[Jill, Derick & the Kids: Moving On!!]

Being an at-home mom can be isolating at the best of times. What helps is to add structure to your day. Even if it’s as simple as “at 10:00 we go to the playground, then home for lunch, then nap, then at 3:00 we go to the grocery store for dinner ingredients.” But Jill has never had any structure, so how would she know to even think about doing this? So instead she floats aimlessly through the day and gets overwhelmed when her failure to plan means she doesn’t get everything done. It’s a recipe for feeling shitty about yourself. 

What strikes me about her instagram is that in most of the pictures, they’re at home. Their neighborhood screams “starter homes” and there must be plenty of other families there, some of which I’m sure are ordinary conservative Christians (which seems to be the direction Derick and Jill are moving), with kids the same age as Sam and Izzy. Why aren’t they ever out playing with those kids? Why aren’t they ever at the playground that is evidentially within walking distance of their house? Why don’t they go back to the library, or to one of the zillions of free Christmas activities they have for kids this time of year? Why are they always just sitting around their house?  Maybe Because when you’re depressed doing even the smallest thing can seem overwhelming? 

I don’t think JB and Michelle are going to be any help here. I wish Derick, or Cathy (who does seem to really care about Jill and the boys) would step in though. Cross Church is huge and it must have a preschool. If not, I’m sure the church office maintains a list of “approved“ Christian preschools and daycares in the area.  Derek and Cathy should suggest that Jill send Sam and Izzy for a half day two or three times a week. Jill can use that time to work a part-time job (I like the idea of Amy’s store, but it’s unclear that the store is doing well enough to add even a part-time employee), see friends, or even just go to Starbucks and sit at a table and relish being surrounded by people over the age of four. She so, so clearly needs a break from what she has. I feel really sorry for her. 

Not to mention what being in preschool would do for Izzy and Sam, because that’s another post. 

[Jill, Derick & the Kids: Moving On!!]

2 hours ago, cmr2014 said:

OMG, She just so desperately needs NO MORE CHILDREN!!!!

I'm sure that two kids under five can be trying, but her "tough days" with the kids just so far outweigh her good days with the kids that it's not even close.

She’s lonely. She lived for twenty years in an environment where she was literally never alone and is now in an environment where she’s alone all day except for a couple of preschoolers. I’m sure this isn’t what she envisioned when she married Derick — she probably assumed that they’d move into a house on the compound, that Derick would get a “job” with JB that would allow him to be at home with her most of the time, and that they would have oodles of kids and a couple live-in sister moms to help raise them. Instead Derick is gone all day, the TTH is mostly off limits, and she’s got nobody to talk to except Izzy and Sam. She needs a mom’s group, or a part-time job, or a church choir or something. Get her out of the house and out of her own head.

[Sweet Fellowship: Duggars and Friends (aka the Bates Family and Other Featured Families Thread)]

9 hours ago, ginger90 said:

4 pictures:

What a shitty-ass house. I hope the buyers are planning a gut remodel. 

[The Duggalos: Jinger and the Holy Goalie]

14 hours ago, Oldernowiser said:

What’s with this recipe, while I’m at it? I have a dinner roll recipe I can make in my sleep...with BUTTER FFS not Crisco. It’s not rocket science..some slight variation on this recipe probably ends up on tables in 90% of US homes this time of year.

Their PR person is really, really bad. Must be a sweet friend.

Crisco is cheaper than butter. You can get a 6-pound can of Crisco for $11 but (barring sales, etc.) 6 pounds of butter will run you closer to $20. Of course, Jinger can afford butter now, but I imagine Michelle or whatever fundie mom of 15 taught her this recipe had to economize.

[The Duggalos: Jinger and the Holy Goalie]

5 hours ago, jcbrown said:

Wow, you guys are seeing this way differently than I did. I looked at the blazer pic and thought she looked really skinny. But I have been known to not notice someone is pregnant until they put in for maternity leave so I may not be the best judge of such things.

I thought the same thing. I think the tiny “bump” people are seeing is just the spot where her shirt tucks into her pants.  I mean, I don’t know whether she’s pregnant or not, she could be, but I don’t think she’s visibly pregnant in that photograph. 

