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

[ginger90]

Words by Jill:

 

”There were SO many people walking by me.  Tall. Short. Blonde. Dark. Thin. Plump. Frumpy.  Stylish.  As I sat on the bench, I gazed at them walk by me, and I was reminded that God loves every one of us.....enough to send His only begotten Son and allow Him to hang on a tree to die for all of mankind to pay for our sins.....if we will accept this gift.  ❤️  It touched me.  God's love is so deep....deeper than I can ever comprehend!  

The day went on and I savored every special moment.  It was that type of day where it feels like the forces of evil are held at bay and God reaches down and blesses you with a truly magical day!!  💥💫

That is how this day was.  Everything went right.  Lines were short.  Food was perfect!  Our love and connection was deep.  The weather was beautiful.  We could not have asked for a more dreamy day!  🥰

So, when the fireworks went off that night, I stood there with tears streaming down my cheeks.  I looked up to God in the firelit skies and thanked Him.  Thanked Him for His love.  For His provision.  For friends that love us and pray for us.  For His encouragement to us when life  sometimes feels heavy.  I thanked Him for loving mere people.  

I am thankful that even when life can have many trials, God allows us to dream.  To build the life of our dreams.  To be joyful.   It is in these moments that I feel God's warm embrace and it reminds me what a VERY loving Father He is.  ❤️   -Jill”

Joshua 1:8 "This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success."

Edited Monday at 07:07 PM by ginger90

[Salacious Kitty]

Is it possible that they just had one day and night at Epcot? People are assuming she spent 4 days there. 

[mythoughtis]

11 minutes ago, crazy8s said:

Jill just made another post about Epcot on fb. How perfect it was...how tears streamed down her face....

I don’t see any evidence of tears on the photo on FB of them kissing with the fireworks in the background.   Does she ever just enjoy an activity  without crying about it?   Maybe she needs some medication to help with her moods. 

[Notabug]

10 minutes ago, ginger90 said:

Words by Jill:

 

”There were SO many people walking by me.  Tall. Short. Blonde. Dark. Thin. Plump. Frumpy.  Stylish.  As I sat on the bench, I gazed at them walk by me, and I was reminded that God loves every one of us.....enough to send His only begotten Son and allow Him to hang on a tree to die for all of mankind to pay for our sins.....if we will accept this gift.  ❤️  It touched me.  God's love is so deep....deeper than I can ever comprehend!  

The day went on and I savored every special moment.  It was that type of day where it feels like the forces of evil are held at bay and God reaches down and blesses you with a truly magical day!!  💥💫

That is how this day was.  Everything went right.  Lines were short.  Food was perfect!  Our love and connection was deep.  The weather was beautiful.  We could not have asked for a more dreamy day!  🥰

So, when the fireworks went off that night, I stood there with tears streaming down my cheeks.  I looked up to God in the firelit skies and thanked Him.  Thanked Him for His love.  For His provision.  For friends that love us and pray for us.  For His encouragement to us when life  sometimes feels heavy.  I thanked Him for loving mere people.  

I am thankful that even when life can have many trials, God allows us to dream.  To build the life of our dreams.  To be joyful.   It is in these moments that I feel God's warm embrace and it reminds me what a VERY loving Father He is.  ❤️   -Jill”

Joshua 1:8 "This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success."

Wow!  Her hair looks even more lifeless and strawlike than usual.  Didn't think that was possible.  Would've loved some shots of Jill getting on and off of various rides in that tight denim skirt.

2 minutes ago, Salacious Kitty said:

Is it possible that they just had one day and night at Epcot? People are assuming she spent 4 days there. 

We don't actually know but we do know they got a hotel room for some period of time rather than staying at Nate and Nurie's which indicates to me, anyway, that they were there more than a day.  We also know that between theme park tickets, sushi meals and hotels; the entire $500 she got from Plexus was gone the first day or close to it.

