S10.E18: Jill's Special Delivery

[bigskygirl]

 

After nine months, it is time for Jill and Derick to meet their baby; complications arise and the couple may have to wait a little longer before welcoming Baby Dilly.

 

[lottiedottie]

THEY BLURRED JILL'S KNEES DURING HER PEDICURE.

WTF?

 

Cathy's gift to Derrick was really sweet.

Jenny looks like she is over all this shit.

Michelle talking to Josie=batshit crazy.

My 12 year old son said that the screams Baby Dilly was making upon his birth sounded like he was screaming "WHY? WHY? WHY?"

 

Despite my dislike for this entire family, Jill and Derrick both looked really happy to have a baby. 

[cereality]

Could only focus on the last half hr as I didn't have time for 90 min of filler -- but what is wrong with them?! They went from the hospital to the Duggars? Is it a good idea for a 4 day old to be around 21 other kids -- many small ones who always seem to have runny noses? I was surprised that they didn't go inside. And what husband in his right mind would say 4 days after a c section -- can we have another?! And what wife would gush "oh yeah he's so cute, we have to have more." Um -- you just had this one less than a week ago.

 

Derick definitely comes across like a dork, which I guess is an ok role for fundie men -- see JB, Josh, John David etc.

[NJRach]

Snoozefest. This should have been condensed into a half hour episode. A lot of the footage in the first hour was a repeat of last night.

[MichaelaRae]

Well, that was as vomitous as I expected (I was hate watching with my sister via text.) But I confess I got a little verklempt when Derrick was gifted with a copy of his father's diary entry about him. I AM NOT MADE OF STONE, PEOPLE.

[flyingdi]

Did Jill really say, immediately upon meeting her son, "he's not ugly!" Or did I hear it wrong? Where did that come from?

[hlemommy]

I didn't see the first flip phone in the duggar family

And did I hear jill say the baby is beautiful and not ugly?

[SmallTownMom]

I thought this was going to be "Jill's Special Delivery."  Instead we get clip after clip of Mechelle "delivering every one of them!"  Who the hell cares?

 

And Lord forgive me, but Josie is not right!  Our 2 1/2 year old granddaughter has better language skills, and when they showed her licking/biting the crib, and snapping at imaginary flies or whatever during her TH, I couldn't believe my eyes.

 

Gotta go watch the Willis family now.  I hope the Duggars time on TLC is limited.  It's too painful to watch.

[Katydid]

All that talk of Pistol Pete kinda made me sad, knowing there's little chance Izzy will get to carry on the family tradition. Regardless of what Derek said about them encouraging their kids to do whatever they want in life, a lot will have to change in that family for that to actually happen.

It was very sweet of Cathy to give Derek his father's writings about awaiting his birth. But I hated that the Duggars were there to gawk at such an emotional moment.

I suppose maybe Jill agreed to pull into the drive at the TTH briefly so everyone could meet Iz as opposed to having them running wild in her house. I was glad she didn't get out of the car.

Wild-eyed party planner Sierra will be back next week planning the M4 reveal. Oh goody.

[SoSueMe]

Yep, Michelle still managed to make it about her at every opportunity.

 

I had seen the preview with Josie and the crib. I had posted how her hair seemed dirty and unkempt. I swear I would not have believed that that was Josie's "after" hair, yikes!!!

Edited May 6, 2015 by SoSueMe

[VioletNevermind]

My mind is spinning from the five damn hours of Duggarmania I've been subjected to in the last 24 hours . . .

 

* I was blown away in the most pleasant way when Derick said that he and Jill were willing to allow their children to choose their own destinies, i.e. go to college, decide which career path they'd like to follow, etc.  We'll see if that actually happens.

 

* When the little informational message popped up that said, "Jill has changed over 10,000 diapers," I felt so sad.  Along with her sisters, Jill has already done a mother's work many times over for years and years.  I'm a big fan of kids helping out around the house where they're needed, but I also think that young people should have the opportunity to explore their own interests.  Not one of these kids has had that and it's absolutely unfair.

 

* Michelle talks to Josie as if she's two-years-old.  It's gone from odd and sad to creepy real fast.  Even Josie looked at her as if to say, "Lady, can you please allow me to grow up?!"

 

* Once again, Michelle got to hold court as the established, experienced mother, imparting wisdom to the plebes.  I think I really do hate her.

 

* I can see Jill turning into a mini version of Michelle before my eyes.  She clearly loves the attention that her fundie status brings her and is very much aware of the cameras.  I guarantee you all that she will be pregnant again before 2016 (you heard it here first).

