[Carlin and Evan: But Mostly Carlin!]

You know, Evan could make decent money doing video editing, but he would have to put the work in.  Some people seem to indicate he has a thriving video editing business, but there is no evidence of it.  I think he's done some work for their church which I guarantee you he wasn't compensated for and stuff for BSB.  Honestly, seeing some of the pictures advertising BSB, he isn't that great a photographer.  He doesn't have an eye for detail as often there are things like Kelly looking like she just rolled out of bed or white text on a light background that really don't sell the merchandise.

[Erin and Chad: Fifty Shades of Pink]

I was just about to mention that while the kids seem to be rotating in and out to help Bill and Jane, that Gil and Kelly are nowhere to be found.  So they finally showed up.  I wonder if they did anything.  I give Erin a lot of credit.  She went from being unable to cook when she was first married to preparing individually packaged items for Bill and Jane to have in their freezer.  Such a contrast from Carlin and Lawson who just went to get content for their sad influencer existence. 

[Lawson and Tiffany: Warbling His Way Into Her Heart]

I guarantee you Kelly organized nothing.  She stood around yapping about how busy and stressed she is, but she did nothing.  Nor sure who organized the shower, but it's sad that they don't have a church group to do that for them.  This is their first baby and most churches will organize something for members.  Are they having trouble finding a church where they fit in?  I could see that being an issue as sadly there is a strong racist undercurrent in conservative churches in that area.

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

That picture that accompanies the latest Renee post does not look like someone who is contented to me.  She looks miserable.  Also, there is so much to unpack in that post.  It looks like there is a shot at Tim in there about not compromising her Biblical principles.  Also, the reference yet again to the MRS degree which Jill clearly doesn't understand.  But the strangest part of all is Jill talking about seeing her in heaven when she dies.  That is a strange thought to have about your young daughter.  

The thing that has stood out to me about Tim's statements is that he is the first Rod to actually talk about Christ's commandment to love others as yourself.  Jill talks about how she loves everyone then goes on to spew venom about how everyone else isn't a real Christian.  The only time she references Jesus is to go on about the cross rather than anything about love or heaven forbid social justice.  Tim seems to actually be giving some thought to the stuff he is reading in the Bible about what Jesus said.  I still hope someone in Heidi's family can get through to him on how adults in the working world need to operate as he still doesn't seem to grasp that.

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

Poor kid.  He has had so many things to deal with in his short life.  I hope Joy and Austin take asthma seriously.  There are great treatments now, but you have to be consistent.

[The Other Duggars: The Lost Girls and Amy]

How did they get in arrears on their property tax if they had a mortgage?  My property tax is always paid out of escrow.  Unless they just don't do that and ignore the escrow shortages.  I really don't understand some people's finances.

[JD and Abbie: Captured Before the Rapture]

I disagree with their beliefs, but JD and Abbie look cute together.  

[The Other Duggars: The Lost Girls and Amy]

Wow, Amy is constantly going on about being such a great Christian while she and her husband stiff everyone on their debts.  They seem to be spiraling at this point.  I feel bad for Dax in all of this because he is just a kid being used by his mother and grandmother.  The whole thing makes me uncomfortable.

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

I'm surprised to see so much black clothing.  Most Southern funerals I have been to, everyone wears church clothes.  They may wear more muted colors unless the deceased specifically requested everyone wear a particular color, but usually you don't see everyone in black.  

I'm glad they were able to have the service and I'm glad a lot of people tuned out to support them.

[Josiah and Lauren: He Has To Marry Somebody]

I like Ezra.  I have a vague memory that they said she would name the girls and Josiah would name the boys.  If he did name him, he picked a fairly normal Biblical name rather than something really out there.  Hopefully if they get to H they won't repeat Heistheway.  That may be the only name worse than Spurgeon.  

[Jinger and Jeremy Vuolo]

From reading Jill's book, it seems as though JB had a lot of problems with people who had "only" two kids.  He even disparagingly referred to Cross Church as a "two kid church".  I think Jill was really bothered by the fact she may not have been able to have any more after Sam.  So, Jinger may feel the same way - being fine with two, but having a nagging feeling that she is letting God down by not having any more.

