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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Wednesday, April 07, 2010 - 5:19 pm
And observations like some of these are probably heard often enough that he distances himself from the tall, handsome, outgoing brother.. heck even if they were identical twins they would tend to have different personalties and one would be more "acceptable" to the public.
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Ophiliasgrandma
Member
09-04-2001
| Wednesday, April 07, 2010 - 5:51 pm
All I can say is that I wouldn't want to spend a minute in Zach's shoes. I think, like his dad, he is alway pretty physically miserable, but has gotten so used to it that he just soldiers through and doesn't realize how its skewed his personality. Poor little kid!
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Brenda1966
Member
07-03-2002
| Wednesday, April 07, 2010 - 6:53 pm
I'm sure his physical limitations and physical discomforts have effected him greatly, and I too would not want to bear that burden. However, I've met too many wet blankets without a valid excuse to chalk it all up to that. I think it's just a personality characteristic. Not a desirable one, but one that many average size people have. And yes, it is probably a bit defeating to have a twin that is so charismatic. I really hope Zach finds something to get excited about. Even his soccer job barely excited him. I can't see him making his way in the world independently.
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Jgalt
Member
02-17-2009
| Wednesday, April 07, 2010 - 8:09 pm
I'm sure some of Zach's attitude is teenage angst of which we mother's are all familiar, but if you add to the usual mopey attitude of some young people with physical limitations, frequent surgeries, and in his mind, comparing himself to his brother and other siblings, it has to cause a bit of depression. I hope he can rise above all of this. His parents have given him a wonderful springboard from which to go out into the world. A memorable childhood, high morals, and from them also, a strong work ethic and can do spirit. Some kids take longer than others for these lessons to kick in.
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Mgmriver
Member
04-27-2009
| Thursday, April 08, 2010 - 4:50 am
I'm not so sure these kids have a strong work ethic. They don't even clean up after themselves. The show has given them lots of opportunities and Matt and Amy have set a good moral compass despite Matt DUI's. But I don't see much of a work ethic in Zach. It may kick in at some point for Zach but as of right now I just see Zach as a nay sayer. There are many "handicapped" folks that despite their physical disabilities muster on and have a zeal for life. Maybe Zach is just slow to mature into an adult. Jeremy seems ready for the adult world. I fear Zach may never leave the roost.
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Jgalt
Member
02-17-2009
| Thursday, April 08, 2010 - 12:10 pm
Zach certainly isn't a worker, but I was referring to his father's ability to make something from nothing. Amy's readiness to get a second job, (she certainly wouldn't win the housekeeper of the year award), when you fall down, both figuratively and actually, you brush yourself off and get going. I think both parents don't sit around feeling sorry for themselves, they find ways to solve their problems. I'm sorry to see Matt and Amy are having marital problems, I don't know if they will be able to work them out. For the kids sake, I hope they can, the real losers in divorce are always the children, no matter how much of a happy face some try to put on it. ( And the children can be one to sixty, it always causes alienation, confusion, disruptions, and ultimately, sadness.) For every "good" divorce, there are 50 nightmares. Sometimes lessons parents teach their children don't kick in right away. True, Zach may always have this sort of defeatist, negative attitude, ( I would argue, in large part, due to his handicap), but I hope it's just a phase and he'll grow out of it, or learn to rise above his concerns.
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Thursday, April 08, 2010 - 7:46 pm
He isn't 100% defeatist though.. I know he did have his mom as a coach and Mike Detloff too but still he was the one to get in there and play soccer and practice that, ride his bike despite some rather sever skeletal pains. He has a shunt in his head to keep the pressure down in the brain area, had those eardrum problems which may still affect him. Have to say from observing groups of young males their age, Zachary, despite his short stature, may at time be more typical in terms of doing what he's forced to do but loving to sleep and just hang around. And people do differ in terms of how much sleep their bodies require or how they deal with jet lag and such. I think sometimes Zach's facial expression and posture can be read as mopey and of course sometimes he IS mopey. From what we've read earlier in the year both of the twins are still at home and going to college locally. Amy tweeted the other day about some work or publcity she was doing again for a local shelter and mentioned that both Zach and Jeremy participated with her on that. I know Molly and Jacob have gone along with her to other places. She never seems to mention Matt in her tweets, but he was on Jay Leno with her. Interesting to watch.. he used to sort of be more the spokesperson for them but Amy is quite vocal now. She looked really cute.

