EarlGreyTea

Would be nice, but no. Having her whole family there plus cameras is pretty much all she's ever known. So in that regard I guess I can't blame her. I do hope it's her choice to have the cameras there, but in many ways she's never really had a choice about that. Derick is another kettle of fish. But plenty of secular families film births too, so it's not TOO outside of the norm, I guess.

I watched an MTV show called Engaged and Underage, and this nineteen-year-old couple in rural Missouri bought a home for $64,000. I was so awed that I still remember the price 10 years later. When I first heard Smugs bought a home, I thought wow, are they making that much money to afford a second home? But seeing the price....I get it now.

Agreed. Even if it's not Jill, it could have been Josie seizing again. Hope it's not serious. I snark on them endlessly but I want them to be okay. Edit: Whoops it's at the Dillard house, not TTH. Still could be serious for someone other than Jill.

Yeah, I wouldn't put it past anyone. It's a small town, where gossip runs rampant, and the Duggars being national probably makes the local small-town gossipers salivate. I also wouldn't put it past people to drive all the way down just to gawk and take pictures in front of any of their properties. Their address is on the website, for heaven's sake.

AGREED. Glad someone else feels the same way. I was surprised to see she had a Latino last name - this particular group seems pretty homogenized. As a Mexican-American myself, it made her a bit more interesting to me. I'd love to hear their backstory.

Probably. They're bred for nothing else. It's not like they can bond over tough college classes, (secular) music, TV, job hunting, etc. It's really no wonder they're so fixated on reproducing - they aren't allowed to have anything else. After every episode I give silent thanks that I was given parents who put no limits on my future and encouraged me in anything I wanted to do. What I'd give to see someone try to engage Anna on world issues.

Love this topic! I listen to audiobooks to help me sleep, so narrators who aren't shout-y are my favorite. In particular, Rosalyn Landor is a favorite. She narrates Tina Brown's The Diana Chronicles, and her upper-crust English accent is perfect for it. Having both read the book and listened to it, however, I realized how many little nuances can't be picked up in audiobooks, even with a good narrator. I felt I got more out of the book by reading it. At the same time, I tend to skip over description, so having the book read to me made me see favorite books in a whole new light, with parts I had previously skipped over. I hate audiobooks with background music.

The New Testament is infinitely more readable for me. If I was going to read the Bible cover to cover (which, I kind of did attending Catholic middle and high school) I'd start there. There is just some gorgeous, gorgeous language and metaphor. You can see how it has inspired and informed so much literature over the years. Plus God is nicer in the New Testament. Too much fire and brimstone in the Old Testament for me. Although I do enjoy the whole saga of Leah and Rachel. The former got such a raw deal. To me, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, plus a few of Paul's letters are the best parts. I'm a lapsed Catholic now, but sometimes I'll go back and reread some of it.

I'll add that while it's hard to lose a parent at any age, it's harder when you're an adult, IMO (I lost mine at 8, so I was younger). As a young adult you're just beginning to see them as people, not just as parents. You see their flaws and as you move out on your own, they become an advisor and friend rolled into one. And as you get older you realize all they've done for you and how they know you better than anyone else. I'm sad that Derick won't be able to have his dad as friend/advisor at this point in his life. What I'd give to see what he thought of the Duggar circus! I like to think he'd be like Dan with some measure of disgust.

Maybe People had them take it for insurance, so if she got pregnant soon after they'd already have a picture ready to go. It's like when they prepare obituaries for old celebs who aren't dead yet, lol.

Yeah, that's what I'm thinking. I guess people who thought she looked a bit fuller were right. I bet People will get to release the news first. They must have known this whole time.

First, love your username. Second....yeah. I think we were all kidding ourselves that they used any for of BC whatsoever. What a shame. Oh well, at the very least it'll be interesting to see Jill's face now that she's finally been one-upped. Her announcing her pregnancy and stealing Jessa's thunder makes me petty enough to hope that Jessa returns the favor.

Damn. Knew it was inevitable but....damn. Edit: The proof looks pretty legit - it's a pic of Ben standing behind Jessa and both their hands are on her stomach.

For real. He got what he paid for. Movers at least would have been on time and experienced in unloading things. I don't have a whole lot of sympathy for Josh or Anna though. He's the one who made pregnant Anna carry a bunch of stuff plus the stroller and she is an intolerant simpleton. I really, really liked her up until this recent nonsense about school holidays and other Instagram posts. A Duggar in-law hasn't disappointed me this much since Derick. I will say that Anna has really blossomed looks-wise. I look at the first few episodes she appeared in, and she looked really dowdy compared to now. Her hair and clothes have improved a lot. Of Smuggar, the less said the better. And the braids she puts Mackynzie's hair in are gorgeous.

Oh yeah. Isn't he the one who posted a picture of Jana in the geisha makeup on Tumblr? It sparked a flurry of rumors. I can't imagine the girls not noticing a cute guy like that. To bring it back on topic...every time I get a notification that this thread has received a ton of replies, I think it must be because Jill is in labor. Can't believe she hasn't popped yet, but that's probably because we learned about the pregnancy so early.

