TLC's Sister Wives follows Christine, Meri, Janelle, and Robyn and their shared husband,
Kody Brown. Christine is one of the most interesting stars of the show and there's plenty you need
to know about her that isn't shown on the reality series. Here's the truth about Christine
from Sister Wives.
When you learn that a couple is in a polygamous relationship, you may wonder how it happened.
While it may seem like an usual arrangement to most people, it wasn't for Christine. The
Sister Wives star actually grew up in a polygamist family, so entering into a plural marriage
herself was a natural choice for her. That's not to say she didn't have concerns, though.
In an interview with ABC News, Christine explained,
"I grew up in a polygamist family and I felt fear."
Christine went on to say that the Browns just wanted better for their own children.
She said of her own childhood,
"We were taught that we couldn't talk about our lifestyle ... and we were cautious of
the police."
She continued, saying,
"We haven't raised our kids that way. We haven't wanted our children to feel fear like that."
Even though more and more people are accepting of the Brown family and their polygamist lifestyle,
that doesn't mean the law accepts it. Because polygamy is illegal in the majority of states,
Kody Brown is only legally married to one of his wives, Robyn. He was once married to
Meri but divorced her to adopt Robyn's children. Kody is "spiritually" married to his other
wives, Janelle, Christine, and Meri. Still, this union could get them in trouble.
As legal expert Monica Lindstrom told Radar Online,
"Under Arizona's Constitution, living with one wife and a spiritual wife, or two or three,
[...] could meet the definition of 'polygamous cohabitation,' which is prohibited."
Even though the Browns' idea of a spiritual marriage may mean Kody isn't legally tied
to them, Christine's spiritual marriage to Kody could still land her in some hot water.
In a polygamist family, you can't help but keep track of the wives in order of who came
first, second, and so on. And interestingly enough, those numbers and the order in which
each wife got married are actually pretty important, at least to Christine Brown. Christine
is Kody's third wife, which is exactly how she wanted it.
"And I always wanted to be a third wife. I figured that it would be the one that was
the easiest."
Christine told Anderson Cooper on his show that she always wanted to be the third wife,
and she said on The Oprah Winfrey Show that she always knew she didn't want a man as much
as a family.
She said,
"I never wanted to just be married to a man. I honestly wanted sister wives more than a
husband. I wanted the whole family. I didn't just want Kody."
Sister Wives stars Christine and Kody Brown obviously don't have a conventional love story,
as Kody already had two wives — Meri and Janelle — when he met Christine. However,
the two did get to working on their own family pretty quickly after they got married. Christine
and Kody have a total of six children together, which is a third of the total Brown family
kids.
According to TLC, Kody proposed to Christine on their first date over Valentine's Day weekend
1994. Just one month later, they tied the knot and soon began welcoming kids into their
family — Aspyn, Mykelti, Paedon, Gwendlyn, Ysabel, and Truely.
The youngest, Truely, was actually born during Season 1 of Sister Wives in 2010, whereas
the oldest, Aspyn, was born in 1995, meaning Christine was having children for the majority
of her and Kody's marriage.
When you've been on a reality television show for as long as Christine Brown has, it makes
sense that people would get used to seeing you look a certain way. If Christine were
to cut her hair super short or start wearing a full face of makeup constantly, fans would
notice, as that's different than how she usually appears. So, when Christine's weight loss
transformation made its rounds on social media, fans simply had to know what she was doing.
According to In Touch Weekly, Christine addressed her fans on Instagram, writing,
"I eat for my blood type and work out."
When a fan asked where she learned about eating for her blood type, Christine replied,
"Just online. I've read about it for years and I just did it, [...] and I love it!"
Christine and Kody Brown may be related by more than just their spiritual marriage. As
Radar Online reported, the couple shares a great-great-grandparent, which makes them
fourth cousins. Although this is a distant relationship, they are still indeed blood
relatives. However, this isn't entirely shocking for the area in which they grew up.
The church they once belonged to, Apostolic United Brethren, is small and close-knit,
and most of the members share the same ancestors.
Although Christine and Kody's other wives do not share any of the same DNA, they, of
course, view each other in a sisterly way.
Meri said,
"It's definitely a very bonding experience. We're sisters in that sense, and we're very
close."
Though all of the wives on Sister Wives have the freedom to go out and do their own thing,
Christine Brown has pretty much always been the stay-at-home mom of the group.
In an interview with the Las Vegas Sun, Janelle Brown explained that she enjoyed working.
She said,
"I feel very liberated. I have a career, my independence and freedom. I've never had to
stay at home with sick kids or worry too much about what's for dinner."
However, Kody's third wife Christine was revealed by the publication to be a homemaker — and
she wouldn't really want it any other way. With 18 kids total, it can't hurt that Christine
enjoys being a stay-at-home mom, right?
