Cullen and Katie: Boozing and bamboozling | Part #26

[YTIG60]

I'd love to know what her parents really think of Cullen. They can't be too impressed: Drug issues, likely alcoholic, can't keep a job, bankrupting the family by refusing to get a job, no degree. He's definitely not a winner.

That's not fair, Cullen did not bankrupt the family.

Katie has her issues too and one is that she didn't marry a doctor or a lawyer and would need support the family too. By Katie not accepting this work situation, she has contributed to their finacial problems along with her extreme spending. I think they both drink as evidence on IG stories. I dont' think Cullen is a bad guy, but he probably needs some help. I'm not sure if they will last as a couple?

I looked at some of their earlier vlogs and they started off as an average couple buying a house they could afford. It wasn't a bad home, needed some updates and had enough space for two children. Cullen decided to try YouTube and they mutually decided he would be a stay at home dad with Katie working I think a four day week. It was working. How sad they once could own a home, but will now need to rent and it will not be in some expensive beach community.


These were revealing vlog:
DEALING WITH JOB LOSS ---> Cullen loses his job and it sounded like his company was bought out and there were layoffs.
BACK TO WORK AFTER MATERNITY LEAVE! -->cried during most of the vlog going back to work The problem was Katie resented not being home with her new baby and she was not happy with Cullen's sleeping in.
I SUPER EXCITING ANNOUNCEMENT! -->working just a couple days a month and she couldn't work more than this because it didn't feel right, but then decided to quit working. YouTube was going well and Katie planed to return to work someday when the kids were older.

Cullen: kind of like Dave Ramsey with the you know your college degree and many people get that piece of paper that says they have a degree and not everybody uses that degree...

[YTIG60]

I'd love to know what her parents really think of Cullen. They can't be too impressed: Drug issues, likely alcoholic, can't keep a job, bankrupting the family by refusing to get a job, no degree. He's definitely not a winner.

That's not fair, Cullen did not bankrupt the family.

What?! I think he could have been more aware of the finances and realized it was time to get a job. He's just as responsible for their massive debt as Katie.

Katie has a higher education and would likely be paid more than Cullen so she should return to work too. After watching earlier vlogs, Cullen might have an opportunity as a stay at home dad vlogger if he cold adhere to a regular schedule. I don't disagree they are both responsible for their fiancial mess and Cullen should be more involved with recognizing Katie's spending. But I think Katie's spending goes deeper and you have to look at why she spends that may require some professional help to this problem.

[rosie_dalia]

What?! I think he could have been more aware of the finances and realized it was time to get a job. He's just as responsible for their massive debt as Katie.

Katie has a higher education and would likely be paid more than Cullen so she should return to work too. After watching earlier vlogs, Cullen might have an opportunity as a stay at home dad vlogger if he cold adhere to a regular schedule. I don't disagree they are both responsible for their fiancial mess and Cullen should be more involved with recognizing Katie's spending. But I think Katie's spending goes deeper and you have to look at why she spends that may require some professional help to this problem.

A lot of people argue here that Katie should go back to work, but why can't she choose to stay at home and Cullen get a job??? What does he do??? If my husband was as lazy as Cullen I'd be pissed! He really doesn't do much of anything. I think they'll split eventually. I think Katie knows that and that's why they stopped it at 2 kids.

[rosie_dalia]

Cullen reminds me of that Jason Nash guy. Both middle-aged losers who think they are funny...and they are NOT.

[YTIG60]

A lot of people argue here that Katie should go back to work, but why can't she choose to stay at home and Cullen get a job??? What does he do??? If my husband was as lazy as Cullen I'd be pissed! He really doesn't do much of anything. I think they'll split eventually. I think Katie knows that and that's why they stopped it at 2 kids.

