Marie Osmond

I acknowledge in advance that this post will likely erupt into a flames war. Flame suit is on.

I don't understand Marie Osmond. The mother of 8 children, I wonder how much time she actually spends with her children? I understand that she's a singer, a dancer, she designs dolls, and has a new line of quilting fabric out this year. In addition, she has a line of sewing machines and embroidery sewing machines. Plus her various charitable works, and I've probably only scratched the surface. Is she trying to keep up with her brothers? Out do them?

Just the practices alone for the Dancing With the Stars has to be time consuming and grueling. Parenting is time consuming enough; when does she sleep? It was recently revealed on Larry King Live that her 16 year old son is in rehab. Her daughters were in the news in the not too distant past for their bawdy Myspace pages. Admitting to "whoring" and so on.

While Marie entertains the world and busies herself with so many distractions, who is mothering her kids? Who is teaching them that it isn't safe to post about their sexual lives on the Internet? Who is there supervising, knowing who their friends are, knowing where they are, talking with them, teaching them?

How can she continue to 'dance with the stars' while her son is in rehab? I suppose it would be politicaly incorrect to comment "Nero fiddled while Rome burned"?

Marie isn't the only one following her bliss, I realize. But many women and girls look up to her. Once one decides to bring children into this world, one should make them a priority.

Yes, I know that kids without working parents can have problems, too. But I would bet anything that parents who are there for their kids, working or not, will have fewer and less severe problems. I seriously doubt that Marie needs the income from her various endeavors...but I do not doubt that her kids need her. Once they're grown - and it happens too fast - she will have the rest of her life to find her bliss.