Jessa would look so great with chest-length hair, is the biggest thing I'm taking from this photo. Sometimes when hair gets to a certain length it starts to weigh itself down and look flat. My hair gets that way and Jessa's looks a bit like that too. The difference is that I usually chop all my hair off to shoulder length about once a year to stop the scraggliness from taking over. Is that the same mustard cardigan Jill also wears? I wonder if she's borrowing it, or if there's more than one. I know they share clothes a lot. Also Ben looks cute. Too bad when he opens his mouth to speak that cuteness usually disappears for me. :)

Dean is such a tool. I wonder how they even let his Z-list ass in the door without Tori. I know, I know....he hosts Chopped Canada. I still don't think he's qualified for even that. Sorry, he bugs me. I read somewhere that Ramsay has been in the toilet financially for a few years now due to his father-in-law being a piece of work. I mean, being in the toilet for Ramsay might mean he has to share his private jet with another family, but I'm convinced he probably would have left HK by now if he was financially secure. I see a level of general disgust at the show itself from him that I don't see in some of his other shows. I can't explain it. He's probably mentally counting every penny he's earning while watching the cheftestants try to match together fish bodies.

I read that they also cut up the food in the blind taste test differently. Like cutting chicken into tiny balls or mushing up carrots. That would throw me off too. My strategy would be to write down every single thing Ramsay's ever included in the blind taste test to get some idea of what the options are. (I'll bet some of them can see through their blindfolds and/or hear out of the headphones.) I am running on very little sleep today, and was surprised to see myself sniping at everything, unable to process things as quickly, and not really feeling sharp...I can only imagine how they feel after just a week on HK with no sleep and Ramsay screaming at them 24/7.

I usually skip even watching who gets booted until at least 12 contestants have left. So much cannon fodder makes for a boring elimination early on. I barely know any names yet! And then they recap the entire elimination in the next episode anyway. The dinner service is 90% of the draw of every episode for me. I was channel surfing while studying for the GRE a few years ago, and something about watching people getting screamed at calmed down my test anxiety.

I apologize. I wouldn't want others speculating on my belly either. I think Jill looks pretty good...if only she'd cut her hair a bit shorter. :) She looked great in last night's episode with her hair pulled back in that hat.

Interesting. I think Kate is a bit taller, and her diet is probably more strict, because she's held to such high standards. She might be exercising a lot, too. Jill may be eating better than she did at TT, but Kate has a lot more resources and a private chef on hand. Kate is also not due until next month - maybe she'll get a lot bigger (I doubt it though). Between all of the above plus genetics, it's hard to predict, I guess. I'm curious to see how the other Duggar girls carry as opposed to Jill. EDIT: I've never been pregnant, obviously :) But I do wonder if core muscles like you mentioned affect the way women carry. Pretty sure I read Kate has always been on a strict exercise regimen.

The Nicole subplot is so weird. I wonder if it's from the memoir. The actress is fine, but she's so much older looking than Hudson so it comes off icky to me. I usually FF their scenes. Her dynamic with Honey is more interesting.

A long time ago in the Benessa thread someone suggested pie instead of cake or ice cream. I thought it sounded PERFECT for a November but no one in Duggarland seemed to have thought of it. Sierra seems okay, but for that many people I'd hire a professional. Can you imagine how hyper the kids were after all that chocolate? That's when I'd leave ;) Derick has been a disappointment so far in that sense. I know there is a lot we don't see, and Rome was not built in a day, but Derick has become so Duggarized. He and Jill were supposed to be missionaries, travel the world, eat food not out of a box....maybe I was expecting too much. There's time for all of those things. It just seems less likely now that we see how much time they still spend with the Duggars and with a kid on the way. I kind of wish they'd gotten their own home away from under JB's thumb, but I probably would not have turned down cheap rent either. I still think Derick and Jill are probably just now falling in love. They couldn't in courtship because of the lack of private, lengthy conversations together. I think they're still in the dating stage emotionally, except now they're about to be parents. I don't see Jill as this deep conversationalist. What do they talk about besides the baby? If I were a fly on the wall in their house...I'd probably fall asleep. Their painting date in this episode seemed pretty dull. They should have gone to one of those painting places that is BYOB ;) I bet that place IS BYOB. (Mods...is this too off-topic for this thread?)

I've been wondering this for several seasons now: why do they never show the cheftestants making dessert? It's like that course doesn't exist. Once in a while we'll see a few stray shots of what looks like strawberry shortcake. I've always been so curious about what's offered and why that course doesn't affect the kitchen service performance.

Born asshole, ambitious, potato, potahto. ;) No, but I do echo what Christina told the two finalists a few seasons ago when picking their teams: this is your career. Don't pick your friends if they're not going to help you succeed. I know it sounds harsh but they really aren't there to be friends. Not saying you have to be Elise levels of asshole, but being a bit distant probably helps so you don't get attached or biased toward any one person. Of course, friendships do often come in handy during the finals, because friends tend to want to help their friends win, but it's not the only way to win.