I loved 16 and Pregnant - what I thought was going to be a lame Juno knockoff turned out to be really interesting, especially this last episode. I'll embed the episode under the cut so you can check it out if you haven't seen it yet.
I thought this last episode was great because Catelynn and Tyler were SO not ready to have a kid, especially compared to the other girls. Yeah, Maci was spacey (ha, rhyme) and Ebony wasn't quite ready to start diapering, but to me, Catelynn had no business trying to keep the baby. And all family jokes aside (she and Tyler started dating, then their parents got married, so they're step-siblings, in all technicality...), that house was not equipped to handle any sort of infant.
That being said, I was amazed at how her parents reacted to the whole thing - neither thought adoption was a feasible option and Tyler's dad, who had been in and out of jail for all of Tyler's life, offered gems like "MAN UP!" when he insinuated they'd put the baby up for adoption and "all that baby needs is love". No, pops - babies need care 24/7, not just hope and love. I must be more naive than I thought, because I'd always thought of adoption as an incredibly scary and brave thing to do - never have I heard someone say "man up" when the issue has come up.
Catelynn's mom was also interesting - I think of her as being like Amy Poehler's character in Mean Girls - the
cool mom. She'd call Catelynn "bitch" on the phone and tried to be more of a friend than a mom - and when you're pregnant, you don't need buddies to call you names jokingly - you need help and support.
Okay, so I'll embed the video under the cut, but let's talk.
Was this the right decision for Catelynn and Tyler? What do you think about the way her parents reacted?
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Comments (51)
I definitely cried!
I don't have a reason to be thinking of stuff like adoption or anything but seeing this episode made me aware of how difficult something like this is for the mother... like I honestly do not know how she let go. well, because she loved her baby girl and wanted the best for her... but it is still very hard to do!
I only was able to watch up until the girl was talking about the several meetings with the adoptive parents as time went on because my little cousins came in and I didn't think they cared to watch that... lol.
When I watched it, I think it was the right choice for them. They were sooo not ready to have a kid yet. She was just looking out for ger baby girl's best interest. I have to admit, I got pretty emotional at the end when she wanted to hold her baby first then when the adopted mother started crying when she held her for the first time. I still think they made the right decision though. Even though she loves her daughter very much, she seriously wasnt ready for her baby and I wouldnt want my baby to grow up in their living situation where Catelynn and Tyler's parents act the way they do. I bet it was extremely hard for her to let her daughter go though. I dont think I could be as brave.
I honestly thought that Catelynn and Tyler seemed to be the most mature teens of the seasons cast. All of the other girls cried during birth and begged for a c-section, while Catelynn dealt through it and didn't act like a baby. I feel like out of all of the cast that they seemed to be the ones who cared the most. I really think all of the girls should have considered adoption because some of them didn't have care or support. Catelynn and Tyler did the hardest thing any parent could do because they truly cared about their baby.
@flyaway_quotes@xanga - I agree. They "manned up" when they were able to realize that they weren't going to be able to take care of a baby in the way a baby should be taken care of.
I've met many people who are against adoption and I've never understood. I am not sure if it is a cultural thing or what.
@flyaway_quotes@xanga - true. she was such a beast giving birth - compared to the other girls, she was way tougher.
I can't even lie, I watched that episode twice last night(: haha.
I cried. Hard.
This was the best episode, in my opinion, which is probably why they saved it for last. That being said, I don't think I could handle a whole series that would make me cry that much.
I think they made the smartest decision, and the adoptive parents didn't seem opposed to letting their daughter know her birth-parents once she gets older. The only thing that kinda bugged me was how pushy and inconsiderate the adoption agent seemed. When Catelynn was crying at the thought of holding her daughter before giving her up, the agent was like, "Why does that make you want to cry?" Gee, I don't know. Perhaps the thought of losing you children as soon as you see them doesn't bother you.
But I came in later in the episode. Seriously, they're step-siblings?
it was def a good episode
@flyaway_quotes@xanga - 100% agree. Most of these kids aren't being very realistic, in my opinion, in deciding they'll keep their kid.
Ironically, my just-turned-17-in-June baby sister is due in September, and I so wish she would do what is best for my little nephew and put him up for adoption. My sister actually said she doesn't think anyone else will be as good of a mother to her child as she will be. She has no idea who the father is, she doesn't have a job or a driver's license, and she lives with my grandparents. I wish she'd "man up" like these two did and realize adoption is the greatest thing she could ever do for her child.I had a baby in my late teens alone...I had the adoption lined up...I ended up keeping her. Life for her has always been hard. Now she says she wishes I had given her up :(
I missed this episode, but my fave was the one with the girl that rode motor cross and the guy who rode quads. She seemed like a smart girl and willing to do anything for the baby, but still managed to take care of herself too. My husband is a high school teacher and he hates this show, he thinks that it may give teens the idea that pregnancy is easy or something that others want to watch on TV.
