Everything Virgin River Can Teach Us About Parenting

TV Netflix It’s not just smooching and sultry side glances! by Jen McGuire Updated: Feb. 20, 2024 Originally Published: July 20, 2022

Virgin River on Netflix might be predominantly a romantic series, following the complicated love story of bar owner Jack and Mel, but there’s so much good parenting stuff in there, too. (Note: Spoilers ahead!)

Netflix #1. Pregnancy loss changes everything. Nurse practitioner Mel arrives in Virgin River as a heartbroken woman. She suffered a pregnancy loss that left her reeling for months, because that kind of loss really changes everything.

#2. Parenting surprises you.

Netflix Just ask Jack, who is expecting twins with his ex-girlfriend Charmaine and could possibly be the father of Mel’s baby . Fatherhood is a continual surprise for him.

Netflix #3. Postpartum depression is no joke. When Mel discovers an abandoned baby in Season 1, she finds out the baby’s mom Lilly is struggling with postpartum depression. It’s a condition she understood all too well after her own loss.

#4. Being a single mom is tough.

Wide Open Country/YouTube Paige seemed to have it all together, running her cute bakery truck and raising son Christopher. But the reality was, she was terrified of her ex-husband and trying to do it all on her own.

#5. You can be too protective. Ricky and Lizzie are a cute couple of teens in Virgin River trying to find time alone, and Lizzie’s aunt refuses to trust them. It might be a good idea to let them be before they rebel.

#6. You don’t have to be a parent to parent.

Netflix After Paige disappears, Preacher steps in to take care of Christopher. And proves to be a natural father-figure for the frightened little boy.

Netflix/YouTube #7. Rainbow babies bring up big feelings. The end of Season 3 sees Mel pregnant for the second time, and there are a whole lot of emotions being stirred up. Not least because she’s unsure whose baby it might be.

#8. Date as a parent with caution.

Netflix Jack’s ex-girlfriend Charmaine plans on leaving town with her new boyfriend and their twins. Preacher and Paige were together for almost no time before things got dicey. Dating as a parent is a whole different ball game.

Netflix #9. You never stop being a mom. Even when you’re dying. Lilly’s passing at the end of Season 3 was all about preparing everyone around her for the tragedy. Especially her two daughters, Tara and Chloe. Because that’s motherhood.

#10. You can make motherhood happen on your own terms.

Netflix Mel wanted a baby, and she made it happen for herself. Whether that baby is Jack’s or her late husband’s, she made sure she was going to be a mom.