cereality

I think it helps that their kids aren't particularly scared of the. So if it gets to the point where they're all over each other or making sex comments, I see Alyssa or Carlin or Tory having no problem telling them "um -- that looks like you're trying to have sex, we don't need to see that" or "actually Dad -- hooking up means . . . is that really what you wanted to say?"

I think that's just the way some people do hashtags. For many (most?) they may be bragging, but from reading Chad's blog and looking at their IG and knowing their backstory, I really think they are both trying to remind themselves of the blessings they already have -- a loving spouse; a nice home; a good job that Chad likes; etc. It may be small stuff not worth mentioning or "bragging" about, but it strikes me as that religious think that is true in lots of faith including Christianity -- when you are thankful for the blessings you already have, instead of just looking at what you don't have -- God blesses you with more. So for them it may be -- we don't have a baby yet, but look at everything God has done for us in the last year. Now does all of this need to be on social media -- well I think that's just a sign of the times for many people in this age group where they do share private thoughts that people didn't share a decade or two ago.

I always thought the pink bedroom was about growing up with 18 siblings and having tight finances and never getting what you personally wanted because you had to compromise with so many others. Chad "let" her have the pink bedroom -- i.e. he didn't fight about it -- she got what she wanted, she probably realized she had had enough of the baby girl pink and got it out of her system in a year and now they're moving towards a more normal look. Worked out for the best for them without Chad pulling the "I'm the headship, I won't sleep in a room like this," and instead just saying -- it matters more to her than to me, so whatever.

There may not be one answer to this, but does Jill (and do fundie women generally) HAVE to forego pain relief? As in -- is it one of those things where God made this a natural process, so there should be no need for an epidural and if you get one, you are being un-Godly; you should be willing to "sacrifice" by being in pain? Or is it the view that you should have as many as God gives you, but you can be "comfortable" in having them? I can't recall what Michelle does. Anna had home births and the last time got to the birthing center with minutes to spare, so I'm guessing pain relief was not an option. Though I know Kelly Bates has said that as she has gotten older, she just can't do it without an epi anymore. Or is the pain relief decision going to be made simply by where she delivers because it just won't be an option at home without adequate monitoring? Given that this is a first baby and she doesn't know what labor will be like and given that Cathy has told her that Derick and his bro were big babies, you'd think she'd opt for birthing some place where she could have pain relief if things got really bad. I know she wasn't a wife and mom yet, but wasn't she the one who was scared out of her mind with wisdom teeth (or was that one of her sisters)? You'd think she'd be somewhat more nervous with this, or even if she isn't -- you'd think Derick would say -- um no, this is our first, I have no idea what to expect, I really want you someplace where an army of doctors can tend to you and baby Dilly just in case there's a need.

I agree -- Jana just doesn't come across like the "grab life by the horns" type of person. I realize she and they are all restricted re what they can and cannot do -- in part due to lack of education and in part due to rules. But even within such restrictions -- Jill carved out some interests of her own; she was studying midwifery, I think at one point she was learning Spanish. Jessa -- she hasn't accomplished much -- but she has the same type of spunk, so if she had some interests that could be pursued from home or in an all female environment, JB would have been hard pressed to stop her. Jinger seems to be into photography; I'm not sure if she does much but I think she's the one that did Jill and Derick's engagement pictures; if she were so inclined, I bet she'd be able/allowed to take on some projects taking pics for fundie engagements and weddings and again I don't think JB and Michelle would stop her because she'd be dealing with "known" families -- at most she'd have to bring a buddy. Jana OTOH seems "content" to just do her daily chores and that's it. In a way I feel bad because maybe she just doesn't have enough exposure to find something of her own to do. Or maybe she feels so beaten down that housework is enough and she doesn't even care to do anything else. But I think it's an equally likely possibility that she is a lot like her brothers -- content to do what she "has" to do and nothing more.

Has she said anything about a home birth or are we assuming? Couldn't she birth at that birthing center where Anna had her 3rd -- the one that's a long drive away; I'm not sure if that's her former work place or not. Plus as a corporate employee, Derick has benefits so she could go to any local hospital too. I do agree about being joined at the hip. If towards the end of the pregnancy, Jill is feeling contractions but is told by the doctors -it'll be a few more days-I can see him taking those few days off to be by her side -- unlike other young husbands who mostly go to work nervously and tell their bosses they may have to leave at any second. So likely he'll be home when it starts anyway. And even if he isn't, I highly doubt Jill and Derick are doing this without the Duggar family and a camera crew; when she calls her sisters/Michelle, one of them will just swing by WMT on the way and grab Derick.