 

* Cathy is still awesome and, judging by the look on his face during Derick's birthday party, her poor husband couldn't be less interested in this whole trainwreck.

 

* Sorry for including this here, but did anyone else see the intro of The Willis Family, immediately following 19 Kids?  They're religious, they're homeschooled, and the kids have all J names, too.  Some of the names are even the same as the Duggars'.  Is this show a hint that TLC is looking for a Duggar replacement?  I don't even know what to say.  I'll give it a chance, but I don't think I'll be able to stomach another show like this, especially if they're going to spend every episode singing.

Edited May 6, 2015 by SuzyLee

[Wellfleet]

Snoozefest. This should have been condensed into a half hour episode. A lot of the footage in the first hour was a repeat of last night.

 

Completely agree. Even with more courtships, marriages and babies in the pipeline, it's very clear TLC's rapidly running out of ways to "present" this family. Other than having babies, and experiencing, to some extent at least, the courtship-engagement-wedding formalities that traditionally lead up to babies, that's it. That's all they do. They had 30 minutes of content here and flattened it out into 2 really boring hours. It didn't help that we've all known the outcome of the story for a month either. They don't do anything else - positive or negative - that's interesting and filmable. Well, there is Josh's work for FRC, and the appearances the family makes. But neither TLC nor the Duggars want them filmed. So the well is running dry...

[Micks Picks]

Truth in advertising, TLC people.  The woman didn't even have a twitch until 90 min into the episode.

 

Stay tuned for another gender reveal.  I don't think so.  I know I won't.  What all this gender shit anyway.  No, everybody here don't answer me.  I know the difference between the words gender and sex.  They want to know the sex of the kid.

 

How about we give them a W0RD party, A and A words, adjectives and adverbs.  Everybody write one along with ways to use them in sentences and put them in pretty boxes.  I'll provide the paper plates and punch.  

[andromeda331]

A baby is a prize? They really don't see them asan actual person do they?

 

James school box in a cubhole wow they really don't care about education do they?

 

Its not uncommon for grandparents to offer their kids crib to them. I wonder what happened to their orginal crib.

 

Loved the diary entry from Derick's dad

 

Cathy was so excited. It was so sweet.

 

Jill your an idiot

[Joe Jitsu913]

This episode was a totally special neat awesome precious blessing.

[BitterApple]

Fucking A. Can we have one episode that isn't all about Michelle? Is that too much to ask for? And yes, I distinctly heard the word "ugly" come out of Jill's mouth but I didn't catch the rest of the sentence.

Derick is becoming more like Boob every day. There were several points in the episode where I thought Jill looked really annoyed with him and then she'd plaster on the fake smile. They're like Boob and Michelle Jr. I also thought Jill looked exhausted and just wanted to go home after being released from the hospital and it was more Derick's desire to stop by the TTH.

Also don't know if any of you caught it, but Jessa's baby bump was so obvious when she was wearing that tight pink shirt.

[SoSueMe]

Michelle seemed to have a really strange affect when commenting on Jubilee. At first she seemed to be smiling and happy, then during the flashback telling the family there wasn't a tear to be seen, maybe that is just how she expresses grief? 

[BitterApple]

Forgot to add, to our fellow snarkers on the West Coast, the first hour and a half of this episode is coma - inducing filler. If you just want to see the birth don't bother watching until the last thirty minutes. Some us need to make it through unscathed so you can tell the world our story...

[SoSueMe]

Fucking A. Can we have one episode that isn't all about Michelle? Is that too much to ask for? And yes, I distinctly heard the word "ugly" come out of Jill's mouth but I didn't catch the rest of the sentence.

Derick is becoming more like Boob every day. There were several points in the episode where I thought Jill looked really annoyed with him and then she'd plaster on the fake smile. They're like Boob and Michelle Jr. I also thought Jill looked exhausted and just wanted to go home after being released from the hospital and it was more Derick's desire to stop by the TTH.

Also don't know if any of you caught it, but Jessa's baby bump was so obvious when she was wearing that tight pink shirt.

I thought it looked like Jessa was trying to obscure it.

[jcbrown]

On the West Coast so I have not yet had the pleasure of this. Even these few comments validate my strategy: have gin close at hand and alternate Duggar bullshit with watching parts of last night's RuPaul's Drag Race. I like watching something that would absolutely appall them.

 

ETA: Thanks for taking one for the West Coast team, BitterApple.

Edited May 6, 2015 by jcbrown

[Joe Jitsu913]

How long until Jill is sperminated again? You know she's disappointed with Izzy's birth.

[BitterApple]

I thought it looked like Jessa was trying to obscure it.

I agree. In the first part of the episode they were trying to shoot Jessa from the chest up but you could tell her boobs looked really big. At the end she's strategically placed in the background as everyone crowds around to look at Baby Iz, but then one of the little kids moves and her pregnancy is so obvious.

Eta: jcbrown, I do what I can. As a group we've already been through so much:)

Edited May 6, 2015 by BitterApple

[farmgal4]

Did they really have to drag that shit out for two hours? 30 minutes would have sufficed. Most of what they showed was just a repeat from last night plus a lot of ridiculous filler crap. When Michelle speaks she really just says a whole lot of nothing, doesn't she? That baby looked like a 3 month old being pulled from the womb. And who waits until a week before the due date to prepare the nursery? Lunatics, all of them...

[Jusagirlintheworld]

I'm only halfway through. Jill and Derrick said they would allow their children to go to a university. Woohoo! Good for them!

[Wellfleet]

How long until Jill is sperminated again? You know she's disappointed with Izzy's birth.

 

Personally I think she'll be pregnant before her first anniversary. But if she experiences a more difficult recuperation from Izzy than she admits to, it may take until Jessa has her baby before Jilly has another bun in the oven.

[farmgal4]

Forgot to add, to our fellow snarkers on the West Coast, the first hour and a half of this episode is coma - inducing filler. If you just want to see the birth don't bother watching until the last thirty minutes. Some us need to make it through unscathed so you can tell the world our story...

I really, really need to start reading these forums from the top down instead of from the bottom up; I basically just posted this same thing. The show was an hour and a half too long. Ridiculous!

[Micks Picks]

I really appreciate the folks on the east coast giving us a warning.  The system I'm on right now shows it twice, pacific time, at 6 and at 9.  When I move back to my house again and reorder a satellite service, I'll get dvd again so I can have it and not watch.  I probably had 300 hours on my last dvd I never watched.  But I could have so guess I'm happy just recording.  Joe jitzu makes me laugh.

[NJRach]

So was this Jill's special delivery? Or Michelle's? Michelle got more air time than Jill.

 

Michelle's bug-eyed face when talking to Josie about the "baby bed" (fyi it's called a crib, dorky Duggars) - she looked possessed. I was thinking of what she must look like to Josie. That's your mother, Josie - with her bulging vacant eyes three inches from your face, talking like a high-pitched zombie.

[shannon612]

My mind is spinning from the five damn hours of Duggarmania I've been subjected to in the last 24 hours . . .

 

* I was blown away in the most pleasant way when Derick said that he and Jill were willing to allow their children to choose their own destinies, i.e. go to college, decide which career path they'd like to follow, etc.  We'll see if that actually happens.

 

* When the little informational message popped up that said, "Jill has changed over 10,000 diapers," I felt so sad.  Along with her sisters, Jill has already done a mother's work many times over for years and years.  I'm a big fan of kids helping out around the house where they're needed, but I also think that young people should have the opportunity to explore their own interests.  Not one of these kids has had that and it's absolutely unfair.

 

* Michelle talks to Josie as if she's two-years-old.  It's gone from odd and sad to creepy real fast.  Even Josie looked at her as if to say, "Lady, can you please allow me to grow up?!"

 

* Once again, Michelle got to hold court as the established, experienced mother, imparting wisdom to the plebes.  I think I really do hate her.

 

* I can see Jill turning into a mini version of Michelle before my eyes.  She clearly loves the attention that her fundie status brings her and is very much aware of the cameras.  I guarantee you all that she will be pregnant again before 2016 (you heard it here first).

 

* Cathy is still awesome and, judging by the look on his face during Derick's birthday party, her poor husband couldn't be less interested in this whole trainwreck.

 

* Sorry for including this here, but did anyone else see the intro of The Willis Family, immediately following 19 Kids?  They're religious, they're homeschooled, and the kids have all J names, too.  Some of the names are even the same as the Duggars'.  Is this show a hint that TLC is looking for a Duggar replacement?  I don't even know what to say.  I'll give it a chance, but I don't think I'll be able to stomach another show like this, especially if they're going to spend every episode singing.

Is Kathy remarried after her husband died? I think I am missing something...