Why shouldn't she work. They both don't appear to work hard, but after watching Cullen on IG Story, who appears to be drinking, he might have a problem.
If I were Katie, I'd be working to improve my fiancial outlook and have some independence in case something were to happen in the marriage. I've always worked so I don't understand this concept just because I want to be a stay at home mom, it is my right. We are debt free, no mortgage, no car payments, no credit cards, saved for retirment and paid college tuitions because I worked too. Katie, based off her debt vlog series/earlier vlogs, can't say the same and she does think it is her right to be a stay at home mom.

[YTIG60]

Cullen reminds me of that Jason Nash guy. Both middle-aged losers who think they are funny...and they are NOT.

Cullen has said he has some problems, so I have sympathy for his issues. It is unfortuante. I hope he gets help.

[Toodles123]

New Thread coming tomorrow morning. Go ahead and suggest titles for the new thread.

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[angelfire89]

Cullen reminds me of that Jason Nash guy. Both middle-aged losers who think they are funny...and they are NOT.

Cullen has said he has some problems, so I have sympathy for his issues. It is unfortuante. I hope he gets help.

And there’s the big difference. Cullen has admitted he has problems and wants to fix them. Katie wants to pretend that everything she does is perfect and she has no problems. Anyone who says differently is a hater.

[kaper]

I've known several doctors, a lawyer and a dentist. They are all comfortable now entering their 40's, but the earlier years were living very modest lives. They didn't magically graduate with their doctorates and start living in mansions with big fancy cars because they all had huge student loan debts to pay off. I don't know Katie's family circumstances, but I have a feeling they made sacrifices early in their careers before they became affluent.

[Ducklings4]

They both put themselves in this situation, they both need to get jobs and get themselves out of debt. I would not rent to them.
What are the chances they will stay on at the beach house and the kids will either remote learn or got to school in FLA.

[rosie_dalia]

I've known several doctors, a lawyer and a dentist. They are all comfortable now entering their 40's, but the earlier years were living very modest lives. They didn't magically graduate with their doctorates and start living in mansions with big fancy cars because they all had huge student loan debts to pay off. I don't know Katie's family circumstances, but I have a feeling they made sacrifices early in their careers before they became affluent.

Katie's parents bought that mansion when she was a baby. She's only known that lifestyle. Her father probably didn't have student loans. My parents didn't. Student debt is only a recent thing. Boomers paid almost nothing for college.

[HashtagBlessed]

A lot of people argue here that Katie should go back to work, but why can't she choose to stay at home and Cullen get a job??? What does he do??? If my husband was as lazy as Cullen I'd be pissed! He really doesn't do much of anything. I think they'll split eventually. I think Katie knows that and that's why they stopped it at 2 kids.

Why shouldn't she work. They both don't appear to work hard, but after watching Cullen on IG Story, who appears to be drinking, he might have a problem.
If I were Katie, I'd be working to improve my fiancial outlook and have some independence in case something were to happen in the marriage. I've always worked so I don't understand this concept just because I want to be a stay at home mom, it is my right. We are debt free, no mortgage, no car payments, no credit cards, saved for retirment and paid college tuitions because I worked too. Katie, based off her debt vlog series/earlier vlogs, can't say the same and she does think it is her right to be a stay at home mom.

That's awesome that you have made those financial accomplishments!

I truly believe that living on one income and having a stay-at-home parent works out when it's intentional and carefully planned, and when the financial circumstances allow for it. It's certainly not an entitlement, or something you can do flippantly. It didn't happen for us until my husband got the right opportunity, and we really crunched the numbers and budgeted very carefully to make it happen so as not to jeopardize our long-term savings goals. Prior to that, I needed to work for us to be comfortable, so I did, even though it was hard. We are making material sacrifices by letting go of my income, but I wouldn't do it if it jeopardized our ability to put foot on the table, pay our bills, provide health care and save for retirement/college.

My husband didn't have his college diploma when we got married, so not a doctor or a lawyer. For me, it's more about work ethic. Not only are you on the same page with the same goals, you both have the follow-through to make it happen. It's clear to me that both Katie and Cullen lack that work ethic. They can't take responsibility for earning the things in life that they believe they are entitled to.

