Meet Kim Plath — Controversial Matriarch Of Family Raising 9 Kids Technology-Free On TLC's 'Welcome To Plathville'
Is she a control freak?
YouTube TLC recently introduced the world to the Plath family via their show Welcome to Plathville.
The Plaths are a musical family from Georgia that tour as a Southern Gospel group. Kim and Barry are the parents of nine very blonde (and very seemingly sheltered) children.
They are religious, and Kim and Barry also mandate that their kids not use technology.
With the season two premiere of Welcome to Plathville right around the corner, we're curious to know more about the matriarch of the Plath family.
Who is Kim Plath?
Read on to find out everything you need to know about the matriarch of the Plath family.
The Plath parents moved their kids to a farm that's 10 miles from the nearest town; however, in the season two trailer for the show, they revealed they moved into town.
They were very isolated during the first season of their show, and like many of TLC's hit shows, like the Duggar family, Kody Brown and his sister wife clan, and the quintuplet family on Outdaughtered, TLC is giving us a glimpse into a large family with a way of life that is strange to most people.
No TV? No soda? No friends or social lives? That's reality for the Plath kids.
Let's take a look at what we know about the matriarch of the Plath family and what led her to this extremely conservative lifestyle.
How long have Kim and Barry Plath been married?
Kim's been married to her husband Barry Plath for 23 years.
She claims that God told her that she was going to be married to Barry.
On the show, she claims God told Barry he was going to marry her.
This allegedly happened on the same day before either of them expressed any romantic interest in each other. When they discovered they both had the same "vision," they decided it was their destiny and got married soon after.
She's a naturopathic doctor.
Kim is a naturopathic doctor who sees clients out of her home office — or at least she used to.
Her 'Energy for Life' website is down and redirects to a Go Daddy page.
If she's still seeing patients, as a naturopathic physician Kim uses natural remedies to treat the body for illnesses. Her practice is science-free.
Who is on the Welcome to Plathville cast?
Kim Plath has been having babies for more than two decades. Her oldest, Ethan, is 22. Hosanna is 21. Micah is 19. Moriah is 17, Lydia is 16, Isaac is 14, Amber is 11, Cassia is 9, and Mercy is 7.
The youngest six are still in school and Kim homeschools them.
Ethan Plath's wife, Olivia Plath, is also featured on the show, and is the root of a lot of drama between the older Plath kids and their parents.
Kim Plath doesn't want her daughter, Moriah, to go to college.
On an epsiode during the first season, Moriah talked to her mom about wanting to go to college.
What was Kim's response?
"Everywhere you go there are just pornography and junk," she said on the show.
Moriah then told her mother that she felt like she favored the other kids over her.
She expressed a desire to go to a nearby college where she could visit home whenever she wanted to. Kim bristled at this idea as it isn't the vision she has for her daughter's life.
Moriah has since emancipated herself from her parents, and viewers will get a glimpse into her new life during season two.
Kim Plath didn't want her oldest son, Ethan, to get married to Olivia.
The oldest Plath, Ethan, married outsider wife, Olivia.
Before they got married, Kim was against the marriage and asked her son to break up with her.
Olivia does not live the "traditional" lifestyle that Kim forces her family to lead.
Olivia's more free-spirited and has opened Ethan's eyes up to the world outside of the Plath family compound. (Think: red wine, going to the gym, getting on an airplane, etc.)
Through Olivia, Ethan was able to find out what sugar tastes like.
He started going to the gym, which in turn has led to a fractured relationship between Ethan and his mother and at the time, they reportedly didn't speak for months.
In fact, on the show, Kim and Barry state that Ethan and Olivia are not allowed around the rest of their siblings without the two of them present.
How did Joshua Plath die?
In the fall of 2008, Kim Plath was pregnant with her 8th child and doing gardening on her property.
She was in the family's Suburban and she accidentally ran over her 17-month old son Joshua, a tragedy she details on her blog, which has since been deleted.
"I lived in Hell on earth. I woke up every morning and functioned. But just barely. I wanted to die," she wrote.
Her son died before he ever got to the hospital.
She also addressed the accident on a recent episode of the show saying that her husband actually hard it harder than her because instead of just losing a son, he actually lost a son and a wife because following the incident, she was simply going through the motions to stay alive.
What religion do the Plaths practice?
While it's unclear which sector of Christianity the Plaths are a part of, they are devout Christians.
When does Welcome to Plathville season 2 premiere?
You can catch the season 2 premiere of Welcome to Plathville on TLC on Tuesday, Nov. 10 at 10 p.m. ET.
Amy Lamare is a Los Angeles based writer and editor covering entertainment, pop culture, beauty, fashion, fitness, technology, and the intersection of technology, business, and philanthropy. You can find her on Instagram and Facebook.