Years Before Her Kids Vanished, Lori Vallow Referred To Herself As A 'Ticking Time Bomb'

Newly released footage of Lori Vallow, the Idaho mother who is currently behind bars in connection with her missing and presumed dead children, shows her referring to herself as a “ticking time bomb” while speaking about motherhood at a 2004 beauty pageant.

A teaser for Friday's two-hour “20/20” episode shows Vallow wearing a beauty sash while competing in the Mrs. Texas pageant. 

"Being a good mom is very important to me and a good wife and a good worker. And being all those things is not easy!” Vallow, who also goes by Lori Daybell, says while beaming. "So I'm basically a 'ticking time bomb.'" 

In 2019, Vallow’s children, Tylee Ryan, 17, and Joshua “JJ” Vallow, 7, vanished; despite a court order, she was unable to prove they were alive.

The “20/20” episode also explores several of her alleged beliefs, “including referring to her children as zombies,” according to a press release from the network.

The bodies of Tylee Ryan and Joshua were reportedly discovered in 2020 on the property of Chad Daybell, Vallow’s husband.

No murder charges have been filed in the case, but both Vallow and Daybell are currently behind bars on charges connected to the discovery. Prosecutors have discussed filing conspiracy to commit murder charges against both Vallow and Daybell.

Daybell has been charged with two felony counts of conspiracy to commit destruction, alteration or concealment of evidence and felony conspiracy to conceal evidence charges. Vallow is facing a felony conspiracy to conceal evidence charge in the case.

The two-hour special, which airs on Friday, Feb. 26  at 9 pm EST on ABC, also dives into the couple’s marriage and preoccupation with doomsday visions, which Daybell has apparently been fascinated with for years. He has written several books on the subject.