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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Thursday, April 08, 2010 - 7:51 pm
She tweeted that picture.. this was when they were setting up to see how the chairs would work for them getting in and out.. on the show they didn't have purse, phones and other stuff..
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Jgalt
Member
02-17-2009
| Thursday, April 08, 2010 - 8:20 pm
I've been actually defending Zach. I love this family, ( as much as you can from just watching them on TV). In an era of broken families, low to no morals, they are a breath of fresh air. We've been allowed into their lives and have seen the good and not so good, and I admire them for being so open and giving us an opportunity to share in their lives for a bit. We all see Matt and Amy seem to be having marital issues. My heart goes out to them both and hope they can resolve their issues. This is a tough time for any marriage, the kids are moving on for the most part, and I think everyone starts to reexamine their lives.
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Erniesgirl
Member
06-26-2006
| Saturday, April 10, 2010 - 8:27 am
Seamonkey, that is the same photo I received in an email from Matt.
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Whoami
Member
08-03-2001
| Saturday, April 10, 2010 - 8:37 am
I hope they work their way through their issues too. Whereas its understandable that their kids are growing up and moving on (so to speak), its really only their firstborns that are age-ready to do so. Molly and Jacob still have several years to get to that point. I hope they realize that just cause one or two of the kids are ready to move on, their "life" isn't quite "over" yet.
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Brenda1966
Member
07-03-2002
| Monday, April 19, 2010 - 9:19 pm
I've enjoyed the last few weeks episodes a lot -- seeing Zach finally settle into the unknowns of the trip, embrace the new experiences and have a good time was refreshing. Seeing Matt and Amy together is starting to get a bit painful. It's as if you could see she wasn't happy he was now part of the vacation. I see them living very separate lives in the future -- they seem to already be.
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Monday, April 19, 2010 - 10:07 pm
Just watching the first part for tonight.. even last week seemed that Zach was getting in sync and enjoying the trip along with Jeremy and this week even more appreciation. Jacob is the total wet blanket. Of course my dad always made sure we had a pool when we stopped on trips but we wouldn't have dared to suggest swimming before sightseeing. Just got to where the pool was drained.. poor Jacob.. He still is too impulsive like opening the elevator door prematurely.. Luckily he didn't dive into a totall polluted canal.. Hee.. love the guys putting on their kilts in France.
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Monday, April 19, 2010 - 10:12 pm
Oh and wow at the list of credits.. think they got lots of freebies, very cool.
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Hukdonreality
Member
09-29-2003
| Tuesday, April 20, 2010 - 6:14 am
I am just loving Jeremy this season! He is such a nice young man!
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Brenda1966
Member
07-03-2002
| Tuesday, April 20, 2010 - 6:28 am
I felt so bad for Jacob when he saw the drained pool! He seemed to take it well. I can't remember exactly how old he is, but watching that reconfirms my thoughts that DD should be older before we tackle Europe. Yes, Jeremy seems to have really matured into a remarkable young man!
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Ophiliasgrandma
Member
09-04-2001
| Tuesday, April 20, 2010 - 8:26 am
That was two fun episodes. The night at the mayor's house was a great serendipity. I admired Amy and Zach climbing to the top of Eze. Been there, done that and it ain't easy. But when I got to the top...no view. The water was all socked in and we were above the clouds.
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Sia
Member
03-10-2002
| Tuesday, April 20, 2010 - 4:52 pm
Luckily for the twins, they may have been recognized by the German girls who took them home for the night. It would at least "seem" safe to invite home a couple of young American boys who had a camera crew following them around. They could at least "google" the boys' names and learn something about them before taking them home. I would imagine that any other two teen boys on holiday in Europe just might have a harder time finding some nice hostesses for a night. Seriously, though, Jeremy is just such a cutie-pie. I'd take him home if I were a young gal, LOL!
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Wednesday, April 21, 2010 - 3:29 pm
Or, TLC could have even arranged for that meeting. But it was a nice turn of events for the twins and how nice that the mayor loves the same sport they love.