So Jana (and JD) didn't get any kind of birthday wish from Jill on social media; shockingly they did from Jessa. I know in that family your stock only rises once you marry, but given that she knows people/magazines are watching her social media, you think Jill would have at least acknowledged her oldest sister's birthday. It's not like she's wanting for time -- and we have to know about it every time she makes bakes potatoes or visits Derick for lunch -- so a quick HBD wouldn't have been so hard.

I don't know why but I do think she will have more maturity as a mother than she does as a wife. I think the wife thing is so novel to them bc they were never allowed to be around any boys ever; so just a guy talking to them, not to mention getting to cling to his arm, hug, kiss, and have sex makes her feel like a giggly schoolgirl. And then she clings to him because it's the "best" she's ever felt about another human and she misses him when he's not there 24-7. It's the way that having a boyfriend in middle school is SUCH a big deal even if you're doing nothing besides holding hands because the attention from the opposite sex makes a 6th grader feel so grown up and special. In contrast -- the mom thing, she's been there, done that and got that trophy. She has seen that it involves 24-7 work (bc she has done it) punctuated by some rewarding moments. Somehow I don't see her being gaga for the baby -- beyond my baby is so cute and look I'm the first daughter to get married and pregnant and have one -- the way she is for Derick. I see her being attentive to the baby though from infancy and beyond; I mean if you can do that with your siblings -- that you didn't birth -- you certainly have it in you to pay that kind of attention to your own kid.

I see Jill being more like Anna or like Kelly Bates than her own mom. She seemed very maternal even with her siblings -- whereas Jessa and Josh just dealt with younger sibs out of obligation -- so I imagine it'll be even more heightened with her own kids. I see her being involved with everything her kids do; sure she'll get overwhelmed if they try to have one every yr or two and then she'll pull in Jana to help and then when they're older have a buddy system, but somehow I see a buddy system that looks like the Bates home -- where the parents are still very much in charge and directing everything -- rather than the Duggar home, where it's more like -- yeah the 10 yr old gave the 4 yr old cold, uncooked oatmeal -- ok the kids have eaten.

So I looked at Jessa's IG for the first time in a while, and she had posted a birthday message to Jeremiah and Jed. In it she says that Jeremiah has the ability to memorize a lot of things, so he has memorized chapter after chapter of scripture and stays up late at night reading/memorizing and it says so much about him how he spends his spare time. He's a Godly man -- nothing wrong with that. BUT wouldn't it be nice if he could take his God given talent and apply it not only to religion but also to a profession? People with good memorization skills probably do well in some areas like medicine or pharmacy; I know it can be a useable skill in law school too if you read fast and retain everything. And as for choosing to use his spare time to memorize the Bible -- I'm sorry but what choice does he have? It's not like he has any other reading or study material available to him. If he wants to read, the Bible is pretty much it. It's not like he's choosing the Bible over other books, TV, or video games.

What does Chris have going on besides being a farm? I agree he's rich, but how do we know what his sisters meant? Couldn't they have meant that he was rich as compared to other farmers - I mean 600 acres and honestly maybe he's good at finance and has been able to hedge some of the shocks in the fuel markets, commodity prices etc; they could have been comparing him to the other farmers in Arlington who have 20 acres or whatever -- and frankly they just sounded like they wanted to impress Andi re their brother. I wonder if he's an investor in other businesses as well -- that would make him even richer -- be it farms or other agri-business companies like equipment/tractor cos etc.

I think there are lots of people like Jill and Derick (not as extreme) -- they love the Lord and really want to live and raise their family according to the Bible. When realities come their way like -- Muslims or gays or whatever else that isn't exactly how they grew up -- they're quick to condemn and spout their religious ways. At the end of the day, I guess they are hateful BUT as someone who is a non-Christian minority, my view has always been that 95% of the time with such people it does not matter because they have such "small" lives. Jill and Derick will always live in Arkansas in an all white neighborhood surrounded by like minded Christians. So their hate for other groups is pretty much hypothetical bc honestly how much will they or their kids interact with other groups? Their life will just come across as loving Christianity and they'll go about their day to day of work and paying bills with occasional instagram postings about how if you don't believe what they believe, you're a sinner.

