Gil Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Just for fun: If you were to go on a show like Wife Swap/Trading Spouses, then what sort of family would the producers pair you with? In case you don't watch those shows, they pair up families who are polar opposites on at least 2 or 3 different fronts. (ie a military-sharp, strict family, who believes in private school or classical education is swapped out to a hippy, child-led parenting family where the family is run democratically and there is only one rule: HAVE FUN! etc.) They'd probably pair our family with a religious, 2-parent family that believes parents are their kids friends and that childhood is about fun. Strong possibilities include a family that doesn't feel cleaning is all that important and who can thrive in a state of regular clutter/messiness. I have no idea what they'd do on the animal front, as I do not love animals and strongly dislike pets yet allow my boys to keep a pack of cats. Educationally the parents are either going to be radical un-schoolers and if not unschoolers than probably a PS-zealot who believes in the power of the public school! Very probably someone from a higher economic bracket than us, which isn't that hard since we are on the bottom of the totem pole financially. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Wow! That's a hard question :) Hmm.... opposite would be a two-parent family. Probably pagan/witchy (although that is my background before conversion to Christianity). Animal haters. Educationally, I don't think I have an opposite. Maybe it would be complete fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants "non-schooling" even though we are mostly unschoolers over here. But last semester we were mostly classical schoolers, so really it would depend on what season you caught us in :) Financially it would be difficult too since we are poor but have the resources of extended family available to us. Actually, the thought of a family opposite of us depresses me since I kind of like the way we are :o Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Haha...hmmm Maybe some high powered Wall Street finance couple with a jet set lifestyle. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 That show used to crack me up so I've actually thought about this. I think we couldn't qualify for one of those because we're too moderate overall. But... if we did, they'd probably swap us with a family that's an extreme "helicopter" parent sort of style and maybe who are disciplinarians with super traditional gender roles and rigid schedules. I think if there's anything the producers would want, it would be to see what happens when a helicopter mom has to watch my kids take the public bus alone and walk to the store in our inner city neighborhood by themselves. The one I always wanted to go on was the one where they had the families trade vacations - so it would be like the family that likes to be beach bums and just sit around all vacation has to go on the vacation where you hike and camp the whole time. 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercyA Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Unmarried, theologically liberal parents who eschew traditional gender roles, love hunting, and are in the military. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Unmarried, theologically liberal parents who eschew traditional gender roles, love hunting, and are in the military. Wow..I'm confused. LOL 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercyA Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Wow..I'm confused. LOL :laugh: Yeah, I have a feeling our opposites might be hard to find. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shinyhappypeople Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Opposite of us? Parents who view earning money not just as a necessity but a priority, obsessed with prepping the kids for Harvard, utra-liberal politically, harboring a not-so-secret crush on government programs, with at least one parent working for an organization like Planned Parenthood. Haha - I just realized that one of my friends has most of these traits. 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maize Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Hmm, interesting question. One possibility would be very mainstream, dual income, one child who goes to school and doesn't have any particular special needs or quirks, either not religious or very mainstream protestant Christian, probably own a boat or some four-wheelers and like cruise vacations, don't read much but follow celebrities and fashion trends. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluegoat Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 (edited) I think they would probably be people who were in high-powered careers, very money oriented, very focused on getting kids into the right school. I suppose they'd have to be libertarians of some sort. Fundamentalists of some kind (religious or non-religious) who enjoy cheesy religious folk music. Vegans. Their kids would all have cell-phones and tablets and computers in their bedrooms. Teetotalers who really like jogging. Edited January 5, 2016 by Bluegoat 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
albeto. Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Anything Duck Dynasty. 12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MBM Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Probably a surfing, pot-smoking family. I would actually like the surfing part, though. Maybe a family will switch with us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jenny in Florida Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Sports. Hunting. Lots of disposable income. Conservative Christian. Patriarchal. Strict gender roles. "Better late than early" educational philosophy. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsWeasley Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 A neat freak, religiously conservative family who treat their dogs like children and spend their weekends clothes shopping at the mall and tailgating at football games. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Anything Duck Dynasty. :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 (edited) Unschooling, anti hunting, liberal atheists who are sports fans. Edited January 5, 2016 by Arctic Mama Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Opposite of us? Parents who view earning money not just as a necessity but a priority, obsessed with prepping the kids for Harvard, utra-liberal politically, harboring a not-so-secret crush on government programs, with at least one parent working for an organization like Planned Parenthood. Haha - I just realized that one of my friends has most of these traits. I have a few friends like my opposite as well. It's funny because I love them dearly! We are just hilariously different in the big areas and meet on our passions and hobbies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wheres Toto Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Anything Duck Dynasty. This would definitely be the opposite of us. :laugh: Also opposites: gun nuts, politically conservative, conservative/fundamentalist Christian (or any other conservative/fundamental religion for that matter), authoritative parenting style, traditional gender roles, "a place for everything and everything in its place", "children should be seen and not heard", young earth, science deniers (dh and I both have science degrees), womans place is in the home, very rural/farm living or big city living (we're suburban/rural but rural NJ so not really), huge McMansions (I'd like to give that a try sometime), jet setting vacations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercyA Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Teetotalers who really like jogging. :lol: :lol: :lol: (Those people would be my opposites, too.) :cheers2: 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rebcoola Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 I don't know about anything else but I am sure it would involve early mornings, and lots of cleaning. 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Oh yes, early morning people that adhere to a strict schedule for eating, exercising, gender roles and sleeping. They would minimize technology, yet watch TV all the time. Boys would have buzzed hair and wear pressed clothing everyday and say yes, ma'am a lot. Moms would cook a lot and actually enjoy it. Two parent family, of course. They would also be extremely outgoing, be involved in a ton of activities, rarely home, and drive a giant SUV. They'd also be into sports, really into sports. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.... Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Haha...hmmm Maybe some high powered Wall Street finance couple with a jet set lifestyle. :iagree: Yep, same for us. :laugh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.... Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 I'd end up in a home where they are used to the mom waking up at the crack of dawn and preparing every single meal from scratch. There would be a rigid clean up schedule and the kids would be way more involved in the process than I'm used to. There would probably be no screens in the house and we'd go to bed relatively early. We'd spend a lot of time outdoors and/or on the go a lot. Maybe the kids would be signed up for a lot of extracurriculars and I'd have a number of outside commitments that would tap me out. To be clear, I don't care if another family lives like that. Well, come on over! :tongue_smilie: Except the pop culture references. We have tons of *those* T-shirts! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
almondbutterandjelly Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 A family who doesn't believe in doctors, food allergies, or asthma. They would try and cook milk, egg, and peanutty foods for my kid and refuse to let her take her medication. They would instead rub essential oils on her extremely sensitive skin. She would, of course, end up in the hospital, assuming she survived. They would also clean constantly and insist cursing was always appropriate. And have a jet set lifestyle. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Desert Strawberry Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Childless-by-choice or single child, dual income, high-powered, urban, conspicuous consuming, convenience lovers. Basically, my parents. I haul my dishwater in a bucket, bake my own bread, and live in a community where I can count the houses, so it wouldn't be too hard to find a family not like us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Desert Strawberry Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Related: When Wife Swap was first being developed, they recruited families from one of my natural parenting groups. No one took them up on it, because they wanted us to leave our breastfed, cosleeping infants in the care of a stranger for two weeks for entertainment. They did eventually find natural-minded parents with older kids who were willing to participate, but man. They slammed up against a wall with that one. I'm sure the viewership would have had a blast watching a little baby cry for hours and refuse to take a bottle for days. Lots of laughs. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaeFlowers Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 This is a hard one. For the most part, my dh and I are total opposites. He likes sports, I don't. He's a conservative Christian, I'm not. Etc. So, you would have to go way out there to find our opposites. All I can think of right now would be people who are social climbers or practice authoritarian parenting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8circles Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Gosh, this could go several different ways. For instance, the Duggars. Or really outgoing social-climbers. Or vegans. Hard-core animal lovers? People who are extreme-anything, really. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BarbecueMom Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Hmm. They'd probably be very healthy smokers who hate sports and exercise but run marathons. Well-traveled bloggers and amateur photographers. Very extroverted and very religious with many friends, church obligations, and dinner parties, and are close to extended family. They would be very, VERY passionate about... well, anything. Probably on the public school PTA or running for school board because they love being in charge and dealing with other people's kids (and their parents). They'd like country music and have their walls decorated with deer heads on wood paneling but they'd hate hunting. The house is loaded with knick-knacks and keepsakes. But they are very serious and formal. They don't talk to each other in movie quotes or giggle over innuendo. The kids (if they have them) display a precocious maturity and play with their massive toy collection as intended, and they would never dismantle or pilfer household items in the name of creativity or upgrade attempts. They'd also be baseball hating Cubs fans. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Runningmom80 Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Honey Boo Boo. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gil Posted January 5, 2016 Author Share Posted January 5, 2016 (edited) Related: When Wife Swap was first being developed, they recruited families from one of my natural parenting groups. No one took them up on it, because they wanted us to leave our breastfed, cosleeping infants in the care of a stranger for two weeks for entertainment. They did eventually find natural-minded parents with older kids who were willing to participate, but man. They slammed up against a wall with that one. I'm sure the viewership would have had a blast watching a little baby cry for hours and refuse to take a bottle for days. Lots of laughs. Can you find the episode of that family on YouTube? If so, would you PM us the link, we'd love to see it. Edited January 6, 2016 by Gil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kewb Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 It would probably be some sort of evangelical family or an over achieving dynamo type of family that runs marathons in their spare time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 the polar opposite of our family is one who would go on one of those shows. 