Amy Roloff isn’t forcing feelings when it comes to ex-husband Matt and his girlfriend Caryn Chandler.
During Tuesday’s all-new episode of Little People, Big World, the Roloffs’ kids tried to come to terms with splitting Christmas between their divorced parents — a different game after the birth of Jeremy and Zach’s first kids.
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The two TLC stars welcomed daughter Ember and son Jackson, respectively, with their wives Audrey and Tori in 2017, making December a very special time for all the families involved.
And while they decided to spend the big day separately, they considered hosting a joint family Christmas party. That didn’t mean there weren’t still tense feelings when discussing scheduling the holidays.
“I do not have to be best friends with Matt and Caryn,” Amy told the cameras. “In fact, I don’t even have to be friends with them, but I try to be respectful for the sake of my kids.”
Matt and Chandler felt similarly tentative about getting everyone together for the party, although Matt seemed a little more open about building a friendship with his ex in the future, at least to the cameras.
“I’m a little nervous about the party, I’m not gonna lie,” Chandler said in a confessional.
Matt added, “Obviously a lot of divorces, there’s all this tension and stuff and then over time exes become friends, but if Amy were to say, ‘Hey, I don’t want you and your girlfriend here at the farm,” then we would have to change things.”
In the end, the two decided to keep things separate for the holidays, with Matt saying that with his ex, “there’s still something there that brings tension to the room.”
Amy did take a different big step, however, by deciding to invite boyfriend Chris Marek to the holiday celebrations. It was their first time celebrating Christmas together, which she hoped wouldn’t make anything awkward.
“I’m sure it’s still hard for the kids to see someone new in their mom’s life,” she said. “So I most definitely hope that they all feel comfortable having him there. …Chris has made me feel that I am still a wonderful person to love to get to know and be with. So it means a lot to me.”
Marek didn’t take the invite for granted. “I was honored and privileged to be invited to the Christmas party with the kids,” he said. “It’s a big moment for me.”
We hope the couple can eventually work things out!
Little People, Big World airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on TLC.
Photo credit: Instagram/Amy Roloff