Edited Monday at 07:18 PM by Notabug

[Salacious Kitty]

Well they stayed for the fireworks, so it was too late to drive back to Seville (about a 2 hour drive from Disney). So yeah, we know they were there for at least one night, the night they toured Epcot. I think it's possible they left the next day. There were pictures from just that one day. Nothing from Sea World or Disney itself. 

[Notabug]

5 minutes ago, Salacious Kitty said:

Well they stayed for the fireworks, so it was too late to drive back to Seville (about a 2 hour drive from Disney). So yeah, we know they were there for at least one night, the night they toured Epcot. I think it's possible they left the next day. There were pictures from just that one day. Nothing from Sea World or Disney itself. 

That may be true, but still quite the pricey getaway for a woman who is always lamenting her lack of funds and begging for freebies and whose children are dressed from the toss out box at GoodWill and appear to be malnourished.

Also, Epcot closes with fireworks at 9 PM most nights this time of year; 11 PM on extended hours nights.  Jill is routinely posting various photos and videos taken in the middle of the night.  A two hour drive, even one that doesn't start until after 11 PM, is well within her usual waking hours.

Edited Monday at 07:29 PM by Notabug

[Salacious Kitty]

Well that's moot since we know they stayed at a hotel that night. She posted pictures from its pool after dark. 

Edited Monday at 08:41 PM by Salacious Kitty

[oliviabenson]

no one wants to see anyone make out and show off their sweet sweet fellowship. how very immodest!

and she cries too much. 

[crazy8s]

Renee posted pics of herself with Naomi at Sea World feb 20. (or somewhere with roller coaster in the background) I think there were 2 different trips and the Rod kids, other than Renee, got to go to neither place.

Also agree to Jill staying up/posting all night. But what we also know about Jill and Dave is they are never, ever not going to take advantage an expensive outing, eating expensive food and staying in a hotel by themselves. While all their children heap praises on them for deserving whatever expensive outing.

[all fall down]

I think based on the caption on this picture, they were away from the kids for 4 days (probably justified to themselves that that's how long they would have been away anyway if they went on the cruise), but I don't think they went to Epcot for 4 days. She's wearing the same outfit in all the Epcot pictures. 

What they did for the other 3 days, I guess we'll see if she posts about it. 

 

 

[merylinkid]

Oh hey the Devil was leaving her alone while at Epcot.   Could be because Jill got something she wanted so she wasn't feeling persecuted for a hot second?

[Salacious Kitty]

19 minutes ago, merylinkid said:

Oh hey the Devil was leaving her alone while at Epcot.   Could be because Jill got something she wanted so she wasn't feeling persecuted for a hot second?

Yeah, she stayed off Instagram long enough to not find the comments about going on vacation without her starving kids. Because I am sure she gets plenty of Feed Your Kids messages. It certainly led to her deleting the early set of pictures of of FB. But now she posts about the vacation again? Does she think this is somehow better than what she posted a few days ago? 

I just can't we with her logic. 

[all fall down]

44 minutes ago, Salacious Kitty said:

Yeah, she stayed off Instagram long enough to not find the comments about going on vacation without her starving kids. Because I am sure she gets plenty of Feed Your Kids messages. It certainly led to her deleting the early set of pictures of of FB. But now she posts about the vacation again? Does she think this is somehow better than what she posted a few days ago? 

I just can't we with her logic. 

I'm not one to defent Jill's behavior, but today's post was the first post about her time with David/Epcot on her main FB timeline. The earlier posts were just in her stories which automatically delete after 24 hours. They're like instagram stories that way. I don't know why she posted it 2 different ways, but she didn't delete anything from her main FB page. 

[PradaKitty]

Jill really needs to do something g about her hair. I’m going to assume that the Florida humidity caused some of the frizziness, but the hair itself is extremely damaged. She also needs to do something about that outgrowth! It’s like she can’t decide if she wants to be a blonde or a brunette.

[oliviabenson]

forget the hair I'm fascinated by her immodest poses looking like a middle aged teen girl wanna be and hiding her figure behind David and other people.

Edited Monday at 11:11 PM by oliviabenson

[crazy8s]

and right on cue Renee chimes in to comment on mama's Epcot post.