I had never seen the show. It was just too hard for me as I lost a baby, full term just 8 months ago. I just didn't want to watch children getting to have what I so desperately wish I did. But I did catch this episode. I cried all the way through it for mixed reasons. I was proud of the baby's father for being there through labor and delivery and for sticking around to make the difficult decisions with the mother, instead of bailing out. They made a very difficult but very mature decision by allowing another couple to love and care for their child in a way they were not yet able to. I worked in a maternity home with teenage girls and none of them even considered adoption. Their babies were belongings to them. It was sad. How I wish they would have chosen adoption. I watched these girls try to be mothers and all but 1 of them pretty much failed miserably. They had no idea what they were doing. Occasionally a teen mom does grow up and is able to handle the task, but most can't. And I'm proud of these two for putting their daughter's best interest above their selfishness.
ok.
i have a huge problem with this show. part of it may be because I'm 17 and even less ready to care for a child when I was 12 (good thing i'm on the pill).
I cannot fathom how a 16 year old would feel she is ready to have a child, and take care of it.
for fuck's sake, those kids are still in SCHOOL.
use a condom, dammit!
What they did was a selfless thing, like it was great that they wanted better for their baby. you could tell it was more than hard for them to have to give her up. I wouldn't have gave my baby up, you can never say never but I would do everything in my power to not come to that. But I can also understanding that once they had got the adoptive parents hopes up and they picked out a name for the baby and all that stuff, that its harder to say no.
holy shit i just got done watching this episode and i seriously was crying throughout the WHOLE thing.....so sad!! and yes I def. applaud their strength to give the child up.
I dont know how I would be able to do it or if I would even do it....
such maturity and strength.
and yeah, the parents were just ridiculous. I mean of course they werent supportive of adoption look at the lives they are in now...pretty sure they both acted the same way when tylers mom was pregnant and catelynns mom was preggers with her.
the best episode yet!!!!
I missed the episode! I need to watch it soon.
Sure, they made a good choice. But ultimately the truly mature and responsible thing would be having protected sex.
The parents have obviously always made really poor choices, but people have to look at them as the grandparents as well. My grandparents basically begged to have me around every weekend from the time I was born, so no doubt these kids' parents couldn't help but feel and act the way they did.
@flyaway_quotes@xanga - i so agree with you. my heart broke for her. because i know, i would've never been ready to have a baby at sixteen but i sure as hell wouldn't be grown up and mature enough to realize that the baby would be better off with parents that wanted/could have the baby in their lives.
i cried at the end when their gave their baby up to that couple. and i love that, tyler kept the baby blanket.
their parents sucked at life. they weren't even supportive.
xo
i just watched it. and my step mom and i cried. =[ it was sooo sad. it broke my heart =[
The scene where Tyler's dad was yelling at him (in the kitchen, I think?) and Tyler was saying all those things about how he doesn't want his daughter to live in that environment/household and that his daughter deserved better was pretty impressive. He was thinking very maturely and responsibly.
I agree with the commenter who said that Catelynn and Tyler seemed to be the most mature teens on the show. They handled it very well and with a lot of strength. I can't even imagine how hard that must've been. When she gave birth to the baby and her and Tyler were crying with each other saying "we can do this" was VERY sad. But they were strong enough to handle it and realize that they loved their baby too much to raise her in an environment that they knew wouldn't be good for her.
Very good episode.
Oh, and I think their parents were horrible! They weren't even being parents. They were just causing trouble and being completely immature and unreasonable. "All a baby needs is love"? It needs a lot more than that, and it's good that Tyler and Catelynn knew that. It's a good thing their kids are actually intelligent and got through it without needing parental guidance. Of course, it would've helped a lot and put Catelynn and Tyler under less stress and sadness with that support, but the situation was resolved very well even without their parents, which I'm glad it did.
It sucks to be 16 and pregnant. I don't watch a lot of T.V. so...I have no clue that this is...
I don't watch that show. I'd be angrily complaining about teenagers being stupid if I were to do that.
I believe it was the right decision.
If you can see how their parents reacted BEFORE they even had the baby, how do you think they will act if they kept it? Just from the argument between the kids and parents shows how unstable the family is for a new family member. I understand how hard it is for the parents to see their grandchild given to someone else, but the way they acted towards their children was very immaturely. I can never imagine giving away my family, but I believe Catelynn and Tyler made the best choice in giving Carly to the other family, knowing she will be raised in a positive, safe and stable environment.
I am a fan of the show, and this, by far, was my favorite episode. It shows the difficulty in going through the process of adoption: it isn't as easy as you think it may be, and it gave another outlook on the show: that not all teenagers are "stuck" with keeping their baby.
Catelynn and Tyler were smart about the decision they made.
I havent watched this episode in particular, i have watched all the other ones and usually i get a tear in my eye everytime. To see those girls go through all of that is crazy. I'll watch this episode when i have time tomorrow hopefully lol