I'm not a doctor but that sounds like a long road to me. Hopefully she has a "mild" condition that can just be managed with daily aspirin to give them several healthy pregnancies. If it got down to needing daily shots to keep a pregnancy viable, I realize they just teach you/your spouse to give yourself the shots, but I don't see how the couple can do that for more than 1-2 pregnancies; it would almost be too much "pressure" and if any little thing went wrong, I could see Chad beating himself up for life about -- it's my fault, I gave her the shot 15 later yesterday than normal; as he does seem pretty emotional on the pregnancy issue and re seeing Erin upset.

Interesting. I just think that his farm is a big enough operation that it has lots of others involved even if ABC doesn't want to show that -- if he's not there, he can leave his dad in charge to oversee the managers, employees etc. while he's off romancing some girl in LA; seems like a big enough business to where he could opt for a finance/investment role in the business which he handles remotely, while leaving day to day operations to others. It just doesn't seem like the case of a typical farm, where if you don't put in the work, you're not eating this year.

This. He has a 6000 acre farm. I get that it's in a 400 person town in Iowa in the middle of no where, but why is he and ABC make it sound like he's out there personally harvesting crops? That kind of farm has tons of employees and managers who get the work done. Chris has got to be involved on the finance side -- bank loans; commodity markets to hedge price and weather shocks; payroll; leases; sales contracts to make sure there are buyers for his goods etc. If he were to find a sweetheart from Florida or Vermont or wherever, he could do that work from there and fly out to the farm every month or two if he so chose. Then if the engagement did turn into marriage, he could continue working remotely or he could sell of his share of the farm to his dad/brothers in law/third party or if it's a rental -- he could hand it back to the landlord -- and pursue other work either related to agriculture or not, since he does have business experience and a college degree. Yet he's standing there playing the whole -- OMG I hope harvest goes ok without me angle. He's obviously told ABC that while he prefers to return to Arlington, it is not a REQUIREMENT. If it was a requirement, I feel like ABC would have had to put more effort into making it so that at least 50% of the girls were from his background -- farm girls raised in the middle of no where, so they'd have some chance of accepting life in his 400 person town -- or had jobs that could be done remotely -- think medical billing or customer service or some kinds of IT/software work. I'm sorry but if it's a requirement that she returns to Arlington with you, no news producer from Washington DC or specialized nurse is falling for you. He's not that great that someone will give me an interesting/exciting career that they've studied for years for in order to live in a 400 person town where it seems like the nearest small city -- meaning the nearest strip malls, hair salons, restaurants and malls -- are over an hour away. For those of you who lived in/know of those kinds of towns, would a guy like Chris have friends in his hometown? Obviously he went to high school there, so it's possible that high school friends could settle down there with his families -- but do a significant % of young people stay or do they leave to go to Ames or Cedar Rapids or Davenport? It was an ABC set up obviously, but I was kind of surprised when he went to that bar/diner to have coffee and there was no one at that table under the age of 50; surely some of those farmers have sons who have entered farming, who'd be joining such outings, no? Or is it that the sons really do try to get a college degree and get a regular job in a bigger city and leave the old farm to mom and dad?

I agree that the Seewalds are bat shit crazy. But they also don't have money like the Duggars. Mike married at 19 and goes on about the virtues of that, but having 8 kids before age 40, working in the real estate business that went bust, having to transition to fixing windshields and do whatever else he could for 70 hrs a week in order to support a family of 10 has got to have taught him some perspective. Maybe he did talk to Ben about developing a future for his family now -- whether that's education, trades or whatever; though knowing Mike maybe it's also about -- son make your future by getting a spot with your father in law. I can't see him discouraging babies, as much as I would hope, bc it would go in the face of everything they've taught Ben for the last 19 yrs. But who knows -- Ben is pretty dumb and I could see his dad spinning things without actually saying them -- babies are great, we hope you have one right away but you know you should wait a good amount of time between pregnancies so that Jessa's health is ok etc.

True -- at a coffee house with a guy or Amy's friends or whoever, there's a chance that as you sit at little tables, your knees touch or you smile at a cute boy and he sees you. Thing is if JB and Michelle are trying to protect them from ever thinking "what if" -- they should never let them out of the home including for fundie weddings or homeschool conferences. How do they know their daughters don't think of guys they've seen at fundie functions and think to themselves "if only I had talked to him, I'd know his name; if only I had gone to Mama and Daddy and said I prayed about it, maybe we'd be together now."