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Erniesgirl
Member
06-26-2006
| Wednesday, April 21, 2010 - 4:38 pm
I saw a question and answer piece on Facebook with Matt and Amy. The oldest of the Iraqi children died during her surgery.
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Happymom
Member
01-20-2003
| Wednesday, April 21, 2010 - 9:33 pm
Oh that is so sad. 
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Wednesday, April 21, 2010 - 11:22 pm

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Sia
Member
03-10-2002
| Thursday, April 22, 2010 - 7:20 am
Ohh, Erniesgirl, was the oldest one the girl who could only lie on the floor because she was unable to sit up? That's awful. Where was the surgery performed? I feel terrible for her family and for the Roloffs; they must be devastated, too. I'd hoped they'd all have good outcomes. I can't remember what the girl's prognosis was without surgery, but she had such a difficult life. Imagine having as many seriously disabled children in one family, and in the environment in which they lived. It wasn't easy for the Iraqi family due to facilities, lack of amenities, fear of bomb attacks, etc.
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Sia
Member
03-10-2002
| Thursday, April 22, 2010 - 7:22 am
Seamonkey, I hadn't even thought of the possibility that TLC had set up the meeting! Usually I'm cynical enough to have thought of that possibility, but I didn't this time. I'm going to be disappointed if that turns out to be true.
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Monday, April 26, 2010 - 9:37 am
From Amy's Charity Org.. Amy Roloff, a ‘little’ woman, delivers big message here! Lancaster Newpapers Sunday News Apr 25, 2010 00:17 EST Posted: 25 Apr 2010 10:32 PM PDT Lancaster Newspapers Amy Roloff, a ‘little’ woman, delivers big message here Lancaster Newspapers Amy Roloff said she continues to be amazed when people tell her they watch her and her family on the TLC reality series, “Little People, Big World.” “Growing up, as a little person, having dwarfism, a lot of people ignored you. … They didn’t give you the time of day,” Roloff said, in a phone interview last week. “People would ask each other, ‘Who is this person? Why is she here?’ ” No one was asking that Saturday when Roloff spoke in Lancaster at the annual convention of the Pennsylvania Organization of Mothers of Multiples Clubs. More than 360 mothers of multiples – twins, triplets and quadruplets -gathered at the Best Western Eden Resort & Suites for the event, which was hosted by Lancaster County Mothers of Multiples. Organizer Kim Frank said that this year’s convention attracted more mothers than usual. “Amy Roloff is a big draw,” Frank said. Roloff spoke at length before a conference room crowded with moms, who were enjoying a break from the demands of mothering. “Wow, little woman, big audience, I love it!” she said, drawing laughter and applause. Walking from one side of the room to the other as she spoke, preferring the floor to the dais, Roloff joked that if the audience couldn’t see her, “now you know my world. … Most of the world I see is belt buckles.” When, at one point, her audience whooped, as if she’d just announced she was giving them all cars, Roloff laughingly declared, “I’m not Oprah! I’ll burst that bubble right now.” She spoke movingly of how her parents coped when they learned she had dwarfism caused by a genetic disorder called achondroplasia. She said her parents didn’t cater to her, knowing that she’d have to live in a world of normal-sized people. And she spoke about the challenges of raising fraternal twins, who have different issues and personalities. Her 19-year-old son Zach has the same kind of dwarfism as she does. His twin, Jeremy, is average-sized, as are Roloff’s two younger kids, Molly and Jacob. Roloff said that when her average-sized children were in elementary school, they were taller than she, meaning she couldn’t lift them, as another mother might. And she couldn’t hug her son Jeremy in public when he grew up, she said, noting with a laugh, “His mom’s arms are around his butt. I can’t really do that.” Drawing a collective sigh of emotion from her audience, she related how Jeremy lifted her up and hugged her, after his senior soccer game. Roloff faltered a bit, and her eyes filled with tears, when she shared her worry over whether she is giving her 16-year-old daughter, Molly, “enough as a mom.” She said she wonders if Molly feels she is getting as much from her as her friends get from their average-sized moms. Roloff composed herself and carried on. And she drew thunderous applause when she said she always felt it was more important to spend time with her kids than to keep a perfectly clean house. “They’re not going to remember that Mom kept a mopped floor if I missed half of their games,” she said. Cathy Redington, a West Cocalico Township mother of twin boys with disabilities, said she was touched when Roloff spoke of the pain parents may feel when their children are born with challenges they did not expect. Redington said she also appreciated Roloff’s