[The Other Duggars: The Lost Girls and Amy]

23 hours ago, Salacious Kitty said:

She's really fair. Fair skinned people don't do well with pastels. Ask me how I know. 😀

Me too.  In fact a friend of mine had to rethink the color of her bridesmaid dresses when she saw me in the pale pinky peach she had been considering.  It looked great on the hanger, but it looked like someone had dumped a gallon of bleach over me when I put it on.

[Meri Brown and her Wet Bar of Tears]

12 hours ago, Orcinus orca said:

From the stories and pictures, she and Kootie did have feelings for each other early on.  It was after he  took another wife that he turned into the ass that we know and hate.  Meri had a choice and she chose the bitch route.

I agree she had a choice and I have said before in other threads that Meri has made a ton of bad choices in her life.  I do understand, though because it wears you down and changes you when people around you treat you like the bad guy who is the root of all their problems.  She should have put Kody in the rear view mirror a long time ago.  No one needs to be told over and over that they are not desirable or wanted.  I hope Christine has some sense of what Meri went through over the years because Kody turned off on Meri long before he did with Christine.  

[The Other Duggars: The Lost Girls and Amy]

The jacket is not flattering.  That pastel pattern washes her out.  

[Jinger and Jeremy Vuolo]

15 hours ago, Salacious Kitty said:

The company you keep, JinJer. Hang out with enough of these people, and you will be guilty by association. 

I doubt Jer cares.  What he really wants is to be famous by association.  He never stops acting like he is super special just because he lives in LA.

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

21 hours ago, ranchgirl said:

I know that she needed Austin's permission to get treatment for her PPD, but I wonder if she had to go before Michelle and Jim Bob too and what they had to say.  

I am glad she is talking about it because she is right, she might could help or encourage another mom to get help.  And if other in her cult are watching, that could be a good thing.  

Good for Joy and Austin for getting her the help she needs.  There is no shame in PPD, your hormones are jumping up and down and you're exhausted from caring for a newborn.  Plus she also has two others to look after.  A lot of people think having kids is easy after the second one and go for a third.  Then they hit the wall.

As for what JB&M think, it's none of their business.  I know the cult says that your parents are over you in authority even after you are a married adult, but it seems that a lot of the second generation are not buying into that.  That's a good step forward even thought I am sure they are still plenty conservative.

One thing I hope is that she doesn't pull a Josie Balka.  Josie made a big post about PPD and got a lot of support and gratitude for talking about it openly.  However,  a couple of weeks later, she shilled some supplement that she claimed cured her. I thought that was really inappropriate to use what can be a serious condition with a lot of stigma associated with it as a basis for a tacky snake oil shill.  

[Janelle Brown: Smarter Than Your Average Brown (Maybe)]

2 minutes ago, jschoolgirl said:

I love hush puppies!

And catfish.  So glad she got to see totality.  I wouldn't have held it against her if it was a last minute trip either.  Her grief will always be with her in some form, but she has a right to enjoy life again and not miss out on a very rare experience.

[Meri Brown and her Wet Bar of Tears]

Aw, I'm so glad she has Zona for that.  It is true, pets know when you need some comfort. 

[Janelle Brown: Smarter Than Your Average Brown (Maybe)]

I hope Janelle's faith brings her comfort during this time.  And the weather was perfect this weekend in NC.  I'm glad she can get out of Flagstaff for a while as well.  I know she had planned to spend most of the spring and summer in NC before all this happened.  Not sure why.

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

I make my bed every day too.  I don't need to post about it on social media because no one cares.

[Josh and Anna]

On 3/29/2024 at 8:27 PM, Not Buyin It said:

Why is it unfair? Why should a felony charge mean a life of guaranteed poverty? Yeah, Duggar did some Sh!tAzz things. But I can't help but notice that, while certain politicians, sports figures and Hollywood darlings have done same/worse, Duggar is held in greater contempt and hatred. And the only apparent difference is the Duggars' Christian faith (flawed as their practice might be). It makes me wonder.

I think the bolded is a good question that I have asked myself.  Do I hold Josh more accountable or as somehow worse because he is a Christian?  And the answer is on some level, I do.  

First, what he did was truly heinous and I would see it that way if he were Joe Schmo who never darkened the door of a church.  I feel the same about Subway Jared, Jeffrey Epstein, et. al.  His actions are problematic regardless of his faith and I am glad justice was served for him.