Have they ever said what the "rules" are re the girls? I know they can't go out alone, but it seems like they are definitely allowed to go out together. I mean I feel like Jana has gone all the way to DC without a brother in tow, so I imagine she can go out for 90 min in town esp during the day. I realize she's on duty a lot, but not all the time -- why don't see and Jinger hit up the local coffee house either together or with Amy say on a Saturday afternoon? Not only does it get them out of the house, but in places where they can go and sit around -- if they become regulars, they will meet other young people. I'm not saying this as someone who would go into a coffee house and chat with people, but when I lived in the south -- I feel like people were more inclined to chat PLUS they're quasi celebrities in NW Arkansas due to being on TV for 10 yrs so I feel like people would want to chat with them just because of that PLUS Amy seems like the type how can strike up a conversation with anyone. It's a good way to get away from the 5 yr olds tugging at them, and also not inconceivable that one or both of them could meet a cute boy. While they may not meet a fundie, it's very likely given the area that he'd at least be a conservative Christian and who knows -- if he liked one or wanted to get to know one of them bad enough, he'd accede to JB's ridiculous courtship standards. Hell they don't even have to resort to hoping cute boys notice them, they could pretty much just ask Amy to bring a friend or two her every time -- her boyfriend's friends; her school friends, whatever -- and they'll be set up in no time. Why be miserable at home until JB finds them someone like Josh or JD or Ben, since we know JB hasn't had success in bringing in guys like Chad Paine or John Webster or Law Bates??

It's also possible that the husbands grew up eating healthier and "demand" it to some extent. I can see this being true of Derick -- he grew up in a 4 person family where both parents had good middle/upper middle class jobs. I imagine they had fruits and vegetables at every meal and weren't just relying on processed foods with the occasional can of Aldi carrots thrown in. Early on the in the marriage, she posted some pic of making Derick's favorite dish which was something like stuffed squash. Also when he took her on that hiking date, he brought along foods like hummus, dates/figs, goat cheese etc. And she has said he misses Nepali fare -- which if it's anything like Indian is probably pretty heavy on veggies. So now that she has to cook for him, she can't just make meals consisting of mushroom soup and tater tots. But she isn't going to make separate meals, so now that she's eating his food -- she's probably realizing that foods like bananas, chickpeas, and squash are good and good for you; it's possible that she even feels a bit better not living on an all processed food diet and likely wants to eat that stuff bc it's good for Baby Dilly too. Yet another way in which living with Derick has opened her mind just a little bit.

In that family -- and likely in any family that size -- the squeaky wheel gets the grease. In case of weddings, that means Josh and Jessa because they were the most likely to embarrass the family or somehow marry outside the fundie fold. As for Jill, I don't think she was a squeaky wheel -- she 100% drank the kool aid and I doubt they worried about her running off to do something they didn't approve of, so in reward of such devotion -- when a college educated boy came calling, he got Jill's number rather than Jana's -- given that she has expressed displeasure with her life in ways that have required re-programming. The more I think about it, the more I think the issue with JD is JD himself -- not his parents or lifestyle. I mean he has some outside exposure from being a constable. I'm still not convinced it is a real job, but I suspect he has to stop by an office on a semi-regular basis -- an office full of men his age and older. In small conservative places, which NW Arkansas is, a lot of relationships/marriages happen by set up - esp for those who don't marry a high school sweetheart. I find it hard to believe that none of the other constable's sisters or nieces or daughters has ever stopped by for 10 min to drop off a plate of cookies or to pick up an extra set of house keys or whatever it may be. If he was marginally more fit and had some kind of a personality that would be acceptable for a 24 yr old, I could see a small town, conservative NW Arkansas girl getting really impressed by the fact that her bro/father/uncle works with a DUGGAR -- you know the ones who've been on TV for 10 yrs -- and would want to get to know him better and boom -- 3 months later she'd be wearing his ring. It seems like JD is planning on working through the parent arrangement process, as he has said that his dad keeps trying to "hook him up with girls and one day he'll probably say yes." That's unlike Josh -- who I think saw/met Anna first at some conference and then convinced his parents that the Lord said she was the one; Chad -- saw/met Erin at a dance and then convinced his parents to invite the Bates family over to get to know her more; Zach - Sonic; Ben - convinced his family to go to the home church so he could meet Jessa; etc. Seems like in that culture, guys are making the moves, just not JD.

