It’s not easy being the kid of a Kardashian, what with all the drama and public discourse. But it’s sometimes easy to think that they’re immune to it. After all, practically every chapter of their parents’ lives (and oftentimes, theirs) has been chronicled in some media outlet or another. But when Kourtney Kardashian recently got engaged to musician Travis Barker—streamed, of course, over social media—her kids, who were not there, had some very real feelings.
Kourtney shares children Penelope, 9, Reign, 7, and Mason, 12, with ex Scott Disick. She and Barker have known one another for years but went public with their relationship in early 2021.
“Penelope took it hard. I think it is a big change for her,” said Kourtney in a new episode of Hulu’s The Kardashians, which premiered on Thursday, May 5. Apparently, she started to cry over the phone and hung up. And it seems that there are some contradictions in stories as to why Penelope did, in fact, take it hard.
According to Kourtney, “Even though she loves Travis, I think she doesn’t know what that means. Like is that taking me away? I think she just doesn’t know what it means.” But Kourtney’s ex, Disick, voiced: “They were upset. They didn’t understand why they were watching TikToks of his (Barker’s) kids there and they weren’t there. Hopefully, they are invited to the wedding.” He adds, “If I got engaged 50 minutes away I would have just said, ‘Someone just drive my kids here.’ And Penelope would have been ecstatic. We were acting as if the place was 10 hours away.”
Momager Kris Jenner told daughter Kim that the decision to exclude Kourtney’s children from the engagement (or “engagement scene,” since it was taped, edited and released) while including Barker’s kids had to do with age and effort. “There was just no way to get that whole thing dialed and then at the last minute, Kourtney told Travis that Penelope wasn’t feeling well,” Kris explained. “His kids are going to come because they are older. And I am not sure if any of us know how they are exactly going to react. I think it is her decision to break it to her kids the way she wants.”
Not so fast, Kris. Kourtney said, later in the episode, “I do wish that my kids were here. I think it would have made them feel more included in the decision and part of the surprise… I know that my mom made that decision and it probably wasn’t her best.” Mmmhmmm. It appears that this engagement is already being churned through the family drama cycle.
Kourtney’s other children, while not visibly upset about the engagement, reacted… neutrally? Reign, 7, said “not exciting” when told about his mom’s engagement, and her oldest, Mason, didn’t pick up when they called him with the news.
As for Barker’s kids, son Landon, 18, and daughter, Alabama, 16, who he shares with ex-wife Shanna Moakler, the news seems to have been received a bit more positively. His son even made a speech at the couple’s engagement dinner, saying “I have never seen my dad this happy before. To keep it short and sweet, I am really happy for him and I know it is going to last really long and be an amazing part of our lives and our journey.”
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