[Josiah and Lauren: He Has To Marry Somebody]

5 hours ago, ChocolateAddict said:

For all Lauren's insensitivity and self-centredness, I feel for her with Bella's birth. I doubt she was told what to really expect given that fundies think sex ed is dangerous and talk about birth as a blessed event etc etc. She's expecting to go through a beautiful, spiritual process and instead she's in incredible pain with a failed epidural and a difficult birth. That's got to be a hell of a come down. She's stuck with Michelle who clearly doesn't care for her given the miscarriage conversation and Siah who she doesn't really like. Although she's got her mum, this would be the most stressful time of her life and she's got an uncaring MIL and distant husband there for support. 

And as much as we snark on her drama queen behaviour, I think that she struggled with the miscarriage. This birth would have been super emotional and she may well have been scared that something could go wrong again. She never got any kind of professional help to work through her pain at the miscarriage or her feelings about being pregnant with Bella. 

All in all, she's going through an emotionally difficult birth and then the birth is painful and likely not what she was expecting. That's tough for anyone, let alone for someone with no coping skills. 

What miscarriage conversation?

[S10.E08: Five Pregnancies and Counting]

22 hours ago, mynextmistake said:

I’m working on a new entry. 😈

It’s up.

1 hour ago, mynextmistake said:

It’s up.

Never mind.

[Jill, Derick & the Kids: Moving On!!]

Day 942. It has been a long time since I wrote in this journal, and much has happened since my last entry. Several months ago the male and female guard moved my fellow captive, Yaaay, and I to a new hovel. Although this hovel is larger, Yaaay and I are still crowded together in one small cell. He continues to become more indoctrinated by our captors and has several times raised the alarm when I tried to escape through our cell window. It is most vexing. The male guard continues to spend most of his time away from the hovel, studying any manner of subjects with Becky from the Third Row. The female guard continues to spend most of her time creating atrocious meals from the contents of her pantry, which closely resembles that of a midwestern bomb shelter during the red scare. Occasionally they go out together to consume local delicacies such as “McMuffins” and leave us with an older female guard. Sadly, my attempt to commandeer her vehicle and drive across the state line to safety was stymied by my inability to reach the gas pedal. Since then she has watched me more closely, but I continue to look for moments of inattention of which I could take advantage. Someday my moment will come. Until then I will remain vigilant and keep this journal out of enemy hands by hiding it in the “guest room,” which has yet to host a guest. 

[Jill, Derick & the Kids: Moving On!!]

15 hours ago, beckie said:

Maybe he wanted to go to make sure that nobody hit on Jilly muffin. Nah, that's crazy... .

You mean nobody hits on Jilly McMuffin!

[S10.E08: Five Pregnancies and Counting]

On 12/6/2019 at 2:56 AM, latetotheparty said:

Nothing will ever top Sam’s diary. 

I’m working on a new entry. 😈

[Joy and Austin: This One Time At Family Camp]

On 12/4/2019 at 1:26 PM, Nysha said:

I guess the plate-licking starts early.

At least he’s licking the plate and not the counters!

[The Duggalos: Jinger and the Holy Goalie]

2 hours ago, Oldernowiser said:

Why is Prop dressed like a gender-fluid lumberjack?

Because she’s okay?

[The Duggalos: Jinger and the Holy Goalie]

40 minutes ago, SMama said:

If your vacuous and you know it clap your hands. Look at that, Felicity is not clapping. Jeremy is too vain to do a pregnancy announcement photoshoot with Felicity dressed like that. There’s nothing wrong with the outfit, but just the vibe he gives. Pretty soon I will be proven wrong.

I agree. Both he and Felicity would be dressed better for a pregnancy announcement. I do expect one soon, though. Jinger enjoyed having a sibling close in age and I can see her wanting that for Felicity. Plus I don’t think they’ll have more than two or three kids, and Jeremy is 30 — I can see him wanting them all grown up by the time he’s 50 and wants to retire. 