[LilJen]

Four magical days, listening to her husband sweetly grunting and dozing. Magical indeed.

[EmeraldGirl]

So Jill enjoys the material world. How about that? She’s never been so happy (yet weeping). Why isn’t she that happy when she’s just home and not cooking with her precious children? Be careful, Jill. I think you might crave the modern world. Now get thee to a proper, modern, of this World hairdresser.

Edited Tuesday at 03:10 AM by EmeraldGirl

[andromeda331]

10 hours ago, ginger90 said:

Words by Jill:

 

”There were SO many people walking by me.  Tall. Short. Blonde. Dark. Thin. Plump. Frumpy.  Stylish.  As I sat on the bench, I gazed at them walk by me, and I was reminded that God loves every one of us.....enough to send His only begotten Son and allow Him to hang on a tree to die for all of mankind to pay for our sins.....if we will accept this gift.  ❤️  It touched me.  God's love is so deep....deeper than I can ever comprehend!  

The day went on and I savored every special moment.  It was that type of day where it feels like the forces of evil are held at bay and God reaches down and blesses you with a truly magical day!!  💥💫

That is how this day was.  Everything went right.  Lines were short.  Food was perfect!  Our love and connection was deep.  The weather was beautiful.  We could not have asked for a more dreamy day!  🥰

So, when the fireworks went off that night, I stood there with tears streaming down my cheeks.  I looked up to God in the firelit skies and thanked Him.  Thanked Him for His love.  For His provision.  For friends that love us and pray for us.  For His encouragement to us when life  sometimes feels heavy.  I thanked Him for loving mere people.  

I am thankful that even when life can have many trials, God allows us to dream.  To build the life of our dreams.  To be joyful.   It is in these moments that I feel God's warm embrace and it reminds me what a VERY loving Father He is.  ❤️   -Jill”

Joshua 1:8 "This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success."

Jill doesn't know the meaning of the word deep. She's the most superficial person. There's no real depth to her. She always blows her money on makeup, clothes and other crap for herself. If her and Dave's love was so deep she wouldn't need to constantly show it off or worried about losing her man to another woman. 

[Salacious Kitty]

From enmeshed Renee...

 

[EmeraldGirl]

Why ISN’T she coloring her hair? I looked like that during Covid. But that’s because I decided to grow out my blond and go back to my natural brunette. It wasn’t pretty, but no one saw me because it was Covid. It’s not like Jill to be so not vain about herself. Someone check her temperature.  
 

Can you even imagine her worrying about someone taking David away? There’s not a big enough laugh emoji available. He is offering nothing to this world. He looks like a slob and acts like a slob. He can’t even bring money into the house. I would be praying for someone to catch his eye.

Edited Tuesday at 09:04 AM by EmeraldGirl

[Kbo]

18 hours ago, ginger90 said:

Words by Jill:

 

”There were SO many people walking by me.  Tall. Short. Blonde. Dark. Thin. Plump. Frumpy.  Stylish.  As I sat on the bench, I gazed at them walk by me, and I was reminded that God loves every one of us.....enough to send His only begotten Son and allow Him to hang on a tree to die for all of mankind to pay for our sins.....if we will accept this gift.  ❤️  It touched me.  God's love is so deep....deeper than I can ever comprehend!  

The day went on and I savored every special moment.  It was that type of day where it feels like the forces of evil are held at bay and God reaches down and blesses you with a truly magical day!!  💥💫

That is how this day was.  Everything went right.  Lines were short.  Food was perfect!  Our love and connection was deep.  The weather was beautiful.  We could not have asked for a more dreamy day!  🥰

So, when the fireworks went off that night, I stood there with tears streaming down my cheeks.  I looked up to God in the firelit skies and thanked Him.  Thanked Him for His love.  For His provision.  For friends that love us and pray for us.  For His encouragement to us when life  sometimes feels heavy.  I thanked Him for loving mere people.  

