldest two had a different dad and he had a blog or website but I can't find it so maybe I am thinking of someone else

If I recall it was the first four. At the time I was stalking them their sibling had written an expose of the Mother. Seems she had 7 with another man, left him and took 4 with her. They admired the Old Order Amish of Maine but were a bit too tied to modern conveniences to join up with them.

[Conuly]

Tzipporah, who the fuck names their kid that?

Other than the funny spelling, it's not a bad name. Say it a few times, let it roll off your tongue. It's no worse than "Elizabeth" or "Rebecca", other Biblical names which are more common in our culture... and for sure it sounds better than "Jennifer", which was so popular for a while there! (And which really is just a variant on Guinevere, of course.)

It even fits common naming conventions for this recent generation of babies - consonant sounds not blended up (unless you insist on trying to pronounce that t), ending in an -a sound. Fits right in with Ana, Ava, Isa, Bella.... (Except the extra syllable.)

And nowadays children's names have much more variety than they did when we were young, or especially when our parents were young. The most popular names are much less popular than the most popular names just a few generations ago. It's not... well, it's not that unusual to see a kid with an unusual name anymore.

(Then again, I went to school with a boy named Eros, and we had friends who named their son Rayn. My standards may be slightly skewed. Poor Eros. No sooner did people stop telling him he was gross, then his class did a unit on Greek mythology....)

[FaustianSlip]

I think Tzipporah is a nice enough name, but even for a Jewish family that's not pretty religious, it could be seen as slightly odd (if that was the name the kid used every day- as a Hebrew name, pretty much anything goes). To saddle a non-Jewish kid with an already unconventional upbringing with a name like that which would seem weird to a lot of people doesn't seem like it's doing them any favors.

And Eros.... Man. That poor kid.

[deepasducks]

Ugh, the names seem okay to me, but two names from Fiddler on the Roof in one family seems like more than a coincidence (Tzietel and Chaveleh).

[Conuly]

I think Tzipporah is a nice enough name, but even for a Jewish family that's not pretty religious, it could be seen as slightly odd (if that was the name the kid used every day- as a Hebrew name, pretty much anything goes). To saddle a non-Jewish kid with an already unconventional upbringing with a name like that which would seem weird to a lot of people doesn't seem like it's doing them any favors.

True, though again I should point out that the range for "acceptable names" for this newest batch of kids is a LOT wider than it was when we were kids.

Though with that in mind, maybe giving the kids weird, isolating names was the point, in which case they should've tried even harder? *thinks*

[nothingclever]

Who was the family from kids by the dozen who lived in Penn and seemed really weird by not knowing what faith they were? They acted Amish but some of the kids had faux Jewish names? Here is a video of them but this is all I can find and no name goes with it.

Just a heads-up, they're actually from Maine. I can't remember the parents' names right now, but I know the family a little bit. They are definitely weird, but not as outwardly weird as they made themselves out to be on Kids By The Dozen. I don't know that I would consider them to be fundie even a little bit, even though a couple of the kids are religious. One of the older girls is traveling the world with her long-term boyfriend right now, and the dad is all for it.

[onlyorganic]

THANK YOU! I've been looking for these people for awhile now. I remember their little store and the kids had nutty names!

[divadivine]

Were they the ones who named their kids are the characters from Fiddler on the Roof? Or do I have them confused with someone else who was on that show, too?

[Deleted10]

Were they the ones who named their kids are the characters from Fiddler on the Roof? Or do I have them confused with someone else who was on that show, too?

Yes that was them. One of the sons came on the TWoP thread for KBTD and said his mother was a "Fiddler on the Roof" fan. Oy vey.

[NJMom]

The parents are Jim and Laura Winters. I saw the KBTD rerun awhile back, filmed in 2007 or so. They have 11 kids- her first 3 were with her first husband, after she divorced him and married Jim she convinced the first husband to let Jim adopt them, and he gave up his parental rights. Something about her moving so far away made it impossible for him to see them. The mom ran a day care and homeschooled all the kids, the dad was a musician, and they were into the Amish, Jewish and fundamentalist Christian religions without totally identifying with any of them...yes, they were kind of weird. I think they had their store for awhile (sold girl's handmade dresses and handmade soap) but gave it up. Last I saw about her, she was on some websites promoting a raw, vegan diet, and now calling herself Laurel Winters. The bio dad put out something on the internet for his oldest children (Destiny and Andre Winters, forget the third name) in hopes that they would get in touch with him, but I don't know if that ever happened. The kids probably all still live at home, I don't think any of them were going to any type of school or college.

[nothingclever]

The kids probably all still live at home, I don't think any of them were going to any type of school or college.

I know that at least one of them goes or went to college. Tzeitel was at a local community college, but last I heard she was backpacking across Europe with her boyfriend. They're all on FB, too, if anybody wants to get into some real searching.

ETA: I think she's had another baby as well. In July she looked really pregnant.

[Maul the Koala]

I know that at least one of them goes or went to college. Tzeitel was at a local community college, but last I heard she was backpacking across Europe with her boyfriend. They're all on FB, too, if anybody wants to get into some real searching.

ETA: I think she's had another baby as well. In July she looked really pregnant.

A few of the kids have traveled around a bit sans siblings according to Facebook. I still can't get over they had to paint their feet because they didn't have shoes. :shock: