S10.E16: Family Dinner

[Ljohnson1987]

 

Jessa cooks dinner for Ben in their first home; Anna and Jill make a special craft while Josh teaches Derick about being a dad.

[JoanArc]

http://www.people.com/article/19-kids-counting-josie-duggar-seizure

 

The posted a preview. Looks like Jim Bob and Michelle were at a Gothard meeting (which is based in Chicago, love those codewords!). They also had no problem showing quite a bit of Josie's body. Seems like Michelle is spinning it as febrile. The nurse in me wants to watch this episode, but I already want to barf.

[Westiepeach]

I saw that preview. Made me sick that they showed what they showed. Jana looked scared to death, and Josie ... o m g. And Mechelle. No words. Just no words. SMH.

[hlemommy]

Wow I'm shocked boob let this on tv, she is in her panties and you see some chest! Really I'm actually shocked they let the latest be shown never mind the fact they are exploiting her while she is going through a seizure. Poor josie I'd be pissed when I found out it was on tv if I was here

[HumblePi]

Josie is at the age when super-premies develop epilepsy if they are going to develop it at all. If this was her first seizure, and I doubt it was, I'm afraid that Josie will be epileptic most of her life and on medication forever to control the seizures.

 

I can't stand the way this family prepares meals. Doesn't Michelle know how to cook and able to teach the older girls how to make something else besides tater-tot casserole, barbeque tuna or chicetti (a particularly nasty concoction).The Duggar family prides themselves on frugality yet they use thousands of paper plates, bowls and plastic utensils every week. I don't think I've ever seen any dinner in Josh and Anna's or the Duggar family house that was served on a real dish. When Anna shopped for Thanksgiving, she bought instant mashed potatoes, canned vegetables, and pre-made pumpkin pies. Not only that, but Josh had no idea of how to carve a turkey. Wasn't he watching when his father carved a turkey, or maybe they never made one for the family. He destroyed it and it looked as dry as the tuna fish Jim Bob is so fond of. I've never seen a meal made that I'd think 'umm that looks good'. It's all junky quick frozen or canned food. Hey guys, try making some meals from scratch with homemade sauce instead of Ragu once in a while.

[CofCinci]

This family is all in with PEOPLE.  Yikes.

 

Love how Michelle excuses herself from the medical event with an "appointment" in Chicago.  Ha!  You were at a Gothard cult meeting.

Edited April 28, 2015 by CofCinci

[Neet]

 

 

Jessa cooks dinner for Ben in their first home; Anna and Jill make a special craft while Josh teaches Derick about being a dad.

 

I thought the official preview would say "Josie has a seizure on camera and hopefully pops our ratings" since that's all the trailers ever show.

[JoanArc]

Looks like the seizure happened in the other episode, so I think we should movie all talk of it there.

[BitterApple]

Most boring episode ever. Listening to Anna and Jill talk about their pregnancies? Stick a fork in my eye already. I also thought the furniture Jessa chose was way too dark and heavy for such a small house, but maybe she's figuring she'll be upgrading homes before too long.

[Seashell Lover]

This family is all in with PEOPLE.  Yikes.

 

Love how Michelle excuses herself from the medical event with an "appointment" in Chicago.  Ha!  You were at a Gothard cult meeting.

Well you know Clown Car thinks Gothard is more important than her family.

[Chicklet]

I need a fork for both eyes, please.

And really how dumb is Jessa? She can read, can't she? That menu wasn't difficult.

Oh hell I give up, every one of them is dumber than I could even imagine.

[luvbadtv]

How did Jessa get those sweet potato fries cut so thin?  She had to have a food processor or some other method; no way she sliced them all.

[RazzleberryPie]

Well you know Clown Car thinks Gothard is more important than her family.

Gothard is just a means to an end AKA his programming give Michelle a whole lot of attention and glory that she wouldn't get elsewhere. I 100% believe that if Gothard's directives ever interfered with JimBob's money or Michelle's fundie fame, the Lord would lay it on their heart that they are called to fellowship in a different direction for the next season of life.

Oh, and COOKING IS NOT DIFFICULT. I'm not talking about Julie Child/Martha Stewart French cooking from scratch. I"m talking about basics, like rice, mashed potatoes, spaghetti, grilled chicken, etc. For girls who've been shoved in the kitchen or diapering babies their whole lives, they have to be truly stupid to not be able to prepare a simple meal. Truly stupid or truly traumatized and brainwashed to never be able to think for themselves. It's downright shameful.

[Jenniferbug]

I do not understand the big deal made about Derick's lack of experience with babies/young children (ie-he's never fastened a car seat before!) Among the men I know (and many of the women too), most have never done those things before having children of their own. It just bugged me that they kept pointing it out, as if Derick was somehow going to be deficient as a father because he hadn't spent much time with babies before.

I thought it was funny that Jessa almost baked the owners manual. I wouldn't have remembered to remove those either!

Jessa's "hahahahaha" after every damn thing she or Ben says is really starting to grate. It reminds me of the obnoxious laugh of Kendra from that Girls Next Door show years ago.

What were Anna and Jill crafting together? I missed the explanation while tending to my toddler.

[shannon612]

I do not understand the big deal made about Derick's lack of experience with babies/young children (ie-he's never fastened a car seat before!) Among the men I know (and many of the women too), most have never done those things before having children of their own. It just bugged me that they kept pointing it out, as if Derick was somehow going to be deficient as a father because he hadn't spent much time with babies before.

I thought it was funny that Jessa almost baked the owners manual. I wouldn't have remembered to remove those either!

Jessa's "hahahahaha" after every damn thing she or Ben says is really starting to grate. It reminds me of the obnoxious laugh of Kendra from that Girls Next Door show years ago.

What were Anna and Jill crafting together? I missed the explanation while tending to my toddler.

Anna and Jill were crafting some sort of inspirational board full of her favorite quotes to help her out during labor. Jill's idea.

[asuwur]

I can't believe that at this point, they haven't at the very least, moved Jana to her own room. Heck, even Binjerman's old loft in the barn would HAVE to be better than sharing a room with HER children. I wonder if Jana feels like the Old Woman in the Shoe living in the girl's squad bay...

[Jenniferbug]

Thank you, Shannon612!

[RazzleberryPie]

I know it would be against the family rules to attend any college other than a Christian Ministry college but I'd like to see Jana break tradition and go rogue and go to a normal college, with normal people her age, and study for a degree in a profession of her choosing.

Honestly, I think that Jana would have major culture shock and not be able to function at any college 'wilder' than Liberty, and I think she'd have a really difficult time away from her family. I want her to escape into whatever life she wants to chose for herself. Chose for herself being the key phrase. BUT, it's been so ingrained in her to follow every trite, brainwashed rule or character trait for every second of her life, with fear of eternal damnation and shaming God and her family, she's going to have the worst time of any of them in leaving home. 

 

Anna and Jill were crafting some sort of inspirational board full of her favorite quotes to help her out during labor. Jill's idea.

Kill me now. Kill me slowly with a rusty spoon, to the tune of cardboard violins, if I have to watch Anna patch together one more janky Bible school craft that involves baby planning, baby making, baby arriving, baby sleeping, playing, rocking, eating, burping, pooping, whatever. I applaud Anna for dealing with the kids she chose to have, but slow your roll, Anna. She needs to develop some interests that don't involve obsessing on pregnancies and babies. Read a book, go on a hike, just anything non-baby related.

[Dejana]

I do not understand the big deal made about Derick's lack of experience with babies/young children (ie-he's never fastened a car seat before!) Among the men I know (and many of the women too), most have never done those things before having children of their own. It just bugged me that they kept pointing it out, as if Derick was somehow going to be deficient as a father because he hadn't spent much time with babies before.

 

Among the Duggars and their social circle of super-sized families, a 25 year old who hasn't been around babies much must seem like a unicorn. 

[BitterApple]

Derick reminds me a lot of myself where I'm just not comfortable with small children. I'm not dying to practice installing car seats or changing diapers in preparation for my own future kids, I figure I'll just cross that bridge when I come to it. I think he's the same way which is why he often appears so annoyed in all these staged scenes.

[HumblePi]

 

Kill me now. Kill me slowly with a rusty spoon, to the tune of cardboard violins, if I have to watch Anna patch together one more janky Bible school craft that involves baby planning, baby making, baby arriving, baby sleeping, playing, rocking, eating, burping, pooping, whatever. I applaud Anna for dealing with the kids she chose to have, but slow your roll, Anna. She needs to develop some interests that don't involve obsessing on pregnancies and babies. Read a book, go on a hike, just anything non-baby related.

I look at Anna sometime when she's so immersed every single minute into her children and her constant kiss-kiss-kiss to Josh and I can see that she's a total brain-washed 'Stepford Wife' whose brain has been controlled all her life by her Fundamentalist extreme upbringing. Sometime I look at how her eyes are and she almost looks like someone that's hypnotized, like a robot almost. These 'girls' and I will refer to them all as 'girls' fall in love with love. They are conditioned to need babies for survival. It's a sick, induced mental illness to have the constant need to bear children or to be pregnant all the time.

[Maizie131]

I actually laughed out loud when she found the instruction/owner's manual melting in the oven -- pretty damn funny!  Not sure what the Anna & Jill craft thing was all about -- far too religious for my taste, but whatever gets you through it (labor). 

 

The Derick/baby seat thing didn't bother me because when I became a Grandmother for the first time 9 years ago I had to be shown how the hell to safely get my precious Granddaughter in that seat as secure as possible!  Quite frankly, I was scared to death the first time I had her in my car alone!  However, I did quickly notice that as Derick was strapping the baby in that it was a Britax car seat, which is what I bought for each of my Granddaughters.  Don't know if it still is, but 9 & 7 years ago, it was the "Cadillac" (i.e., most expensive) of ALL baby car seats.  These people aren't hurting, to be sure.  Of course, having your life on film - scripted or not - can't be easy, either, so who knows. 

 

Off topic - it'll be REAL interesting to see the reception of "The Willis Family" that premiers right after next week's 19/Counting.  I absolutely LOVE the promos...seem like normal folks (tho they did name all of kids w/"J" names).  Those 2 little kids at end of that promo are just cute as HELL!!!

[HumblePi]

There is no reason they can't partition that room and give the older girls and younger girls separate spaces. I presume none of the older girls (I'm thinking Jana - who is a 25 year old grown ass woman and needs her own space, same goes for Jinger at what, 20-21? - down to Joy) have period cramps, migraines, or anything that would make them feel like garbage, and not want to share a room with a bunch of elementary school kids?

And no privacy to use any sex toys since the little ones might ask what that noise is when they hear the 'humm' of the batteries humming happily.  JUST KIDDING! (no I don't, really)   :)

[MarysWetBar]

Yeah i find anna pretty sickening but at least she mothers her kids and they are cuties. Her and Jill together. .yuck.

Josh at the grocery store. .boring. Derrikdillard learning how to take care of little ones. .boring. This show needs to go.

[HumblePi]

http://www.people.com/article/19-kids-counting-josie-duggar-seizure

 

The posted a preview. Looks like Jim Bob and Michelle were at a Gothard meeting (which is based in Chicago, love those codewords!). They also had no problem showing quite a bit of Josie's body. Seems like Michelle is spinning it as febrile. The nurse in me wants to watch this episode, but I already want to barf.

"As the episode reveals, Josie has a history of seizures – this is the fourth or fifth she's had.

"One of the little glitches for Josie is that if she runs a fever, she does have the tendency to have febrile seizures," reveals Duggar matriarch Michelle, 48. "It might happen just like that; she'll spike a temp when you least expect it, and she'll have a seizure."

 

I wasn't aware of this article until now. But as a nurse also, I had known that seizure disorders, or epilepsy, happens frequently in children that were born 'super-premies' as Josie was. I was surprised to read that Michelle makes light of it by saying it happens when she has a fever. Most parents know when their kids starts running a temp and take steps to reduce the fever before it goes dangerously high. I can see that happening once, maybe twice. But once a parent sees that in their child, they are hyper-alert for those signs and symptoms and take measures to prevent it escalating to the point that the child has a seizure. It's really not that difficult to lower the temperature in a child once you know what to do. What I'm seeing with the Duggars is that everything is presented in a positive, happy way. They don't admit to illness, bad behavior, or really any difficulties in their lives at all. They want to appear to be a perfect, happy and healthy family. We know that's not realistic considering the number of children and the things that happen with children and their health and behaviors. And by the way, if I had a child prone to seizures, I wouldn't be flying off to go to Chicago and leave a daughter in charge totally unsupported and on her own. Jim Bob could have gone to that conference, meeting, holy roller thing without Michelle. He's a big boy that should be able to leave his wife with their kids while he goes off to do something else.

Edited April 29, 2015 by HumblePi

[Micks Picks]

Razzleberry, I'm going to find a rusty spoon right now, sorry to see you go, but I understand….

I tried pasting your quote but screwed up.  Easier to kill you with the spoon than quote you, but you know you'd hear a ton more baby shit from Anna.

 

Everybody else, those girls, almost all of them, said how much they LOVE sharing a room with their sisters.  Doesn't anybody believe them?  

 

Yeah, neither do I.

[Sew Sumi]

"All about safety," Derick? Tell that to the cat! 

[HumblePi]

How did Jessa get those sweet potato fries cut so thin?  She had to have a food processor or some other method; no way she sliced them all.

It was great seeing that Jessa put some time and effort into preparing a dinner that didn't come right out of a can or the freezer like all the other dinners on this show. Now if she could only convince Ben to take something for his stuffed up sinuses so he could actually taste her food, then she'll be a winner.

Edited April 29, 2015 by HumblePi

[Mrsjumbo]

She probably subbed out frozen sweet potato fries for homemade. They had to show her attempts at cooking as a time filler.

[woodscommaelle]

I'm beginning to get bitter about this couple.

Just 'beginning'???  Where have you been the past ten years ;)

[cmr2014]

 

Most boring episode ever. Listening to Anna and Jill talk about their pregnancies? Stick a fork in my eye already. 

 

OMG. I live on the west coast, and read this before I saw the episode. Seriously, if that made it onto the show, what ended up on the cutting room floor?

 

I think that Anna is one of those women who have "baby-fever." I had some hope last year that they were planning to have a more reasonable-size family, but I'm not sure now. If Anna needs to have a baby around all the time, and they don't space the births 3-4 years apart, they're going to end up with 10 kids. I realize that in this world, that's not such a big deal, but it really is a big deal.

 

While I realize that it was scripted for the show, Derick saying "I can't imagine having three kids running around the store," was priceless. In a few years he will wish he only had three kids running wild around the store.

[HumblePi]

Just 'beginning'???  Where have you been the past ten years ;)

I only got open-mouthed, astonished, disbelieving interested in this stupid show the past few weeks. Before that I just thought they were just a family of weird Arkansas people and never watched the show. Now I'm sickly fascinated with what I'm finding out is a show about a sick cult of religious freaks that are fundamentally misguided, twisted, mentally ill weirdos that want to rule the country eventually by over-breeding. At first i thought, "okay, they're strange but the kids are cute" then after a while "okay, they're strange, the kids are strange". And now, I think that couple is mentally ill and should never have been allowed to breed.  Just sayin'  :)

[pinguina]

What I thought was kind of maybe strange (?) was that for such a religious family, when Josh and family sat down for dinner  they just all began to eat.  Even I (a Catholic and according to them not Christian) pray before meals.  They didn't.  Just found it different from what they say do - maybe in their belief system they don't feel the need to bless the meal and thank God for the food. 

Also Anna's surprise that the "men folk" could actually get a meal together and how she had to hold herself back not to help.  

[zenme]

Anna has said in a previous episode that Josh is a good cook. Either he can cook or he can't, Anna. Which is it?

[cereality]

I realize that a 25 yr old without 4 babies of his own is like a unicorn or mermaid in their world, but seriously -- they've never met a 25 yr old who hasn't been around kids? Josh was being so smug about -- we have to start with parenting 101, he has never buckled a kid in a car seat. And even Mac sounded a little bratty saying -- I don't think Derick has spent time with kids before. And then Josh sort of ate his words when Derick buckled his kid in saying -- well it isn't rocket science. You could tell this was a TLC story line, but Derick was so not into it. When they're crossing through the parking lot, Josh is trying to get 3 kids to hold hands, while Derick has his hands in his pocket; when they enter the store, Derick is looking at his phone -- like any 25 yr old male -- and not looking adoringly at the children.

 

And why doesn't Mac call them Aunt Jill and Uncle Derick? Why is it just Jill and Derick -- given that they are 2 decades older? Is this the one issue on which they're trying to be progressive??

[Mrsjumbo]

Yes, I noticed she did not call them Aunt & Uncle, just their first names.

Also, maybe it was because I had twins, but I always corralled my kids at that age whether they could walk or not. Nothing more annoying than little ones pawing at everything at the store & whining to have it.

[Sile]

And why doesn't Mac call them Aunt Jill and Uncle Derick? Why is it just Jill and Derick -- given that they are 2 decades older? Is this the one issue on which they're trying to be progressive??

 

I think it's probably because their peers and playmates refer to them just as Jill and Derick since to them it's their sister and brother-in-law.  As the second wave of grandchildren comes of age together they might start adding aunt and uncle because that will be their common relationship to the older generation.

[Lillybee]

I don't understand why Jessa has such a hard time cooking, after all she was in charge of cooking lunch for at least a year.

Someone should give her a Rachel Ray cookbook, Rachel's meals are quick, easy, healthy and taste good. My daughter learned to cook using her books.

[Happyfatchick]

"And why doesn't Mac call them Aunt Jill and Uncle Derick? Why is it just Jill and Derick -- given that they are 2 decades older? Is this the one issue on which they're trying to be progressive??"

