When they were on the porch alone, would it have killed Kody to look and Meri and honestly say "Owning this home has been your dream for so long. And now you have it. I am so proud of you." Followed by a big hug and a kiss. Instead, he beat around the bush and said you should be proud of yourself. Ok. Yes, she should, but hearing your spouse say they are proud of you, that could have gone a long way to rebuilding that relationship. Instead, it was all "I am uncomfortable with Las Vegas. Now, Meri has ties again to Utah. I need to move back to Utah." So next week, we see the big decision.
I thought that same thing. If Kody is sincere in rebuilding their relationship, he needs to at least put forth some effort. I
guess that he could argue that he doesn't show much affection to one wife when the others are present. They have all said that in the past and in a recent episode as well. But, they were on the front porch all by themselves. Heck, he could have just given her a Duggar side hug, pat on the shoulder or anything to show some sort of support and praise. Instead, he stood there looking out over the property, muttering something about the view and thinking about how he wants to uproot his family and move them back to Utah, a state from which his family fled.
Am I the only one that thought Kody was trying to take some sort of credit for Meri getting the inn all on her own? It seemed as if he was saying that because he and the family denied/couldn't help fund her, Meri put in extra work and did it all on her own. Like he pushed her to do it and therefore she dug deep and did it. Maybe I was reading too much into it but that's the way it seemed to me.
I have worked for family law attorneys for 30+ years and I've pretty much seen it all including catfishing and cyberbullying. I've seen a spouse who has been mentally and physically abused but were afraid to leave yet came to an attorney as a last resort. I've seen women and men who wouldn't actively seek a divorce from their spouse because of their religious beliefs but had to because the other spouse left them no choice. The Browns, while the program doesn't show them going to church or actively participating in their religion, make several references that lead me to believe that they do. Their faith probably frowns upon divorce and if they are devout in their beliefs, Meri may not want to go that route. Yes, I do remember that she divorced Kody so that he could lawfully marry Robyn but I think that was justified by her and the entire family.
While it is true that the one being catfished has to start out as a willing participant, I can also at least see part of Meri's side of the story as to why she went to whatever site it was to find new friends. Are we sure that Meri went seeking the attention of another man and not just someone with common interests? That could have very well been how the whole thing started...innocently.
Kody wouldn't try for another baby with Meri but married a fourth wife and not only had children with her but also adopted her children from a previous relationship (even though it seems their dad was at least somewhat involved with them albiet infrequently). I'm sure that this did a number on Meri and she may not have gone searching for a lasting/loving relationship with another man online but it snowballed into a huge ordeal that she couldn't get out of due to cyberbullying. I recall Meri saying that this "man" started threatening her and her family. We also need to remember that Meri is a public figure so this person could have been watching all of the previous seasons, googled all sorts of information about her and the family's whereabouts. Thus, they could semi-track what they were doing and pretend to be following them when in fact, they were miles away.
I am sure that we can all agree that online threats, bullying, etc. are very real and something to take very seriously. Even had Meri wanted to get out of the relationship (for lack of a better word), she was scared of what they may do to her family. Imagine what you would do to protect your own loved ones.
I think that if Kody and Meri really want to mend the relationship, everyone, including the rest of the wives and family, especially Kody and the spoiled Mariah, need to let the whole thing lie. Drop it and move on. We have all done something in our past (probably a multitude of them) that we wish we had never done. Something that hurt another. Something that could have potentially torn apart a relationship. The only way to heal is to truly put it in the past and move on.
Whew, sorry for being so long winded.