[The Duggalos: Jinger and the Holy Goalie]

I was thinking about this last night I question how devoted Jeremy is to the fundamentalist Christian lifestyle. I think Jeremy wants to be famous and has developed a persona that he thinks will get him there — modern hipster fundie pastor with a pretty wife and photogenic young family. He tried the secular ladies man thing and the pro athlete thing and the grad student thing and neither of them got him anywhere, and his dad was offering a free shot at another route so why not take it? Then that route got him a free high-end house in LA and famous friends and a bigger platform for his social media posts. If he has to suck up to the likes of MacArthur to keep all of this, I have no doubt he will. He may even share MacArthur’s beliefs now, but if a better shot at fame comes by I could see him shedding those beliefs in a hot minute.

Where this becomes problematic is that I have absolutely no doubt that Jinger truly believes in fundamentalist Christian values she was raised with. She’s modernized her life and gotten rid of the Gothard aspects of her religion – she wears pants and shorts and real shoes, isn’t planning on having a baby every 16 months, and has moved to the ungodly Big City —  but those are just details, not true beliefs. Ginger and her siblings have spoken about how she really believes in the gospel and goes as far as proselytizing to strangers on airplanes.  She’s savvy enough to keep that stuff off of her social media for the most part, with the exception of the occasional Bible verse, but I haven’t seen anything suggesting her values have changed. It will be interesting to see what happens if Jeremy reinvents himself and Jinger feels a conflict with her beliefs.

[The Duggalos: Jinger and the Holy Goalie]

11 hours ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

I do see the logic of setting up your infant's social media accounts if you are a celebrity in any capacity.  They do need to get the name locked down before some "fan" creates an account.  And then use it the bare minimum to keep the account current or whatever the term in social media parlance.  Posting on it all the time is going too far, but there are reasons why you would do it.  

My dog has a Facebook account, where “she” posts about things like eating Mini Mistake’s sandwiches right out of her hand and how hurt she was when the vet told her she was morbidly obese. She has almost as many friends as I do.

I’m not sure it’s fair to say Jeremy and Jinger hid their beliefs. I mean, I’m sure that Jinger didn’t go to the fonut people and say “I think gay people are all going to burn in hell,” but her beliefs are public record and since we have the Internet people can find them pretty quickly just by googling her name. I don’t have a problem with the company cancelling their arrangement — when your beliefs are abhorrent that’s the way the fonut crumbles, I guess — but I don’t think their failure to realize the problem sooner was due to any duplicity on Jinger’s part.

The fundamental problem Jeremy and Jinger are going to have when trying to advance their social media careers is that they’re just in the wrong place. I could see them getting brand endorsement assignments in the south or somewhere where more people share their beliefs, but California’s already full of influencers and doesn’t really have a market for the Jeremy and Jingers of the world. 

[Jessa, Ben and Their Brood: Making a (Diaper) Mountain out of a Mold House]

3 hours ago, queenanne said:

Are Jessa and/or Bin working on composition and framing?  Or was this just a happy accident?  They look good, very natural.  

Ivy's generic lumpy baby face is resolving into that of a tasty little mite, I bet she will take after Spurgeon.  Has it been discussed before, whether or not that ivy-colored onesie is intentional?

Why is Jessa always posting pictures of Spurgeon wearing nothing but his drawers?  When he turns 18 he’s probably going to be pretty embarrassed to realize that millions of people saw pictures of him in his superhero underpants. 

[Jessa, Ben and Their Brood: Making a (Diaper) Mountain out of a Mold House]

15 hours ago, Mojitogirl said:

I have to disagree that this video places Jessa anywhere above Jill. I think the video was done at the direction of their publicists who have been hired to try and stem the dropping ratings. 

Derrick may not be palatable but they are actively not stunting their children by actually exposing them to a world outside of the little bubble Jessa, and most of the other Duggars, exist in. Jessa’s kids are not noticeably stunted because they are cute and still young enough that keeping them shut inside her house or the TTH is enough to stimulate them. She has NEVER shown us that she is expanding their horizons except for maybe a sponsored post of a monthly subscription box. 

I absolutely can’t stand the Duggars as much as anyone but I can’t give Jessa any credit just because her kids and husband are cute and more personable on camera. 