It sounds like, judging from past vlogs, the decision that Katie and Cullen made together was that Cullen was going to stay home with the baby and see how much he could make doing YouTube full-time for whatever reason (not employable, didn't want to work, who knows?) while Katie kept her job but cut back on her hours at work to spend more time with the baby. And once that was hard, she made the unilateral decision that she would be a stay-at-home mom, and Cullen needed to figure out how to keep the YouTube gravy train flowing. I highly doubt they ever took into account that YouTube was a bubble and not a stable, long-term solution. And Katie had a lot of options available to her because of her advanced degree. She could have easily made a decent amount working part-time or from home. She made the decision to walk away entirely.

It's somewhat complicated by the fact that Cullen has since admitted that he was a "functioning" alcoholic at that stage in his life, which isn't exactly the person you want in charge of your baby. But once again I have to ask, if that was a factor, why didn't they get serious help at that point in time? Why quit your job, have a second baby, and dig yourself in deeper? If Katie didn't trust Cullen enough to leave him alone with their child, that's a much bigger issue. I think she was oblivious and her decision to quit had little to do with his drinking.

Doesn't Kelley have a degree in something related to child development? I think she worked in a daycare center. I don't think Katie was ever passionate about a career in childhood psychology, I think she thought it was the "right" kind of advanced degree to signal that she was upper crust wife and mother material, meanwhile she was mostly just looking to avoid having to grow up and get a job. It sounds like her parents took care of her while she was in school.

[Boymomma123]

Katie's biggest issue is wanting to keep up with everyone around her without putting in the work required.

Katie is the obvious choice to return to work because she has an advanced degree and more earning potential. Women are able to use the excuse of raising children when asked why they didn't work for 5 years. Cullen has never held down a job consistently and has essentially been "unemployed" for 5+ years. It's clear that they both lack decent work ethic skills based on their inability to be consistent with yt/social media.

Kelley and Jay have moved several times and are just now in their mcmansion. I remember their previous home being smaller so clearly it has taken them a while to build wealth and get to their current situation. C&K just want everything right now yet don't want to work.

Katie is obsessed with keeping up appearances and is desperate to portray that they have wealth and status. They need to both humble themselves and put in the work to fix their situation.

6 months from now they will start the debt series again and blame the pandemic for their lack of budgeting. They will have more debt and possibly be facing foreclosure. They will never change until Katie realizes she is the problem. Cullen was talking about renting a condo and Katie acted like that was way out of the question. Exactly what type of home does she think they can rent with crap credit and a history of not paying their bills?

I think Cullen is way less obsessed with status and more realistic when it comes to what they can afford. Katie is used to a certain lifestyle and just refuses to give it up. Just because you grew up in a 6 figure household does not mean you live that way as an adult. She is just spoiled.

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[ZzzCupcakes]

Oh boy, when they were talking about playing Uno and how that was the *first* time they've played a game as a family and how surprised they were that Brooks understood the rules and could play, my heart broke. How have they *never* played a game as a family before!? Maybe I'm reading too much into it, but the way they were talking about Brooks made it seem like he's the reason they don't play games together. Brooks is only 2 years younger than Gaines (I think...) and there are plenty of games geared towards that age group the whole family can enjoy. There's a pretty significant age gap between me and my older siblings, and I was still always included in family games. My parents usually altered rules so I could better understand the game, or I played on a team with someone, but I was always included. It's sad how little time C&K spend with their children.

[irishmiss]

Unless I'm mistaken Katie worked for a few years after college before doing her PHD. I wonder when they married was it the plan that Katie would eventually be a stay at home mom and Cullen was going to be the main breadwinner and go back to college? Maybe he didn't stick to his end of the deal and that's the reason Katie went back to school even though she had no desire to.