15 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spryte Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 the polar opposite of our family is one who would go on one of those shows.Yes. This. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 the polar opposite of our family is one who would go on one of those shows. Truth. I've never even seen an episode. I only know it exists because of an old episode of The Soup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IsabelC Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 I'd probably be paired with one of those families who own virtually no books but have an enormous television which is almost always switched on. 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AimeeM Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 (edited) Hmm. A liberal, agnostic, child-led family that doesn't care for traditional gender roles is probably our polar-opposite, family wise. Edited January 5, 2016 by AimeeM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 People who stick to very strict schedules, have their future entirely laid out including economically, never plan to move, and think they have all the answers -- whatever they are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartlikealion Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Well, come on over! :tongue_smilie: Except the pop culture references. We have tons of *those* T-shirts! I actually think we'd get a lot more done without the screens. Cooking from scratch 3x a day? I'd have a loooong way to go to get there lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnniePoo Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 (edited) White-supremacist, beer-guzzling, stay up late, bad grammar, paycheck-to-paycheck, boisterous, hunting, drive trucks, rural, right-wing Edited January 5, 2016 by AnniePoo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Cashed up bogans, for sure. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carrie12345 Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Working professional mom, sahd, one or two kids who fit stereotypical gender roles (even though their parents don't.) They learn by memorizing and only have to pee during scheduled bathroom breaks. Their house is constantly scrubbed AND disinfected. They have a purebred, professionally trained dog and a cat that doesn't try to kill them on the stairs every. single. trip. They're devout any-religion, but don't pay attention to things outside of their bubble. They do have a whole bunch of "social engagements", whatever that means. But it requires constant hair salon trips because Mom never has 2" dark roots. And they all wear uncomfortable pants. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartlikealion Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Working professional mom, sahd, one or two kids who fit stereotypical gender roles (even though their parents don't.) They learn by memorizing and only have to pee during scheduled bathroom breaks. Their house is constantly scrubbed AND disinfected. They have a purebred, professionally trained dog and a cat that doesn't try to kill them on the stairs every. single. trip. They're devout any-religion, but don't pay attention to things outside of their bubble. They do have a whole bunch of "social engagements", whatever that means. But it requires constant hair salon trips because Mom never has 2" dark roots. And they all wear uncomfortable pants. :lol: 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 (edited) Cashed up bogans, for sure.I'm stealing Rosie's answer. I don't know what that is, so I don't think I am one. The thing is, I'm adaptable and could do anything for two weeks. My family would be VERY unhappy and not remotely up for the experience. Edited January 5, 2016 by KungFuPanda 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tsuga Posted January 6, 2016 Share Posted January 6, 2016 Unmarried, theologically liberal parents who eschew traditional gender roles, love hunting, and are in the military. Wow. I'm not active military but was a military wife and we do fish and have raised animals for meat. We aren't Christian. So I guess we could switch, LOL. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted January 6, 2016 Share Posted January 6, 2016 People who stick to very strict schedules, have their future entirely laid out including economically, never plan to move, and think they have all the answers -- whatever they are. huh. tha'ts simple. 42. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercyA Posted January 6, 2016 Share Posted January 6, 2016 Wow. I'm not active military but was a military wife and we do fish and have raised animals for meat. We aren't Christian. So I guess we could switch, LOL. More proof that we are an extremely diverse group here! I :001_wub: the Hive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wintermom Posted January 6, 2016 Share Posted January 6, 2016 I think my dh and I are already polar opposites in 2 areas! ;) So, I'd end up partnered with an Energizer Bunny who likes to plan and eat veggies, like myself, and we'd both have our days filled with stuff and never see each other. Or dh would end up with a very relaxed, go-with-the-flow, Oreo cookie lover, and they'd be off doing spontaneous things together. I'm not too sure what would happen with the homeschooling. :lol: The opposite of both of us would be someone with no sense of humour who loved to make money by cheating. :laugh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom22ns Posted January 6, 2016 Share Posted January 6, 2016 Opposite of us? Parents who view earning money not just as a necessity but a priority, obsessed with prepping the kids for Harvard, utra-liberal politically, harboring a not-so-secret crush on government programs, with at least one parent working for an organization like Planned Parenthood. I'd add to this they would be neat freaks who love watching sport and are public school zealots. I think we're pretty middle of the road on most issues, so I don't think it is easy to find our opposite. The people on that show are polar. We just aren't. Our political, educational, discipline, cleanliness, animal, and financial attitudes are all moderate. They just wouldn't take us, we're too hard to offend and not very offensive to others. :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 6, 2016 Share Posted January 6, 2016 My SIL? 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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