candor about her twins, about “how their personalities are different and required different parenting styles.” Stacy Wagner, a Manheim Township mother of three, including twins, and Candice Duong, a Manheim mother of twins, said they thought Roloff was an inspiration. In a lengthy phone interview last week, Roloff said she never sought, and certainly never expected, the fame that has come her way. She said that she was sure that after six episodes of “Little People, Big World,” “people would get bored silly.” But the show, which first aired in March 2006, now is in its fifth season. The cameras are on the Roloff family five days a week, 10 months out of the year, capturing their routine activities at home, on their pumpkin farm in Oregon, and their interactions with each other and with other people. The show has followed the family to Hawaii and to Europe, and to Little People of America conferences and Dwarf Athletic Association of America sporting events. Son Zach’s medical issues, and his angst as he tackled milestones with less confidence than his average-sized twin, have been chronicled on the show. Amy Roloff is depicted on “Little People, Big World” as a no-nonsense mom, the counterweight to her dreamer of a husband, Matt, who is constantly conceiving complicated projects. Matt Roloff, who has a form of dwarfism called diastrophic dysplasia, uses crutches. The show has followed him through his many projects, and through his trial for driving under the influence. Tension between the couple on the show has led to speculation in the blogosphere about the state of their marriage. “We’re like any other couple - we have our ups and down,” Roloff said last week, adding, “We may be in a little dip, but we always come out on top.” Her husband was more interested in participating in a reality show than she was, Roloff said. “Home is my haven. You bring cameras into it, where do you go now?” she explained, adding, “I did not want to have to change, I did not want to be something that I wasn’t.” She said she also worried about how a reality series might affect her kids, and wondered if they’d “suddenly think they’re bigger than life.” Nevertheless, both she and her husband “understood what an incredible opportunity we had to give people an insight into a family with disabilities,” she said. Roloff said that when she was growing up, “I always tried my darnedest to fit in. I’d put on the best clothes – as best as they could fit on me.” With the TV show, she said, she is trying to show people that “it’s OK to be different – each of us has our own challenges.” Roloff said she thinks the reality series has shown viewers “that little people have ordinary lives. … We have the same goals, ideals for our kids, as anyone else. We can do things as best we can, same as everyone else.” She said she’s had women call her “and say, ‘I’m so glad your show came out because I’m pregnant, and I know I’m having a little person, and I can see this is going to be OK.’ ” Roloff said that when she and her husband started their family, “People would ask, ‘Why did you want to have kids, knowing you had a chance of having a little person?’ I’d be like, well, ‘I think I turned out pretty good.’ … You have to go with hope.” Roloff said she knows discrimination persists. People still make cruel jokes, for instance, about “midgets,” which is considered a derogatory term by people with dwarfism. “We’re human,” Roloff said. “We’ll always have people who think they are better than other people.” She said it’s like the layers of an onion. “I don’t think we’re on the outside any more. I think we’re getting closer and closer to the middle.” And she said she believes that “Little People, Big World” has “kind of normalized dwarfism.” Roloff said she’s sure that in the show’s early days, the show’s production company “didn’t think of me too kindly,” because she insisted that her children’s lives not be disrupted by television. She said she told her kids, “TV follows you, you do not follow TV.” She flatly refused to allow her kids to miss school to promote the show, telling her producers, “Don’t ask me to take them out of school, because school is their job.” She said she is certain that starring in a reality series has changed her children – “you live and learn in your environment because of your experiences,” she said. But she said she doesn’t believe that they have changed to the point where they feel “they deserve TV in their lives, or they deserve certain experiences. … They’re still ordinary kids.” “Little People, Big World” is “very real,” Roloff said. “There’s not much scripted. We don’t act. … Sometimes I look at the camera, and think, what did I just do and say?” Said Roloff: “This was never a show about saying the right things, and being perfect. … This is a regular family, and we’re just doing the best we can.” _____ Suzanne Cassidy is a staff writer for the Sunday News. Her e-mail address is scassidy@lnpnews.com . Lancaster Newspapers Amy Roloff, a ‘little’ woman, delivers big message here Lancaster Newspapers
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