Although the women have chosen their own roles, they, of course, are still all wives to one
husband. And they all hope to see that kind of relationship normalized one day, especially
Christine.
She said,
"My grandfather was put in prison because of his beliefs and all of his wives were separated.
My father was 12 years old when this happened, and his family never got back together, even
when my father got out. It was tragic. That truth has to end."
Christine Brown may live in a modern world and even star on a reality television show,
but that doesn't mean she isn't without her traditional values. In fact, they're something
she has taken quite a lot of pride in and she has no shame about her beliefs.
In an interview with the Las Vegas Sun, Christine revealed,
"I feel our family is very patriarchal, but it's exactly what I wanted. I just want to
be a princess in life."
"Because eventually I'm gonna lead. And many times I'm gonna lead against their desires,
my wives' desires."
Her husband's other wives, however, view things differently.
Janelle said,
"Patriarchy has a very negative connotation for me. It's true that Kody is the glue that
holds us together, but I definitely have my voice."
Considering Christine was raised in a polygamous family, she might have stronger ties to a
more patriarchal family model. Whatever the reason, though, Christine is old-fashioned
and yet progressive at the same time.
Christine Brown may have spent the majority of her married life as a stay-at-home mom
and one of four sister wives, but she also began working for a notorious multilevel marketing
company. Both Christine and Meri sell products by LuLuRoe, a company which has come under
fire for many reasons, as Deadline reported.
She even has a link to her private Facebook group, "Christine Brown sells LuLaRoe," on
her Instagram page, making it clear that she's dedicated to her side hustle.
Additionally, Christine posts numerous Instagram photos of herself modeling LuLaRoe clothing,
using hashtags for the brand as well. Christine also came under fire for posting a controversial
photo of herself to advertise LuLaRoe amid nationwide protests in 2020.
In a large family like the Browns, it would be understandable for some of the kids to
fly under the radar from time to time. But as Sister Wives fans know, that really doesn't
happen. Kody and all four of his wives are very supportive and protective of all of their
kids, and Christine has felt the need to step in when she thinks one of her children is
making a mistake.
As People magazine reported back in 2016, Christine was especially protective when her
daughter, Mykelti, got engaged to someone when she was just 19 years old.
"I think it's just soon. What would you prefer? December."
She said about her daughter's fiancé,
"I don't even know Tony. Mykelti's just so young [...] I didn't imagine growing up so
fast, because marriage is a huge, grownup step. I'm like, 'You're a baby.'"
Of course, Mykelti ended up tying the knot, and her family — including Christine — was
there to support her, but that didn't mean Christine wasn't protective at first.
The stars of Sister Wives obviously lead interesting lives, and people can't help but be fascinated
by their belief system. But the family isn't all that different from other religious households,
aside from the fact that they're polygamous. According to In Touch Weekly, the Brown family
belongs to the Apostolic United Brethren, a fundamentalist group that splintered from
the Mormon church. And even though the family's faith might seem strange to some, Christine
has said that it is her guiding light.
In an interview with the Las Vegas Sun, Christine was asked what it takes to enter into a polygamist
marriage.
She said,
"It's very much a faith-based decision. You need a firm connection with God."
When asked what inspired her, Christine's answer was simple. She said,
"We're a very religious family, so Jesus. Jesus loved people. He is the most courageous
man I know."
One of the most common questions people have for the women in Kody Brown's life is whether
or not they get jealous of each other. And for Christine, that is actually a pretty big
concern. Christine revealed that she had had a, quote, "hard time with Robyn."
She continued, saying,
"I was very jealous of her, jealous of her relationship with Kody. And It's very hard
when you're jealous of someone to see them as a person, and not as the enemy."
While Christine has had to work through her jealousy, it's an ongoing battle.
In a 2015 episode of Sister Wives, Christine and Kody ended up having a session with a
therapist during their 21st anniversary trip, during which Christine's jealousy came up
again.
She said, quote, "I reached a point where almost every day is hard," adding that she
had to continually deal with her jealousy and anger issues within the plural marriage.
"Love me still when I have a voice, when I speak my mind. Allow me to speak my mind,
and just love me anyway."
As is the case with most people on reality shows, the cast of Sister Wives has sometimes
felt that they were edited to look more upset, dramatic, or just downright angrier than they
really were. At least, that's what Christine Brown has hinted at. In January 2020, while
live-tweeting a new episode of Sister Wives, Christine let her fans and followers in on
a little secret: She isn't really all that sensational in real life.
She tweeted,
"My bratty reaction just makes me cringe. I said very very logical things but [...] I'm
not bad, just edited that way."
It's understandable that Christine would feel defensive over her actions, especially in
the case of that particular episode, when the family was arguing about living together
again.
"I just don't want to, okay? I just don't want to."
Whether or not Christine really was edited to look bad or bratty is still up for debate,
but in her mind, that's not quite reality.
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