Little People Big World special ‘Conquering Mount St. Helens’ airs March 19

Little People Big World fans, our favorite family is back in an inspiring one-hour special Little People, Big World: Conquering Mount St. Helens that premieres Tuesday, March 19, at 10/9CT on TLC. And new empty-nesters, you might want to keep a couple of tissues handy just in case.

When we rejoin the Roloffs, we learn that Amy is having a hard time adjusting to the quiet, now that twin sons Zachary and Jeremy and daughter Molly are all away at school, and youngest son Jacob is busy doing his own teenage thing.

When her trainer suggests that a performance goal might give Amy something physically challenging to focus on, she decides to take a stab at scaling Mount St. Helens, enlisting Zach as her gung-ho partner — and worrying the bejesus out of husband Matt.

“I think I will always have doubts in me,” Amy says in the special of why her motivations go beyond just filling time. “I think I will always think about growing up being the last one picked for a game, never being asked out on a date, trying way too hard to fit in. It’s just never enough. I’m never good enough. I’ve gotta get over that. It’s why I keep trying things that push me.”

For a month, she throws herself into a strenuous training program to ready herself for the two-day climb, scaling muddy slopes with Zach, and trudging around the farm with a weighty pack on her back.

Though Matt is concerned that Zach and Amy’s shared Achondroplasia dwarfism will make navigating the mountain’s boulder fields and ash-covered final stretch especially dangerous — if not downright impossible — he gives them his tentative blessing and embarks on a project of his own.

While his wife is away, Matt plans to honor her days as a preschool teacher by constructing a little red schoolhouse for the Wild West town in the spot vacated when they moved the chapel to the farm’s wedding venue.

With just a few days to get the job done, Matt throws himself into the project with his signature humor and enthusiasm, making sure the schoolhouse is authentic right down to its bell tower. But this is a Matt Roloff enterprise, so of course things are going to get a little goofy before the first bell rings.

Even without the schoolhouse surprise awaiting her return, Amy realizes she’s already a winner just by taking the first steps in the five-mile journey up the mountain with her son by her side.

“Climbing a mountain is like a metaphor for life,” she says. “You don’t know all of the challenges. You don’t know all of the stuff that’s going to come your way. You just do the best you can and have the endurance to keep going.”

Will Zach and Amy reach the St. Helens summit? Will Matt get the schoolhouse done before they return? Find out when Little People, Big World: Conquering Mount St. Helens premieres Tuesday, March 19, at 10/9CT on TLC.

Images/video: TLC

About Lori Acken 1195 Articles
Lori just hasn't been the same since "thirtysomething" and "Northern Exposure" went off the air.