Amber Portwood has been sharing her story with Teen Mom viewers for more than a decade and now she’s preparing to retell some of those tales to her daughter.
The mom of two told E! News her 12-year-old daughter Leah, whom she shares with ex Gary Shirley, has begun asking “what happened back in the day”
As ‘Teen Mom’ fans know, “back in the day,” Amber spent time in prison, struggled with drug addiction and got physically violent with Gary, just to name a few things in her checkered past.
Amber told E! News that she believes Leah has every right to ask about her past, but she wants to answer carefully.
“She’s definitely coming at me,” Amber said. “She definitely wants to know, ‘What the hell happened Mom? Why this? Why that?’ I say, ‘And you have every right and I’m going to give you your space. You let me know baby girl.’
“We still talk and snap [on Snap Chat] and we still say, ‘I love you.’ I still see her, but she’s getting older and she wants to know why and what happened back in the day and she wants to know certain things.”
Though Amber didn’t go into detail about specific events that have sparked Leah’s curiosity, it’s assumed Amber’s violent behavior towards Gary as well as her arrests – yes, plural – and run-ins with the law are among them, including the 17 months Amber spent behind bars for various drug and parole violation charges.
Most recently, the ‘Teen Mom OG’ star was arrested in July 2019 for domestic battery again then-boyfriend Andrew Glennon, the father of her 2-year-old son, James.
In addition to the difficult conversations she faces with Leah, Amber admits it’s hurtful to see the connection her daughter has with her dad and stepmom Kristina, whom she spends the majority of her time with.
“It’s hard because it’s hurtful to me when she feels possibly like she has more of a connection with somebody else than me because I’m not around as much as other people,” she said. “That sucks. I’m an hour [away]. It’s hurtful, it really is. But I’m happy to watch my daughter become this strong queen.”
(Photos: MTV; Instagram)
28 Responses
On this week’s show Amber says “she can’t always make her weekly visits because she lives an hour away”. Meanwhile Gary makes his way to her house multiple times / week. I live 1.5 hours away from my mom but I get there weekly and that is after working 50 hours/week. Suck it up Amber, You’re not a mother. You’re lazy AF.
“We still talk and snap [on Snap Chat] and we still say, ‘I love you.’”
That is the single saddest thing I’ve ever read on here
Amber is NO momma
She is an egg donor
Kristina is momma.
For bless Gary and Kristina. Leah seems like a really sweet little girl
If she truly loved Leah she would be happy that she grew up in a stable environment and that Kristina treats her like her own. Gary and Kristina are constantly trying to help her and keep her involved in Leah’s life with no thanks from her. She is entitled as hell. I cannot begin to imagine what would have happened to Leah if she hadn’t lost custody…
Also, I’m sorry but I would not be choosing to live an hour away from my child. Live somewhere closer and she wouldn’t have to rely on other people so much.
Amber says of her 12-year-old daughter, Leah, “I still see her” ?!? Makes her sound like a former coworker, or something! Leah is her CHILD, and 12 is still such a baby— they still need their mom so much, every day. Thank God for Kristina and Gary! Gary needs to keep Amber AWAY from Leah. It’s very destructive for kids when they see that a parent has “gotten away” with bad behavior. (Amber still has a “job” and a lot of money. She didn’t go back to jail for what she did to Andrew and James.)
Back in the day? As in last weekend when you put her dad and mom (Kristina) on blast talking about money and that Gary cheats on his wife? Or as in last year when she chased Andrew with a machete while he held her baby brother? Ok Ambien tell us another one. Dummy.
That’s a fucking laugh. Leah isn’t asking Amber anything because she never talks to her.
You think it’s awkward at 12, when she’s just starting to ask questions? Well, hold on to your hat, because you haven’t seen anything yet. Someday she’ll be full-grown. She’ll have her own experiences with relationships, and probably with parenting. At some point she’s going to come to (hopefully) an honest understanding of who you are as a fellow adult.
She ats offended that Leh might be a bit more attached to “other people”..like the people who have been there from her since Day One, who have loved her and cared for her while..from the time Gary and Amber were living in that apartment and he’d come home from work to find Amber on the couch or bed and Leah in her crib in dirty diapers..and then Kristina, who was the one there for her when she woke up with nightmares, s who held her hair back when she was vomiting, woke her up each morning and tucked her in each night, who loved and cared for her and did all the dirty work of parenting? SO her daughter just MIGHT be a bit more “attached” to Gary and Kristina?
JFC. And you know, it will never dawn on her that it’s the same thing with James…..and will be ore so if Andrew marries someone who will be the other to James that Amber NEVER was..
I’m getting the sense that when she says Leah is more connected and attached with Gary and Kristina, that what she really means is that Leah is “taking their side” by asking why the heck her mom beat up her dad and treated him like crap and continues to rant about him and Kristina on social media. Amber is the type of Borderline Personality Disorder person who absolutely cannot understand anyone loving or liking or siding with someone else over her, to the point where even holding her accountable for her criminally violent behavior by asking any sort of questions about it is considered some huge “betrayal.” Amber thinks she deserves to be the number one best loved person in anyone’s life, her daughter, because Amber probably considers Leah to be some kind of extension of herself. BPD parents have a hard time differentiating between themselves and other people: like they don’t see their children as separate individuals who will have their own thoughts and views. They see their kids as mini versions of themselves who HAVE TO love them and like them best at all times because they assume their kids, as little extensions of themselves, literally know and understand everything that mom is thinking and feeling and doing all the time. So when their kids question them about stuff they feel betrayed because as a mini-me the child should just know/feel and implicitly understand why Mom did something.
