‘Sister Wives’: Christine Brown Says She’s Been Living in a ‘Monogamist’s World’ For Too Long in Sneak Peek

Over the course of 10 years on TLC’s Sister Wives, Kody Brown and his four wives – Meri, Janelle, Christine, and Robyn Brown – have made two major moves. First they moved from Lehi, Utah, to Las Vegas, Nevada, before settling in Flagstaff, Arizona.

In Utah, the Brown family was active in their fundamentalist Mormon sect, the Apostolic United Brethren (AUB). After their moves to Nevada and Arizona, they lost touch with many of the polygamist families they once knew.

In a new sneak peek for the Feb. 21 episode of Sister Wives, the Browns try to remedy that loss with a road trip to Utah to visit the Darger family. Joe Darger and his three wives (Vicki, Valerie, and Alina Darger) are also fundamentalist Mormons. They have made previous appearances on TLC, both on Sister Wives and on their own special, My Three Wives.

Janelle marvels at the fact that the Darger family lives under one roof

Fans of Sister Wives know that the idea of living in one home as a family unit is a sore spot for the Browns.

Kody desperately wanted to build one large home for his four wives and all of his children on Coyote Pass, the Browns’ property in Arizona. Kody’s second wife, Janelle, was strongly in favor of the idea. Meri and Robyn were open to but unsure about the notion, while Kody’s third wife, Christine, adamantly refused to consider it.

In a new Sister Wives sneak peek on TLC’s official Instagram account, the Browns’ concerns about their family divisions as a result of living separately come to the forefront once again during their trip to visit the Dargers. Janelle tells Lifetime producers that she’s impressed by the Darger family’s ability to work through their issues and achieve unity.

“The Dargers live under one roof,” Kody’s second wife says, adding that they even share a single kitchen. “They just have figured out how to make it work. A lot of families can. A lot of people do.”

Kody complains about his lack of privacy in plural marriage

The conversation between the Dargers and the Browns shifts to a discussion of the families’ dream homes.

Both Joe and Kody admit that they wouldn’t mind having their own bedrooms. After all, they often have their possessions scattered between their wives’ rooms, and they don’t have a particular place to call their own and decompress by themselves.

“Plural men never get alone time,” Christine tells Lifetime producers (referring to polygamy with the religious term of “plural marriage”). “I think plural husbands get jealous of the time plural wives have to themselves.”

Joe’s wives are open to the idea of allowing him a space to himself. But Kody says his wives would “never allow” such a thing.

Kody’s fourth wife, Robyn, thinks her husband is being a bit dramatic about needing his space.

“‘I’m tired of dealing with wives and their closets, blah blah blah,’” the Sister Wives star laughs, imitating Kody. “You’ll survive. If I can survive sharing you, and dealing with the jealousy and the drama and all the stuff that has to do with plural marriage, you’ll be OK.”

The Browns feel like they live in a ‘monogamist’s world’

In the Sister Wives preview, Kody tells Joe that he gets a “homey feeling” around other polygamists that he misses in Arizona. There aren’t many fundamentalist Mormons in their new hometown, which makes it difficult to relate to other couples and families.

“I think one of our biggest problems is that we don’t have other polygamists to fellowship with,” the Sister Wives patriarch laments.

Kody’s first wife, Meri, agrees with that assessment. In Utah, the Browns were close with many other plural families. Now, she thinks they’ve been heavily influenced by “monogamist culture.”

“Our family, we’re separating and separating,” Meri tells Lifetime producers. “It’s almost like we’re interacting more with people who are not a plural family, so they don’t get it, so we’re starting to react more like an individual family.”

While the Browns used to “pull together and struggle together,” she explains, now they each deal with their problems on their own.

Christine chimes in, musing, “We could really benefit from being with other polygamists. We’ve lived in a monogamist’s world for so long, and it’s hard.”

Hinting at another upcoming Sister Wives season 15 storyline – Christine’s longing to back to Utah, against the wishes of the other Brown family members – she adds pointedly, “It’s almost like we should move back.”