I was happy last week to see that there had been some reconciliation between the Palins and Mr. Johnston. This however…
NEW YORK — Bristol Palin and Levi Johnston say they’re engaged – and they haven’t told her parents yet.
Palin, the daughter of 2008 vice-presidential candidate and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, is featured on the cover of Us Weekly with Johnston, holding their son, 18-month-old Tripp.
Bristol Palin tells the magazine that she finds the idea of telling her mother “intimidating and scary.” Us Weekly editor Caroline Schaefer said on NBC’S “Today” show Tuesday that Palin approached the magazine looking for a platform to explain why she got engaged.
Palin and Johnston say they reconnected while working out a custody plan and became engaged two weeks ago. Schaefer says they hope to get married within six weeks in a small ceremony in Alaska.
Wow. And this is how you tell Mom?!?
It would seem that Bristol and Levi still have a fair amount of growing up to do. I would hope that they would extend the engagement to make sure we don’t have a repeat of last time.
What do you think?
July 14, 2010 at 1:17 pm
Oh. My. Gosh.
July 14, 2010 at 1:21 pm
I think that someone should point them toward Retrouvaille. My husband and I had some growing up to do and Retrouvaille helped us jump over the gap from selfish young adults to true marriage partners.
July 14, 2010 at 1:37 pm
I could imagine that there'd be people who wouldn't vote to put Palin up for Prez just to avoid Levi Johnston waving at us from the stage at the Republican National Convention.
July 14, 2010 at 2:00 pm
Weird, but a reconciliation with Bristol did cross my mind as I read Johnston's apology and retraction last week.
I completely agree, these two need to grow up a bit more if this is how they choose to go about their personal lives. I personally hope and pray for the best for them, especially as they have a child's life to consider.
July 14, 2010 at 2:11 pm
Five gets you ten we'll see a divorce within two years (on the outside). That'll be followed by every sort of "tell all" story in every possible venue. Levi Johnston isn't stupid, he's insuring the continuation of his fifteen minutes of fame.
IMO he's an opportunist, no amount of growing up will cure that. Bristol Palin is the one needing to mature. She'll be japslapped by reality before the honeymoon is over.
What makes it doubly sad is it will all happen in full view of the public.
July 14, 2010 at 2:17 pm
My gosh, Sarah Palin is a likeable and bright lady, but when our infantile media insists on looking into every hangnail and piece of dandruff in the Palin household, it gets very tiresome, very quickly. This is of absolutely no consequence to anyone outside of their family. Time for the media to really get serious and focus on vital national issues like Lindsay Lohan and Lebron James.
July 14, 2010 at 2:37 pm
Clearly Levi is under the imperius curse and has been brainwashed by Sarah Palin into marrying her daughter and to keep denying that Trig is in fact Bristol's kid. At least that's what Andrew Sullivan told me, and that guy's never wrong.
July 14, 2010 at 3:07 pm
I think you all are missing something. The story isn't really about Bristol and Levi, it's about how intimidating and scary Sarah is, so much so that her own daughter is incapable of sharing what should be a moment of joy with her. The evil Sarah-cuda will bite their heads off!
July 14, 2010 at 3:13 pm
Extending an engagement is a poor idea. It's basically saying no, I don't want to commit. My wife and I had a 2-1/2 year engagement and it got really wearing.
Engagement is a commitment to a commitment.
God bless Trig and grant him a happy life with his biological parents married happily. (God can pull those sorts of things off…)
July 14, 2010 at 3:27 pm
"Levi Johnston isn't stupid, he's insuring the continuation of his fifteen minutes of fame."
If this is how he wants to be famous, his success is not so much a sign of intelligence, as it is positive reinforcement of bad behavior, on the part of anyone who will shell out a quick buck for it.
I grew up around young small-town bucks like Levi. They're not exactly inclined toward analytical thinking, let alone too far into the future. I just hope he and Bristol can have a normal one, if only for the sake of the child.
July 14, 2010 at 4:54 pm
Let's not forget that Bristol herself has been everywhere, from that dumb PSA to "Secret Life of the American Teenager," to magazines. I forget which one, but she was wearing an oil-spill formal dress in one for some article. Very tacky.
She's pretty obviously the Hollywood child of the family. Levi and her were kind of made for each other.
July 14, 2010 at 5:10 pm
"Let's not forget that Bristol herself has been everywhere … Levi and her were kind of made for each other."
… and the only difference between them, and millions of small-town teen-aged couples in America, is her mom. Given half a chance (and it doesn't always require fame or fortune), they'd all behave like this.
July 14, 2010 at 5:30 pm
OMG. Is she crazy???
July 14, 2010 at 5:50 pm
If they're getting married for the sake of the kids, I'm not sure a longer engagement is better– the article seems to suggest that they realized their son needs both parents around. They're right.
BUT–if it was my daughter announcing her engagement in a MAGAZINE before she told me? I would throttle her. And then I would try to help without being a crutch. But only AFTER the throttling….
July 14, 2010 at 7:09 pm
This is actually a PR Stunt. Bristol is now a celebrity. And Levi figured out how to jump on this particular gravy train. Remember, iin the world of pop culture the worst PR is no PR. It should be a good ride while it lasts.
July 14, 2010 at 7:29 pm
so how soon until the reality show starts?
July 14, 2010 at 7:33 pm
Would it be too cynical to suggest that the magazine paid the young couple well for any information? Cash that might help finance their wedding? Diapers for the child? Egotistical adolescents loving the limelight?
The thought comes to mind that, what was once a rush to get one's comments published in a newspaper is now ho-hum because we can post stuff on the web and get instant gratification – "Look at me, I'm published!"
15 minutes of fame – we're all prone to that drug.
July 14, 2010 at 10:23 pm
The really annoying thing about it is that now I have to sit here and pray that it works out for them. Annoying because I'd rather Levi just go away. (Oh well. Pray I will.)
I actually think he came back b/c his Mother In Law is now flush with cash and because, well, his fiance is pretty. I don't know how he feels about the baby and I'd like to think he's growing up but.. whew. Agree with Deirdre Murphy about the throttling.
Can you imagine doing something like that? "Honey I was afraid to tell you about crashing the car, so I just posted a video of it on YouTube and put it on my Facebook page. Oh and you can catch my news about the whole job/firing thing on Twitter."
The cynic in me wonders if Levi is really thinking his greatest coup will come by destroying Sarah's chance of winning. Impossible for her now. All he has to do is wait, make up some crapola, and blast it out in October, right?
Maybe he just wanted to be able to hit that Moon Bounce at Trig's 1st birthday.
July 14, 2010 at 11:27 pm
"The cynic in me wonders if Levi is really thinking his greatest coup will come by destroying Sarah's chance of winning."
Levi has his hands full looking out for himself, let alone would he possess the astuteness to calculate any moves at the expense of his future mother-in-law's aspirations. It doesn't take much in the way of smarts to know when people lose interest in you. The minute the last photo session was over, Stud Muffin knew he was history.
Sarah Palin took a considerable risk (if an unavoidable one) by resigning as governor. Those who support her will not be dissuaded by the actions of a punk-ass kid who just happened to marry into the family. Those who would seek her downfall won't take much notice either. The empty suits on TV, and the empty heads who put out the tabloids, will continue to show fleeting interest in Levi's antics, before they move on to someone else.
July 15, 2010 at 5:40 am
I read that they will remain celibate and go through marriage counseling before tying the knot, so hopefully Bristol was right that Levi is a changed man. Maybe we should give them the benefit of the doubt that they won't mess up this time.