Now, to the Christian part.  I am a Christian myself though the Duggars would probably not see me that way because I am far more progressive.  So, I'm not just being mean to someone because they are a Christian or because their faith practice differs from mine.  I do however have a greater problem with him because he wasn't just going along for the ride with his family.  He regularly publicly professed his faith, regularly led worship at the family church, and was even employed by the FRC to be a spokesperson for their policies.  What they themselves have told us is that someone who accepts Jesus into their heart becomes a new man in Christ. 

Now, yes, Christians mess up and some mess up bad enough that they owe a debt to society to make amends. But in his case he messed up and clearly had no remorse for anything he did.  According to Jill Dillard's book when they were hiding from the tabloids after the first scandal broke, he thought the whole thing was funny.  When he made his infamous statement about Satan building a fortress in his heart he used passive voice to describe his cheating on his wife.  He said he became unfaithful like it was something that happened to him rather than a choice he made.  And then when he was in court facing down federal charges his demeanor was of someone who was there for a traffic ticket.  He clearly did not see himself as accountable for any of his actions.  My big issue with him was that while he was claiming to be this model Christian he was doing some pretty horrible things and was only stopped when secular authorities stepped in.  So, yes, I hold him to a higher standard on that part because someone who is truly transformed by their acceptance of Jesus does not keep going back and wallowing in sinful behaviors.  

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

The made up title for Jill's dissertation made me snort out loud.  I Sat on My Toilet will go down in history.  The post itself is Jill at her finest with terrible grammar, weird sentence structure, and "drempt" to cap it all off.  She outdid herself this Resurrection Sunday.

[Spoiler, Speculation and Social Media]

Robyn's adult children are adults and hopefully made their own decisions about whether or not to attend the memorial at the armory.  It was on a Sunday, so likely they didn't have conflicts with classes or work.  I know Garrison mentioned missing Dayton in an episode last season and Aurora admitted that Gabe has always been kind to her.  So, I hope they did go and just stayed out of camera range. 

I do wonder how Kody and Robyn are going to handle this going forward.  They are in a kind of a lose lose situation because rightly or wrongly a lot of viewers are going to hold them responsible.  I agree that Kody took it way too far with the things he said about his kids such as calling them a$$holes on national TV.  And Robyn wasn't far behind expressing her anger and resentment over the gift exchange flap that she her caused in the first place.  I just don't know what they can say on camera that isn't going to cause an even bigger firestorm.  So far, their efforts to rehab their image have gone very badly.  I'm not sure even a seasoned crisis manager wants to touch this situation.

[Spoiler, Speculation and Social Media]

I agree that we have no idea who was really there given that some people may have wanted to stay off camera.  I too can understand why Maddie wouldn't be there.  I remember hearing that Caleb travels a lot for work, so he may not have been able to stay home with the kids so she could come.  Also, she went to Christine's wedding and maybe there just isn't money for multiple trips.

Seeing Janelle receiving the flag broke my heart.  I have never seen someone look so broken.  I pray for her and the whole family.  It's going to take a long time for them to find a new normal.  I really hope someone is looking after Gabe as well.  He's got a tough road ahead.

OK, I'm a bad person, but in one of the pictures Kody has his hand on Robyn's knee and is manspreading for all he's worth.  For some reason it just annoyed me.  The least he could do is tone it down for once in his life at an occasion like this.  I also won't read anything into who sat where because except for making sure the family was in the front there probably wasn't any planned seating.  I could see Hunter particularly sticking close to his mother in this situation and just sitting next to her naturally.

[Christine Brown Woolley: Nacho Sister Wife Anymore]

I am reserving judgement here because there is no right way to grieve.  Some people need to make public statements and some need to keep things private.  Some people say that having to return to their job was the only thing that got them through a time of mourning because it gave them a reason to get out of bed in the morning.  Whether we like it or not, social media is Christine's job.  I'm glad it's not my job.

Having said that, I can't give her or any of the other Plexus pushers a pass on all the absurd claims they make.  Sometimes those claims are irresponsible like saying it cures psoriatic arthritis or increases milk production while breastfeeding.  Christine can grieve how she wants, but that doesn't absolve her from being called out for selling this snake oil.