I'm not trying to defend Katies behaviour today because at this point both of them should be working second jobs regardless of hurt feelings but its just an alternative take on what happened. I can totally see how Katie would have wanted and expected to be a stay at home mom because thats what everyone around her did and maybe Cullens addiction issues surfaced early in the marriage which put paid to her dreams.

[HelloSweetie]

Cullen isn’t the only one with addiction issues. He’s just the only one willing to own his faults.


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[lmmomSD]

Katie says she wants to be a SAHM, but except for playing princess tea party with Gaines, she doesn't enjoy her kids. She wanted to be home, and sent them off to extended daycare 5 days a week before the pandemic. They weren't just going to preschool. She had them there as late as they could stay. She doesn't like to cook, except her bizarre crock pot cream cheese recipes. She obviously doesn't like to run a household.
Why did she want to be home so badly?

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[HashtagBlessed]

Unless I'm mistaken Katie worked for a few years after college before doing her PHD. I wonder when they married was it the plan that Katie would eventually be a stay at home mom and Cullen was going to be the main breadwinner and go back to college? Maybe he didn't stick to his end of the deal and that's the reason Katie went back to school even though she had no desire to.

I'm not trying to defend Katies behaviour today because at this point both of them should be working second jobs regardless of hurt feelings but its just an alternative take on what happened. I can totally see how Katie would have wanted and expected to be a stay at home mom because thats what everyone around her did and maybe Cullens addiction issues surfaced early in the marriage which put paid to her dreams.

I believe she went right from undergrad to grad school. You can watch their "Draw my Life" video for the details. They met when Katie was 20 and Cullen was 21. They dated long-distance for 2 years, after which they got engaged, which means they likely got engaged right around the time Katie graduated with her bachelors. Following the wedding, Katie said that they moved into her parent's garage apartment, which was close to where she was attending grad school. If she did take a break between undergrad and grad school, it likely wasn't much more than a year. So she was likely either enrolled in grad school or applying when they were wedding planning. Doesn't sound to me like she started a grad program despite the fact that she had no desire to because Cullen didn't hold up his end of a bargain.

Completely random side note: Katie used to have the most annoying high-pitched baby voice that she put on for the vlogs. Her voice has completely changed since she stopped putting on a fake voice during filming.

[rosie_dalia]

Unless I'm mistaken Katie worked for a few years after college before doing her PHD. I wonder when they married was it the plan that Katie would eventually be a stay at home mom and Cullen was going to be the main breadwinner and go back to college? Maybe he didn't stick to his end of the deal and that's the reason Katie went back to school even though she had no desire to.

I'm not trying to defend Katies behaviour today because at this point both of them should be working second jobs regardless of hurt feelings but its just an alternative take on what happened. I can totally see how Katie would have wanted and expected to be a stay at home mom because thats what everyone around her did and maybe Cullens addiction issues surfaced early in the marriage which put paid to her dreams.

No, Katie went from undergrad at Bama, then went immediately to get her masters at UA-Birmingham (that's when they got married and lived at her parents' house), then to Florida State for her PhD. She might have "worked" an internship as part of her school program, but she never really worked real job. She's talked about receiving a stipend while in school, but that's related to school work/research/internship, but not a real "job."

[rosie_dalia]

I was just listening to Cullen's podcast. Sounds like they are serious about moving to the beach for at least a year...but only renting. He said they've already been there three weeks, but might go home next week. I wonder if they are going home because her parents or sister want to use the house???

Also, I'm curious what Brittany looked like before losing 100 pounds from getting lap-band surgery (in Tijuana at age 22 and for $7000). I wonder if selling drugs was how she paid for all the things she did before going to jail. Sucks that she has to have surgery again...but it sounds like it wasn't the smartest idea to get the lap-band in the first place. Surgery doesn't seem the best idea for a food addiction when you are only 22. Seems like Cullen's family members have lots of addiction issues.