I am thankful that even when life can have many trials, God allows us to dream.  To build the life of our dreams.  To be joyful.   It is in these moments that I feel God's warm embrace and it reminds me what a VERY loving Father He is.  ❤️   -Jill”

Joshua 1:8 "This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success."

Takes a lot of nerve to call other people frumpy when you’re wearing that outfit complete with raccoon eyes and hair so dry it needs a red flag warning. It makes me sick that these two went to Disney when none of those poor kids have ever been. Their “vacation” is being crammed in a smelly RV, although it’s probably a relief to get a break from Jill. 

[laurakaye]

15 hours ago, LilJen said:

Four magical days, listening to her husband sweetly grunting and dozing. Magical indeed.

And eating!  Don't forget eating.  Dave was probably over the moon, twirling from country to country, trying so many different delicious foods that his kids will never taste!  You know what - he deserves it.  After all, this man eats raw chicken and drinks hummingbird juice on the regular.

Jill being all "I didn't miss the cruise at all!  Look how much fun I'm having at Epcot!" smacks of a 13-year old girl who saw on Instagram that her friends went to Sephora without her.  And Jill sucks extra - of course she can use an extra $500 to go on vacation with Hunk, because all of her kids' shoes and clothes either come from Goodwill or are hand-me-downs, so no need to spend it on silly things like that.  And no need to spend it on food - there are plenty of dented cans of beans in the cupboard, and that's also what grifting is for.  And Nathan's wallet.

 

Edited Tuesday at 04:39 PM by laurakaye

[EmeraldGirl]

That’s what you get when you decide to have as many children as possible. You don’t get vacations, you stay home and cook for your kids. You do laundry, you do homework (or in her case you do as little as possible). You clean, you shop for what the kids need. You sacrifice a hell of a lot to have a family. Hell, I decided on only two because I wanted them to have the best life. We took vacations in the summer WITH the kids because I wanted them there and we could afford it. Life stops being all about you when you have mouths to feed and children to cloth. Instead, she sets them up in a sweat shop situation when they should be in school and hanging out with their friends. And SHE needs a vacation? Who doesn’t?Her life makes me beyond angry. And the worst part is that she shows it off as though she’s proud.

[CalicoKitty]

7 hours ago, EmeraldGirl said:

That’s what you get when you decide to have as many children as possible. You don’t get vacations, you stay home and cook for your kids. You do laundry, you do homework (or in her case you do as little as possible). You clean, you shop for what the kids need. You sacrifice a hell of a lot to have a family. Hell, I decided on only two because I wanted them to have the best life. We took vacations in the summer WITH the kids because I wanted them there and we could afford it. Life stops being all about you when you have mouths to feed and children to cloth. Instead, she sets them up in a sweat shop situation when they should be in school and hanging out with their friends. And SHE needs a vacation? Who doesn’t?Her life makes me beyond angry. And the worst part is that she shows it off as though she’s proud.

My mom was the youngest of 10 children.  Her father died very suddenly when she was two (he was asphyxiated by a gas leak).  My grandmother did not speak much English.  All of the kids went to school, and they all had after school and summer jobs.  They all had chores at home.  They bought their clothes instead of raiding the bins at the thrift store.  They had a garden and lots of uncles who had farms, so they had plenty of good food.    And they all became good citizens who had families of their own and good jobs.  They were entirely different from the Rod kids because, firstly, they went to SCHOOL and had a good education (they all knew how to use commas correctly),  secondly they were all out in the community, worked, and had a lot of friends, and thirdly, they were all nice to each other and helped each other.  No one received special attention over the others, and no one played mean jokes on anyone else.  Their unique interests were appreciated and they were treated as individuals.  But my grandmother was not a selfish person who had to be the center of attention.  And she actually liked and loved her children (and me).

