TLC has taken it upon itself to exhibit every big family’s lifestyle and the many struggles they face. Series like ‘OutDaughtered,’ ‘Little People, Big World,’ ‘19 Kids and Counting,’ and ‘Sextuplets’ have all been amassing great reviews and new fans with the premiere of each new season. ‘Welcome to Plathville’ is similar in its concept but unique in its storyline. The reality series first premiered on November 5, 2019.
Since the inception, the show has essayed the stumbling blocks that parents Kim and Barry Plath try to overcome while bringing up their nine children, who range from ages 7 to 22. Most of the problems they face emerge because of their ultra-conservative upbringing that keeps their children at bay from the modern world. Here is everything we know about the couple and their journey together!
How Did Kim and Barry Plath Meet?
Kim and Barry often narrate their love story without specifically stating whether they met in an arranged marriage setup or dated each other before tying the knot. But their union is as remarkable as it is miraculous. It only took them one look at each other to know that they were a match made in heaven. In the spring of 1997, before they started talking or even showed any interest in the other, it had somehow dawned upon both of them on exactly the same day that Kim was going to walk down the aisle for Barry.
With a deep faith in their intuition and the Almighty, they got married in July 1997. They have carried on with the same trust for more than two decades now and built a happy home based on shared beliefs while continuing on their individual day jobs. The patriarch has worked at the same private firm as a transportation planner for 25 years, and his wife is a naturopathic doctor who has been healing people out of her home office.
Kim and Barry Plath’s Children
Kim and Barry have become proud parents to nine children during the course of their marriage. Their big family consists of Ethan, 22, Hosanna, 21, Micah, 19, Moriah, 18, Lydia, 16, Isaac, 14, Amber, 11, Cassia 9, and Mercy, 7. The family of 11 has spent years at their sprawling 55-acre farm in southern Georgia, performing the household chores together. Although the matriarch is pursuing a different career to earn a livelihood, her heart is in music.
A music major from Florida State University, Kim has passed on the same passion for instruments and singing to most of her children. While being homeschooled, they perform Southern Gospel music together as a part of the family band. In 2008, the Plaths went through the worst trauma that any parent in the world could imagine.
When Kim was pregnant with her eighth child, she and Barry tragically lost their 17-months-old son, Joshua. Kim accidentally ran over him with the family car while working at the farm, and the disaster shook the entire family to the core. Kim guiltily confessed that she would not have been able to forgive Barry had she been on his side, but he graciously loved her instead of playing the blame-game.
Kim and Barry Plath: Journey on Welcome to Plathville
What does a day without TV, internet, carbonated beverages, and sugar sound like? A punishment day, right? That is just how the children of the Plath family spend every day. Kim and Barry have implemented strict rules in bringing up all their kids. From denying them formal education and choosing to homeschool to imposing religious restrictions upon them, the parents tried their best to keep their children away from modern technologies.
However, not all of Kim and Barry’s kids agree to this lifestyle, and the family dynamics went through a significant shift after some of them left the nest. Moriah, famously known as the rebel child, moved out of the house, closely followed by her brother, Micah, who aspires to be a model. The 19-year-old is currently enjoying life with his girlfriend, Lexi Marie.
Their household got further divided into a third residence when their son, Ethan, could not see eye to eye with parents, especially after getting married to the “hurricane” Olivia. Their eldest daughter, Hosanna, had already left Georgia after getting married to Timothy Noble and settling down in her new abode in Ohio.
Read More: Why Doesn’t Hosanna Plath Live With Plath Family?