Jill took them to the library like one time, with some friends who are probably almost as fundie as she is. Other than that all we’ve seen Jill do with the boys is the same kind of stuff all the Duggars do — go to church, Chik-Fil-A, family events, etc. I don’t think this really constitutes exposing them to the outside world. Putting them in preschool, signing them up for youth sports, enrolling them in music classes, etc. would be exposing them to the outside world. I don’t think they’re on track to be any less stunted than Jessa’s kids. 

[The Duggalos: Jinger and the Holy Goalie]

On 11/29/2019 at 7:37 PM, Lunera said:

Wonder how much she's getting paid for this appearance. 

This is kind of a coup for Jinger. Rebecca Minkoff is a legit brand carried in a number of high or midrange department stores. We aren’t talking about the Bates Sister Boutique or Citrus and Lemon. I wonder how she scored this gig?

ETA Toys for Tots is also legit, and one of my favorite charities. I was a Toys for Tots kid and now that I can afford it I give toys every year. They ain’t passing out nail polish and bible tracts. Good for Jinger for doing something for an excellent (and secular!) charity.

[S10.E07: Marriage Bootcamp]

3 hours ago, awaken said:

LOL, a duck retrieval!  Sounds like riveting TV!  Now I’m sorry I missed it!  

So is my Labrador.

[The Duggalos: Jinger and the Holy Goalie]

I watched the video. Felicity is adorable and contrasting Jeremy and Jinger’s interactions with her with those of the other Duggars and their kids is really interesting. I’m going to say that there is no way a baby that happy and secure is being blanket trained. 

[Josh & Anna Smuggar: A Series of Unfortunate Events]

1 hour ago, galaxychaser said:

I thought they would go with Madeline. 

They probably would have spelled it Maddellyne. 

[Josiah and Lauren: He Has To Marry Somebody]

1 hour ago, farmgal4 said:

I see a shell-shocked  “Just kill me now” look in his eyes.  I’m serious.

I think the reality of his future as Lauren’s husband and the father of at least fifteen kids (because you know Lauren is going to have to compete with her sisters-in-law, and Kendra in particular shows signs of being able to hit twenty pretty easily) just sank in. 

Or maybe he’s worried about the homeland security raid. Didn’t he also work at that Car lot? 

[S10.E06: Baby Number Two, But Who?]

On 11/24/2019 at 5:04 AM, BitterApple said:

I don't know if you've watched the Plaths, but they're the same way. The oldest daughter was offered a full scholarship to study music, and the mother made her turn it down. Just like Bob and Michelle, they don't want their kids to succeed or have agency over their lives because it increases their chances of fleeing the cult. 

Erin Bates was also reportedly offered a full scholarship to study music at one of the Tennessee state universities, and Gil told her she couldn’t go.

[Jill, Derick & the Kids: Moving On!!]

11 hours ago, FairyDusted said:

This is just wrong on every level. Even Sam knows it. 

Sam is so incredibly over this shit.

[Joe & Kendra: Looking Forward To Side Hugs]

2 hours ago, louannems said:

They left for the hospital at 1:30 AM and at 5:30 AM the scrolling said she had been in active labor for one hour.  So it doesn't seem like she was too far for an epidural.  Isn't laboring without pain relief a common choice?  I had my three babies med free in the eighties, and it was not uncommon.

I've read that castor oil causes not only the mom to poop, but it can also cause the baby to poop while still in the uterus, which can be dangerous.

I labored for ten hours with no pain relief before finally agreeing to a couple shots of Stadol. I have endometriosis, migraines, and have had surgeries requiring my bones to be broken and reset, and I just couldn’t take another minute of unmedicated labor. Props to you for doing it three times.

Question — if someone other than Kendra gets to make the decision about whether she gets pain relief during labor, why is it her mom instead of Joe? Isn’t the Duggar doctrine that the man is the headship who gets to make family decisions? I think Joe cares about Kendra and I can’t imagine him requiring her to labor in obvious pain for hours when an epidural could be performed. I mean, it would obviously be ideal for Kendra to make her own choices, but barring that it just seems weird that her mother is calling the shots.