[lookeyloo]

I am guessing most of us have had better lives than the rodlets.  I was talking to my one surviving brother yesterday that we had all the "material" things such as a nice house, cars, heat/food/clothing/medical care.  Some vacation sometime.  We weren't physically abused and no sexual abuse.  BUT it was less than ideal because my parents fought a lot. And it would go in cycles.  If they were getting along for a short while, we knew one of them would say/do something to set the other one off, and then even though we had the things, we were unsettled, worried, scared, etc. for a lot of the time.  We were a family of 5.  From the outside we looked great.  Inside, not so much.  So, I'm glad the posters had much better lives than the rodlets and maybe us. 

[Chaos Theory]

I am curious what these fine upstanding Christian soldiers 😝😆 do on these trips on cruise ships and to Epcot.  It’s not that I don’t think you can’t  have fun if you don’t drink (I am not a big drinker myself) but all the things that they can’t or won’t do is insane.    Basically it’s like they are paying to eat in new places.      

Do they even know what Frozen or Guardians of the Galaxy is?   The “Dark Rides” would probably scare Jill and the “imagination rides” would confuse her because well…….

Although on the bright side I wonder how many people approach her (in her little house on the prairie outfit) thinking she is part of the show

[precious pupp]

I don't know how those horrible "parents" sleep at night, treating themselves instead of their children to everything enjoyable, including enough food.  And then they have the balls (gall) to brag about it!  😡

[libgirl2]

1 hour ago, precious pupp said:

I don't know how those horrible "parents" sleep at night, treating themselves instead of their children to everything enjoyable, including enough food.  And then they have the balls (gall) to brag about it!  😡

Exactly. Even now, my son (who still lives with us) is an adult and I'll give him the bigger portion of something we share. He is my kid. Always. 

[Salacious Kitty]

Did anyone else catch the video of Dave, Nathan, and Gabe "golfing?" It was hilarious. Maybe they got a discount because it was raining? But rented clubs and fees still aren't cheap.

[libgirl2]

3 minutes ago, Salacious Kitty said:

Did anyone else catch the video of Dave, Nathan, and Gabe "golfing?" It was hilarious. Maybe they got a discount because it was raining? But rented clubs and fees still aren't cheap.

These people really do p--- away money, yet still have their hands out. 

[ginger90]

1 hour ago, Salacious Kitty said:

Did anyone else catch the video of Dave, Nathan, and Gabe "golfing?" It was hilarious. Maybe they got a discount because it was raining? But rented clubs and fees still aren't cheap.

I stopped here. This is where David’s ball ended up (circled). He’s standing where he made his attempt.

Screenshot from the video:

Edited Wednesday at 08:00 PM by ginger90

[Westiepeach]

34 minutes ago, Salacious Kitty said:

Did anyone else catch the video of Dave, Nathan, and Gabe "golfing?" It was hilarious. Maybe they got a discount because it was raining? But rented clubs and fees still aren't cheap.

But let me tell you... they CRUSHED it! 🤣

[laurakaye]

27 minutes ago, Westiepeach said:

But let me tell you... they CRUSHED it! 🤣

Of course they did!  They are manly-men with muscles, they have no choice but to crush it.  Even if Dave lost control of his club and knocked himself out with it, Jill would gush about how he sweetly grunted on the way down.

And Janessa could've hit the ball farther than Dave did in that video still.  Oh, wait - girls can't golf, that's he-man stuff.  No girls allowed.  Never mind.

[farmgal4]

On 3/4/2025 at 3:01 AM, EmeraldGirl said:

Why ISN’T she coloring her hair? I looked like that during Covid. But that’s because I decided to grow out my blond and go back to my natural brunette. It wasn’t pretty, but no one saw me because it was Covid. It’s not like Jill to be so not vain about herself. Someone check her temperature.  
 

Can you even imagine her worrying about someone taking David away? There’s not a big enough laugh emoji available. He is offering nothing to this world. He looks like a slob and acts like a slob. He can’t even bring money into the house. I would be praying for someone to catch his eye.

The thought of touching David, in any way, makes me nauseous.

[crazy8s]

43 minutes ago, Westiepeach said:

But let me tell you... they CRUSHED it! 🤣

Jill was making fun of them. If there would have been sound we would have heard her screech laughing while she was taking video.