I mean JD doesn't even come off well in the fundie world when there are guys who look like Chad Paine, and Lawson Bates out there; they may be similarly indoctrinated and uneducated, yet they have some personality and humor to them. Meanwhile JD is a dork who seems to be stuck at age 12. I mean what 24 yr old man -- fundie or not -- will brag about being the "chief car trasher" -- I put sardines in Chad's getaway car, hardy har har. And on top of that, he's pasty and middle aged looking like his older brother. I think with Josh they wanted him married off quick because he was starting to show an obvious interest in women and sexual desire. They did not need him doing something that would embarrass the whole family as they have to think about the fact that they have 18 other kids to marry off and it'll be harder to arrange marriages if the family's stock falls; they didn't need him in another "sin in the camp" situation or even just picking up a girl at Sonic like Zach because then would respectable fundie families want to marry the Duggar girls? Same thing with Jessa -- she seems like she would have found some way to hook up with someone, even if it was just a TLC camera guy -- so better to get her married off to the first 19 yr old uneducated fundie boy who came calling. With JD, Joseph, Jana -- that risk isn't there, as they all seem more reserved. I know the girls never go anywhere alone and that's probably true of the boys too, but if you're JD and Joseph -- after a hard day of handy man work for daddy -- do they ever hit the local sports bar for a burger? I don't understand how those two aren't out there talking to girls around town; they're quasi celebrities in a small town -- I don't imagine that if they hung out outside the home, it would be that hard to attract a conservative Christian girl who found them acceptable and wanted TLC fame so agreed to marry in. I mean esp for Joseph -- he's not even bad looking. And how can Mama and Daddy say no -- I mean if it's ok for their BFF's oldest son to meet a girl at Sonic, how is it not ok for them?

They have their issues and always will but it's nice to see a video on Derick's instagram of them at the Arkansas basketball game -- with music playing in the background as guys warm up on the court. I realize he's pretty conservative/fundie himself, but just the fact that he's used to getting out there and doing stuff is already opening Jill's mind -- even if it's just 0.00005% that it's fine to go out and experience the secular world and you won't be corrupted by seeing guys in shorts or enjoying music at a public event. Even better that they took Justin with them. I believe JB and Michelle will continue to lose control as they get older and the show winds down and the "attention" of having 19 kids continues to wear off; I think the younger kids already have and will continue to have way more freedom than the older ones. It's good that kids Justin's age get to go to a college campus once in a while -- who knows -- maybe in a decade they'll decide college/college classes are ok for them and Ma and Pa Duggar won't have the energy or desire to fight them as hard.

I agree with the posters that comparisons in that family are inevitable -- who tries to compete with JB and Michelle to go for 19; who decides 2-3 is enough and goes against God's will; the poor couple that may have miscarriage or infertility issues etc. -- it is all going to be a topic of conservation within the family -- as I suspect the girls will talk behind each others' backs when enough are married and with child -- and of course in the fundie community. BUT I don't see Jessa caring as much as the average fundie girl. The average fundie girl like Anna or Jill would be devastated and worried sick if they didn't get pregnant quick with the first one and have another kid every few years -- I mean look at Erin now; it's been one year and she is broken hearted. Of all the fundie girls we've seen, I can see Jessa caring the least. Sure she'd be annoyed if people kept asking her why she wasn't pregnant or why she wasn't having another but I can see her saying "when the Lord wills" in a sarcastic tone while smirking about the fact that she and Ben get to have hot sex and she doesn't have to be up 10 times a night or doing diapers or anything, while all her sisters "suffer." Realistically I think Jessa and Ben are probably pregnant already. I mean a couple in the early 20s having sex on the regular with no protection will get pregnant sooner rather than later barring issues. I imagine Ben wants a big family more than Jessa does -- she likely doesn't want to be pregnant tons of times, nor does she want the household responsibilities, while Ben probably isn't worried about providing for 10 kids bc he's thinking "God will provide" or "JB will provide" or "I'm on the TLC train, what's the problem." But since Jessa seems to be the more dominant one in that relationship, I can see her slowing down the baby train after the first 2-3. Maybe she'll be able to convince him to use BC, but if she can't -- I can totally see her going on BC herself on the down low or even having a C-section with a child and asking to have her tubes tied during the procedure. I mean it's not like she could trick Ben into the V if he is convinced that it's not what God wants, but he's not the brightest or most well educated fellow out there -- she could easily have a discussion with her drs. in advance re a tubal and he'd never know; even if it came out later, she could easily say "oh it's part of the C-section surgery as I had a little complication, but I'm great. Can't wait to start trying again" and he'd be fine. Ben's youngest sibling is about 5 and his parents are in their late 30s. Sure -- it's probably harder to get pregnant immediately anymore, but assuming that his last brother was born when his mom was 35-36, if they were trying -- chances are she would have conceived another kid or 2 in the last 5 years. I would not be at all surprised if Seewalds and many other fundie families out there without TLC families are actually using some protection on the DL -- even if it's just NFP. I only wish Mike had sat down Ben prior to the wedding and said -- son, you're marrying at 19 and babies will come but there's no need to prove your "manhood" on the first night by having a honeymoon baby; you and Jessa need to discuss ways of delaying pregnancy while you figure out a full time job and school. While the Seewalds are all kinds of crazy, are they a bit more "permissive" with their kids? One their website, in the bios -- they list their 17-18 yr old daughter as having a part time job and also enjoying ultimate Frisbee. No way the Duggar girls have those kinds of athletic interests, as I imagine that's only ok for boys, not for girls who should worry about their countenance.

