'Kate Plus 8' star Kate Gosselin: Jon's decisions remain his decisions

Kate Gosselin claims she has no qualms with ex-husband Jon Gosselin's decision to date, however she's apparently the one who has to explain it to their eight children.


"Jon's decisions remain his decisions and it's just for me to help the kids deal with it. It's hard. They come home and I have to discuss things with them," said Kate during a Friday appearance on NBC's Today.

"They ask me questions where his girlfriends are concerned. It's just a situation that I have to deal with with them."

Jon's current girlfriend -- Ellen Ross, whom he recently introduced to his eight kids -- isn't the only one he's had since he and Kate separated last May, however Kate has yet to re-enter the dating scene.

"I don't feel like it's time. I feel like my kids need so much of me that I need to be there with them," she said on Today.


"Personally, I don't feel ready move forward. At some point I'm sure that I will. The kids even talk about it, they bring it up. They wonder am I going to get married again and all of those things. I'm open and I talk to them about it."

Today co-host Meredith Vieira subsequently asked Kate if she's "jaded" about marriage since her relationship with Jon ended when their divorce was finalized in December.

"I think whenever I meet a young girl now, I think my challenge to them is be really sure. I got married really young and I just want to be that person in their ear saying, 'Be really, really, really sure,'" explained Kate.

"And what's the rush to get married young? That's the advice that I would give to my daughters. I'm already telling them, 'Thirty and beyond!'"

"You wish you had made that choice in retrospect?" asked Vieira.


"I do," replied Kate.

The former Jon & Kate Plus 8 stars' 11th wedding anniversary would have been June 12, and Vieira asked Kate if that will be a "hard day" for her.

"Not really," responded Kate.

"To me I feel like it's just another day in this year of positivity and moving forward. I'm not going to sit and spend a whole lot of time thinking of what could have been, what would be. I'm going to plunge ahead, as is customary for me, just move ahead and move on and think good thoughts."

While Kate described 2009 as a year that she would "prefer to erase if I could," she told Vieira her life is in "shambles no more."


"There's been so much change, so much unexpected things that came our way. There's been so much good," she said.

"I think the kids and I have really had a chance by this point to step back and really learn about ourselves being together as a unit. We're getting there."

One of the main reasons Kate said she's in a good place is because Jon is no longer seeking primary physical custody of their eight kids.

"At this point, Jon has rescinded on that. He's dropped the custody battle," said Kate. "At the very moment, things are peaceful. He's amicable at this moment. I never know when that's going to change -- it changes often."

"So you always in the back of your mind worry about that?" asked Vieira.


"I do. I worry every day where we're going to be," replied Kate.

"But at this very moment the kids are spending time with him at his apartment and I feel like things are moving along the way they should in more of a normal -- if you can call them that -- divorce situation. Generally speaking, things are good at this moment."

Another reason things are currently going well for Kate is because Kate Plus 8, a series of specials that will follow her family life without Jon, premieres Sunday at 9PM ET/PT on TLC.

Kate reiterated previous comments that her kids were happy to have the production crew back in their lives.

"I was so glad to open the door and have our crew come in the door. You'll see it in the special," Kate told Vieira.


"The kids, I didn't tell them who was coming and I opened the door and they screamed and shouted and attacked them. That to them is very healthy, normal. They were thrilled to get back working and go to Florida and they can't wait to see what we have coming this summer."

In addition, Kate said there's "nothing negative" about having her family life with the kids filmed.

"I love our crew. The cameras are on, and I love them. The cameras are off, and they're helping me around the house. My crew is an all-male crew and they know I have a list for them when they come," she said.

"They can't help me enough, and for that, they are family. They are absolute family. Some of our production assistants come and babysit my kids sometimes even. It's family. It was putting back something that was positive from 2009 back into 2010."






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