I don't think they rented clubs. They probably picked up a few random clubs somewhere or borrowed from someone at nathan's church.

My guess is some local par 3 course near the Keller house.

[mythoughtis]

Since this appeared to be a men’s outing, who was taking the videos?  I can’t imagine that the three of them cared enough to film each other.  In addition,  would it really be so sinful to teach a female  to golf?  Wouldn’t the golf course be a good place for Renee to catch the eye of a man well enough off to provide for a stay at home wife? 

[Salacious Kitty]

24 minutes ago, crazy8s said:

Jill was making fun of them. If there would have been sound we would have heard her screech laughing while she was taking video.

I don't think they rented clubs. They probably picked up a few random clubs somewhere or borrowed from someone at nathan's church.

My guess is some local par 3 course near the Keller house.

Yeah, the goofy music she chose to play over their sad attempts to hit the ball was proof that she was razzing them. 

[oliviabenson]

4 hours ago, Chaos Theory said:

I am curious what these fine upstanding Christian soldiers 😝😆 do on these trips on cruise ships and to Epcot.  It’s not that I don’t think you can’t  have fun if you don’t drink (I am not a big drinker myself) but all the things that they can’t or won’t do is insane.    Basically it’s like they are paying to eat in new places.      

Do they even know what Frozen or Guardians of the Galaxy is?   The “Dark Rides” would probably scare Jill and the “imagination rides” would confuse her because well…….

Although on the bright side I wonder how many people approach her (in her little house on the prairie outfit) thinking she is part of the show

they think she plays a wicked witch!

[oliviabenson]

pups are alive!

I saw the golfing trip and omg it was hilarious, all 3 are awful at golf.  and someone on reddit called David a UNIT and it fits.

and Gabriel preaching was pitiful. poor poor Gabriel.

[EmeraldGirl]

9 hours ago, lookeyloo said:

I am guessing most of us have had better lives than the rodlets.  I was talking to my one surviving brother yesterday that we had all the "material" things such as a nice house, cars, heat/food/clothing/medical care.  Some vacation sometime.  We weren't physically abused and no sexual abuse.  BUT it was less than ideal because my parents fought a lot. And it would go in cycles.  If they were getting along for a short while, we knew one of them would say/do something to set the other one off, and then even though we had the things, we were unsettled, worried, scared, etc. for a lot of the time.  We were a family of 5.  From the outside we looked great.  Inside, not so much.  So, I'm glad the posters had much better lives than the rodlets and maybe us. 

I’m so sorry. I had a very similar upbringing. My parents were violent alcoholics. I could never sleep at night because the drinking would start and the fighting would get louder and louder. I was always terrified someone would get hurt or killed (and ambulances were called). And when it hit its peak, my sisters were both out of the house so I was by myself. To make it even worse, my dad was friends with a jazz pianist. We had an organ at the time, and he’d come over and blast out music at all hours. Even on weekdays when I had to get up for school. And they wondered why my headaches were so debilitating at such a young age. The irony of it all is that we were filthy rich at the time. Dysfunction knows no boundaries. There wasn’t anything we weren’t given – except peace.

But in the middle of all that I can say that we were treated very well. We were never hurt physically. They took our side in everything until the day they died. And there was love for the kids. So we had friends, a social life, and my mom cooked every single day for us. In those ways I do consider myself much luckier than the Rod kids. They aren’t even given the basics of a normal life. Food, clothes, etc..  And they work David’s job when they’re supposed to be in school. And not a single reward for it. No vacations, no clothes, no movies, or even a sleepover at a friends house. They are always “on” and squealing when mama puts the camera on them. Always on. Always dressed up with full make up. My mom would never dare expect anything like that of me.

We all have battles in life, and I still consider myself lucky when I see families like this. That’s how bad they are.