That's so sad re Whitney -- I had no idea she was 12 when she lost her parents; somehow I always assumed she was adopted as a baby. As for Zach's first courtship -- it was a typical fundie arranged courtship with Sarah Reith (sp?). She ended up breaking it off and leaving him heart-broken. Apparently Kelly was trying to shop him around for another fundie arrangement for a while, but he was not interested/too heartbroken to try again. Somewhere down the road -- 1 yr or more later, he started hanging out at Sonic and met Whitney. He says that in the beginning he talked to her a lot about relationships and his break-up and she was supportive, and they apparently gave each other relationship advice. In that a friendship formed and eventually a relationship. Apparently Kelly wasn't thrilled -- no idea where that comes from but people say her blog indicated that -- she still was shopping him around for a fundie courtship but by that time he had decided that Whitney was the one. Of all the Bates and Duggar courtships we've seen so far, this one was the most "normal" in that they met each other casually, got to be friends, dated/hung out, and then decided to marry -- rather than being introduced to each other because parents thought they had the right backgrounds. I remember they showed Zach's first courtship -- maybe on their first show -- and I remember Zach saying that he felt so awkward because he was not used to sitting right next to a girl, didn't know what to talk to her about etc. It was a very honest admission by him and showed the bizarreness of the whole process -- the guy doesn't know what to say to the girl (and the girl is no better) but they're pretty much committing to marry in 3 months. Kelly has said repeatedly that Zach's failed courtship led the family to "re-evaluate" courtship standards and add a lengthy "get to know you" period. Normal folks would just call it dating -- but it's the fundie hanging with a chaperone time which can go on for months. Then by the time the couple gets engaged, they absolutely know they want to marry and according to Kelly the engagement period is just to give the families time to throw together a wedding. As for Zach, I bet he was attracted to Whitney because she "taught" him how to be in a relationship. While the Duggars aren't as bad as the Bates, they are still pretty sheltered -- as evidenced by the fact that a 20+ yr old man didn't know what to say to a woman or felt awkward sitting right next to her. Here comes Whitney -- she brings him his food, probably asks him about his day, chats/flirts with him a little. They probably do this over weeks/months, as Zach shares more and more about his life and asks Whitney about hers. It probably gave him the confidence to realize -- see I can talk to girls, I've been talking to Whitney for months on a daily/weekly basis. Thus by the time he asked her to court/get to know you period -- he knew her pretty damn well, they just hung out more and confirmed that it was love/love could develop and got engaged. I have to believe that the whole process was easier with Whitney because he didn't have to worry about her parents watching or criticizing his every move.

Are all the requirements above set forth by International Mission Board so that Derick and Jill are "qualified" to go on a mission? Or just so Derick can get an M.Div with IMB paying for some/all of it and providing housing. Because what would happen if someone were single and wanted an M.Div or they had a spouse who was say -- a dentist and was not going to be studying theology and had no interest -- would they just not be able to get an M. Div or would they just not be able to get funding from IMB? I imagine you can get an M.Div from any university you want without them requiring your spouse to do anything, no? Also -- who knows what Jill does all day but it does seem like she posts Bible study pics esp in the mornings; do we think that's just something she does or is she doing it because of M.Div/IMB requirements for Derick? I just feel like if she has education requirements to fulfill, she'd be able to fill her days better than she is doing now. I mean she probably drops Derick off by 9, gets home at 9:15 and needs to likely be out the door by 4:45 to get him at 5-ish. That's only 7.5 hours a day alone in which time she has to cook dinner for that night, maybe clean some, and should be studying if she has education requirements to fulfill due to Derick. And unlike most adults, she's way behind on education things -- she's not used to structured studying and has no degree, so I imagine that catch up is taking time.