Oh shit. You mean your 12 year old daughter wants some accountability? Taking bets on how long it’ll be till Waaamber is ranting against Leah.
Leah is a sweet, kind, well-spoken and intelligent little girl, and a testament to Kristina and Gary. Kristina has been far more of a mother to Leah, and provided stability that was sorely lacking when Amber was Leah’s primary caregiver. So of course Leah has the deeper connection with the woman who actually raised her, rather than choosing drugs, jail, men, and laziness over her! Of course Leah feels a bond with the woman who cares for her, and loves her, rather than the woman who can’t even be bothered to leave the couch to visit her kids because “the weather is bad.”
Leah is almost 13, and if Amber actually gave a damn about the impact that the “old days” may have on her children she wouldn’t still be subjecting them to it over and over again. She would have put a stop to things over a decade, rather than continue to act like a petulant bully, humiliating Leah and James in the process.
My God, why have they left it this long to go through everything. Leah has definitely gone seen it all on TV, but Amber should have been talking to her about this from a young age-not leaving her to ask questions now and ‘giving her space’ which is obviously code for her not being arsed to go and see her. It’s also not another burden for Gary and Kristina, it’s Amber’s, she made the choices so she needs to explain them. I also agree, Their is a high probability of Jace having a very bumpy adulthood, due to his lack of stability, and the lack of stable adults.
Yeah I do not understand the “giving her space” idea. It sounds like Leah isn’t so angry at Amber that she refuses to talk to her on the phone or say “I love you,” so why does Amber think she needs to leave her alone and not see her? And how long is this going to last? It doesn’t sound like Amber actually answered her questions at all. It almost sounds like because Leah is daring to even ask her to clarify what happened in the past that she’s assuming Leah is super mad at her and trying to “hurt her” by asking questions, so she’s not even going to answer the questions because she thinks Leah is only asking to be mean to her or something? And if Leah is trying to “be mean” to her by asking questions then Leah must be mad at her? So rather than answer questions and talk to her daughter, she’s just going to stop seeing her until Leah gets over it enough to stop asking? This just sounds like Amber doesn’t want to be “trapped” in the same house with her daughter when Leah is asking questions so she’s just going to stop seeing her in person and only talk on the phone where she can hang up when things get awkward.
And also, you can’t use the same “giving space” tactic that you would use with your adult boyfriend with your 12 year old child. They don’t understand “I’m giving you space so you can process your feelings and decide what you want to do.” Because their children. Children need their parents to guide them and help them process their feelings and they need their parents to help them figure out what to do and how to resolve problems and new and tricky situations. A 12 year old is just going to feel like their mom is mad at them and is abandoning them when they need them most. Every time Amber opens her mouth about anything to do with her children, she proves that she knows nothing about raising children and therefore has never been an involved parent. The most “space” that you give a 12 year old is maybe an hour or two when they’re really mad and can’t stop yelling and need to go hang out by themselves just until they’re calm enough to talk. But then you have to go back in and resolve the issue with them. You can’t just leave them to deal with it and get over it on their own because kids need help processing what they’re feeling and why and what they should do about it to make it better.
Leah is such a beautiful, smart, and articulate girl. It’s at estimate to Gary and Kristina because without that stability and influence things would have been very different for her. God knows with all the guys she brings around Leah after only knowing them a day or two what may have happened to her. She knows who has raised her and kept her safe, fed, loved and attended too. She knows her mom is only there when she needs a post for social media or mtv paycheck. The time has come to face your demons. Sorry not at all sorry. Ya did it to yourself amber. No complaining now.
A testimate* my god autocorrect.
It’s testament 🙂 That’s why autocorrect got you.
But, yes agree with everything you said.
All you gotta do is google it BooBoo.
Sucks to be Amber
stay lit
I think I’m the only other male who posts here but I’ve been watching this show for a decade. Stay Lit, amigo
Back in the day? Lol Amber is still acting out. And of course Leah has more of a connection with “other people.” Amber acts like she has no control over the fact that she lives far away from Leah. And, even if she lived closer, she still wouldn’t be making an effort.
Sadly Amber still has some fans who eat up everything she says. She TRULY believes she is a good mother and that she is doing everything in her power to be there for Leah. While the only one really being there for her is Kristina. I assume a similar thing will be happening to James because one day Andrew will find another partner who will be more of a mother to that precious little boy than Ambien ever was.
Go away Amber and get your tubes tied!
The dangers of these Teen Mom shows are now being displayed. The kids are becoming teenagers and are going to start watching all the bullshit they went through. Sadly, I suspect that Jace will end up in prison. Barbara with her constant yelling and screaming did not provide Jace with a stable environment.
I truly dislike Amber more and more with each post. Is there nothing that can stay private, I don’t for the life of me understand why she feels the need to put this on the internet. First off, I would be embarrassed if my 12 year old had to ask me these questions, second, you sound like an asshole when you say it’s hurtful to see the bond she has with Gary and Kristina. They are her parents, you my friend are a sometimes playdate/do something for yourself like get your nails done. The chickens have finally come home to roost for Ambien. There is no way, that at 12 years old Leah has not seen every second of footage from when she was a baby. I truly think that when Leah asked “what happened back in the day”, it wasn’t an actual question, but more of an accusation, as in “why did you behave that way/why did you treat my dad that way.” Leah is a smart girl and I have no doubt that she is completely embarrassed by who her mother is. Rightfully so.