Edited Wednesday at 11:31 PM by EmeraldGirl

[lookeyloo]

13 minutes ago, EmeraldGirl said:

I’m so sorry. I had a very similar upbringing. My parents were violent alcoholics. I could never sleep at night because the drinking would start and the fighting would get louder and louder. I was always terrified someone would get hurt or killed (and ambulances were called). And when it hit its peak, my sisters were both out of the house so I was by myself. To make it even worse, my dad was friends with a jazz pianist. We had an organ at the time, and he’d come over and blast out music at all hours. Even on weekdays when I had to get up for school. And they wondered why my headaches were so debilitating at such a young age. The irony of it all is that we were filthy rich at the time. Dysfunction knows no boundaries. There wasn’t anything we weren’t given – except peace.

But in the middle of all that I can say that we were treated very well. We were never hurt physically. They took our side in everything until the day they died. And there was love for the kids. So we had friends, a social life, and my mom cooked every single day for us. In those ways I do consider myself much luckier than the Rod kids. They aren’t even given the basics of a normal life. Food, clothes, etc..  And they work David’s job when they’re supposed to be in school. And not a single reward for it. No vacations, no clothes, no movies, or even a sleepover at a friends house. They are always “on” and squealing when mama puts the camera on them. Always on. Always dressed up with full make up. My mom would never dare expect anything like that of me.

We all have battles in life, and I still consider myself lucky when I see families like this. That’s how bad they are.

Yes, I understand.  I think the love our parents had for us was conditional to us, but did stand up for us with others.  But, we never knew what would happen when.  I guess my point was that the posters were comparing their seemingly idyllic upbringings to the poor rodlets and it struck a chord with me because even though we were certainly fed enough good food there were other issues.  Nobody drank in our house.  No reason but they didn't like it.  So, like anything on these forums, YMMV.

[oliviabenson]

34 minutes ago, EmeraldGirl said:

I’m so sorry. I had a very similar upbringing. My parents were violent alcoholics. I could never sleep at night because the drinking would start and the fighting would get louder and louder. I was always terrified someone would get hurt or killed (and ambulances were called). And when it hit its peak, my sisters were both out of the house so I was by myself. To make it even worse, my dad was friends with a jazz pianist. We had an organ at the time, and he’d come over and blast out music at all hours. Even on weekdays when I had to get up for school. And they wondered why my headaches were so debilitating at such a young age. The irony of it all is that we were filthy rich at the time. Dysfunction knows no boundaries. There wasn’t anything we weren’t given – except peace.

But in the middle of all that I can say that we were treated very well. We were never hurt physically. They took our side in everything until the day they died. And there was love for the kids. So we had friends, a social life, and my mom cooked every single day for us. In those ways I do consider myself much luckier than the Rod kids. They aren’t even given the basics of a normal life. Food, clothes, etc..  And they work David’s job when they’re supposed to be in school. And not a single reward for it. No vacations, no clothes, no movies, or even a sleepover at a friends house. They are always “on” and squealing when mama puts the camera on them. Always on. Always dressed up with full make up. My mom would never dare expect anything like that of me.

We all have battles in life, and I still consider myself lucky when I see families like this. That’s how bad they are.

.

Edited Thursday at 12:03 AM by oliviabenson

[crazy8s]

3 hours ago, oliviabenson said:

pups are alive!

I saw the golfing trip and omg it was hilarious, all 3 are awful at golf.  and someone on reddit called David a UNIT and it fits.

and Gabriel preaching was pitiful. poor poor Gabriel.

Interesting this seems to be from this past sunday. But this family was also tagged in the valentine banquet video from not Nathan's church.

So the Rod's visited twice. The family has several courting age children. Boys 18 and 16. Girl 19 and another younger girl about 14.

Older boy does metal work/welding.

The mom grew up with Jill in NY and they claim to be lifelong friends. The rods have visited this family and church since at least 2017. They sang at the valentines banquet there in 2017.

[EmeraldGirl]

Yeah, you can’t compare what kind of abuse is worse. I definitely never felt safe about what was going to happen at home. Just not to me personally, but everything that happened with them of course affected me personally.
 