They will as they get older, Cereality. They hear the parents calling their siblings by first name, and it takes a couple years of hearing the parent addressing them as "Aunt ____" and "Uncle _______" for it to stick. I've noticed that within our own family dynamic. My two children with children of their own live next door to each other, and when those babies started to talk, they heard my kids calling each other by their first names. It just takes time for them to grasp what an "uncle" is, and who the title belongs to. Also, it occurs to me that while I myself only had to learn to give that title to 4 men (total) as a toddler, the M-babies have a whole data base of aunts and uncles. They'll think EVERYBODY other than their mom and dad must be either an uncle or an aunt.

Edited April 29, 2015 by Happyfatchick

[NikSac]

I'm just pretty happy they don't call him Derickdillard every single time.

[flyingdi]

Wasn't the knife Jessa was using to slice the sweet potatoes technically a bread knife? From what I saw, and I may be wrong, it had the same rounded front end of the knife you use to cut a loaf of bread.

I don't understand the surprise that men can cook. Traditionally, professional cooking has usually been a man's job.

[Spencer Hastings]

And why doesn't Mac call them Aunt Jill and Uncle Derick? Why is it just Jill and Derick -- given that they are 2 decades older? Is this the one issue on which they're trying to be progressive??

It could just be a matter of how formal they are. My nephew has never called me "Aunt ______", nor has he referred to my siblings as aunt or uncle unless he's talking about us to someone who may not be familiar with who we are. Growing up, I never called my aunts or even my great aunts on my mom's side anything other than their first names. You can bet your bottom dollar that the formalities kicked in when referring to my dad's sister, though. I never would have heard the end of that.

[NikSac]

Wasn't the knife Jessa was using to slice the sweet potatoes technically a bread knife? From what I saw, and I may be wrong, it had the same rounded front end of the knife you use to cut a loaf of bread.

I don't understand the surprise that men can cook. Traditionally, professional cooking has usually been a man's job.

 

My favorite knife - even though I have a nice set of knives - has always been my bread knife. I can see her picking that one even if it's not the traditional knife for the job.  And yes, I do think it's odd that "chef" is traditionally male while "home cook" seems to be mostly female. It seems to me like one area of gender inequality that's still pretty bad.

[Lillybee]

I thought that it was nice that Josh went out of his way to buy an expensive rack of lamb because Jill said that it was what she wanted. Those suckers are expensive but so good.

[cereality]

I thought that it was nice that Josh went out of his way to buy an expensive rack of lamb because Jill said that it was what she wanted. Those suckers are expensive but so good.

And there's one reason right there that Josh needs to put an end to the baby train. They wanted rack of lamb for dinner -- he was able to go get it. Those are the perks of having a well paying job in DC and a small-ish family -- you can splurge here and there and not worry about it. Who knows if this DC job is forever or if he's alternatively respected enough that he could get another similarly paid gig, should FRC get a new fair haired boy in a few years. Does he really want to be back in Arkansas on a used car salesmen's salary raising 7 kids and saying --maybe we'll get rack of lamb for our anniversary, it's TTC tonight and a canned veggie side?

[Spencer Hastings]

I thought that it was nice that Josh went out of his way to buy an expensive rack of lamb because Jill said that it was what she wanted. Those suckers are expensive but so good.

That was a nice moment. Sometimes I forget that these people are actually siblings and that the older 6 or so probably had a normal sibling bond at some point before they started having to raise the rest. Buying a rack of lambs because his pregnant sister wanted them was a normal big brother thing to do, almost as normal as him calling her a tattletale. ;)

[Neet]

I do think it's odd that "chef" is traditionally male while "home cook" seems to be mostly female. It seems to me like one area of gender inequality that's still pretty bad.

I'd say that's because more men want to go to culinary school. Women are not held back from becoming professional chefs, if that's what you're implying. Duggar women would be, but not regular ones.

[NikSac]

I'd say that's because more men want to go to culinary school. Women are not held back from becoming professional chefs, if that's what you're implying. Duggar women would be, but not regular ones.

 

True. I think women in general are held back from it some - and granted I'm going by what the female chefs on competition type shows say, so I don't know how accurate it is.  But it's not nearly as much as Duggar women would be.

[CofCinci]

Buy used save the difference -- guess Jessa's oven was so new that no one even thought to remove the manual.

 

"Glitch" - I just can't even go there.

[frenchtoast]

Even though TLC airs the episodes so that it feels like there's one, it was actually two, and there is a topic for each. Please try to talk about what happened in the correct episode topic. Thanks! *grumbles at TLC*