The things that we went through (and I’m sure we’re not alone here) versus the life these kids have. And we also don’t know everything about them. I know the Duggers had a prayer closet which always sounded shady and scary to me. Not to mention things like blanket training, and whatever else goes on to make the children so obedient. I’m sure we don’t know the half of their issues.

And I would like to thank all of you here for indulging me and listening. It’s fun to make fun of all of this crazy. But sometimes it hits a nerve and your own crazy life comes up back to you.

[Salacious Kitty]

5 hours ago, crazy8s said:

Interesting this seems to be from this past sunday. But this family was also tagged in the valentine banquet video from not Nathan's church.

So the Rod's visited twice. The family has several courting age children. Boys 18 and 16. Girl 19 and another younger girl about 14.

Older boy does metal work/welding.

The mom grew up with Jill in NY and they claim to be lifelong friends. The rods have visited this family and church since at least 2017. They sang at the valentines banquet there in 2017.

So, they went to this church twice, another church the Sunday before she would have gone on the cruise, and Nathan's church. 

Not the most productive month for being in "full time ministry."

[ALittleShelfish]

1 hour ago, Salacious Kitty said:

Not the most productive month for being in "full time ministry."

Full time vacation ministrying.  Do they hand out tracts at Epcot or is that just an activity for the kids?

[BetyBee]

12 hours ago, lookeyloo said:

Yes, I understand.  I think the love our parents had for us was conditional to us, but did stand up for us with others.  But, we never knew what would happen when.  I guess my point was that the posters were comparing their seemingly idyllic upbringings to the poor rodlets and it struck a chord with me because even though we were certainly fed enough good food there were other issues.  Nobody drank in our house.  No reason but they didn't like it.  So, like anything on these forums, YMMV.

I did not grow up in a happy family. Sometimes when posters on any forum, wax nostalgic about their ideal upbringings, I feel as I did in my middle school & teen years. I used to wonder why my friends were shown love by their parents, when that was rare at my house. In my kid brain, I wondered if the difference was that they were lovable, while I was not. Yet with some friends, I didn't find them at all lovable, nor were they appreciative of having doting parents.

I was also never SA or physically beaten. But my parents were wrapped up in their own world, barely paying any positive attention to their many children. I think that's where my disgust for Jill and Dave comes from. It's the reason I have such a soft spot for the Rod kids. I came out of my chlldhood and have been able to have a happy marriage and loved kids and grandkids. I want that for the Rodlets. Probably not all of them will have that, but perhaps one or two can build a more normal life for themselves and do better for their own children. 

[Natalie68]

6 hours ago, BetyBee said:

I did not grow up in a happy family. Sometimes when posters on any forum, wax nostalgic about their ideal upbringings, I feel as I did in my middle school & teen years. I used to wonder why my friends were shown love by their parents, when that was rare at my house. In my kid brain, I wondered if the difference was that they were lovable, while I was not. Yet with some friends, I didn't find them at all lovable, nor were they appreciative of having doting parents.

I was also never SA or physically beaten. But my parents were wrapped up in their own world, barely paying any positive attention to their many children. I think that's where my disgust for Jill and Dave comes from. It's the reason I have such a soft spot for the Rod kids. I came out of my chlldhood and have been able to have a happy marriage and loved kids and grandkids. I want that for the Rodlets. Probably not all of them will have that, but perhaps one or two can build a more normal life for themselves and do better for their own children. 

Are we related?  Finally came to the conclusion after a lot of why's that my mom just didn't like me and my dad was too selfish to be involved.  Made me and my sisters fiercely independent and 2 of the 3 of us don't have kids.  

[BetyBee]

3 hours ago, Natalie68 said:

Are we related?  Finally came to the conclusion after a lot of why's that my mom just didn't like me and my dad was too selfish to be involved.  Made me and my sisters fiercely independent and 2 of the 3 of us don't have kids.  

It's not impossible that we're related! 😉 I come from a large Midwestern family. I think it's more likely that our lived experiences are not uncommon. Good for you and your sisters for being fiercely independent and making your own choices in your lives! ❤️