[BitterApple]

Well, that was as vomitous as I expected (I was hate watching with my sister via text.) But I confess I got a little verklempt when Derrick was gifted with a copy of his father's diary entry about him. I AM NOT MADE OF STONE, PEOPLE.

Once again Cathy knocks it out of the park. When Derick was reading the diary entry and paused, realizing it was his father, not his mother, who wrote it, I teared up. I also thought the shirt Dan wore for the shower was really cute. The Dillards seemed truly excited to welcome a new baby, Israel's not just another cog in the wheel like he is with the Duggars.

Shannon, yes Cathy is remarried.

Edited May 6, 2015 by BitterApple

[mmecorday]

So Michelle and Boob were holding on to the crib because they thought they'd have more kids? Look, Crazy Baby Lady, you have 19 kids and you gave birth to every one of them. That is your claim to fame. I hope in the future this show is retitled "Nineteen Is Enough." But not bloody likely.

 

That baby was huge! Congratulations, Jilly! It's a preschooler!

 

Anna really looks deranged. Like she's constantly thinking, "I gotta make a run to Sam's Club for a crate of pregnancy tests!" She's already halfway to duplicating the "small family of eight" she came from.

 

I have never had a miscarriage, but I imagine it's extremely painful - both physically and emotionally. I don't know why Michelle is OK with showing the footage of Jubilee's final ultrasound over and over. The first time I saw that scene my heart broke for Michelle and Boob, but then they turned something that should have been very private into another chance to put the spotlight on them.

[TVFAN]

I channel surfed through the first 90 minutes, but I will say I enjoyed the last half hour.  The timeline made far more sense after having seen it play out.  Jill's labor seemed to start and stop more than once.  I would have headed to the hospital before she did, but nothing indicated to me that Israel was ever put in any danger.

 

Jill seemed more than amenable to what the doctor wanted to do.  Unless the editing monkeys were heavily at work, I saw nothing to indicate that she fought for a drug-free vaginal delivery or tried to tell the doctor how to do his job.  They gave her something to induce labor, and she accepted the epidural.

 

Jill and Derrick are over the moon about little Israel as they should be.  I wish their little family well.  Cathy was right there at the hospital with Michelle, and Michelle, to her credit, did not seem to be trying to run the show.  I don't think the Dillards are being pushed out of the way. 

 

I completely get the concerns about taking Israel to meet so many people when he was so itty bitty, but they did not seem to be passing him around like a football, and the children all seemed genuinely excited to meet him.  It was all surprisingly low key and normal.

[NJRach]

I'm confused about Jill's explanation of the baby being breech transverse - isn't there just breech, or transverse? Upside down or across. Was this baby diagonal or something? 

 

And did I really hear her say something about turning the baby? Huh??? Like someone is going to stick their hands up there and turn a 10 lb baby?

 

I got the shakes when I saw how much time had elapsed after Jill's water broke and when she decided to go to the hospital. Why risk the health of your baby by toughing it out?

 

I think Jill being a midwife is a scary thing, based on what we saw tonight.

If there hadn't been a doctor available (someone with the education that the Duggars don't feel is necessary), I shudder to think what would have happened to Jill. On and off labor for days and days, a baby who never was in a position to be born, infection from the broken water, Jill just fading away. Ugh. Horrible to think of.

Edited May 6, 2015 by NJRach

[auntieminem]

This show made me feel more optimistic for the little ones and future Dillards.  Pass the rose colored glasses.  

 

I was glad to see Derrick's mom so involved and her gift was so sweet and touching. The guys going to the shower was funny and it was nice to see Derrick is still close to his brother and mother to counter balance the Duggar craziness. I enjoyed seeing the little girls flop those babies around when Michelle was trying to teach them how to take care of babies. Jennifer made it clear she was way over taking care of babies. Some of the boys seem to be humorous  in their talking heads. But I was mostly happy that Derrick is still promoting education so that gives me hope his kids will be encouraged to be more than baby making Duggars and even Jill was talking about maybe having another Pistol Pete. 

[Literata]

The best line of the whole mess came from Dan: "Pin the tail on the ... baby?"

What the hell was MEchelle putting in Josie's hair?

I admit to having liked the Pistol Pete stuff. I don't have any illusions, but it's fun to hope that Jill and Derick might actually encourage their kids to go to college.

Poor Cathy looked so frail. Bless her heart for giving Derick such a meaningful gift. I am so hoping she and her family are able to have significant influence over that baby.

I have never seen such a giant-looking newborn. I had a 9.2-pounder, but I think Israel's length made him look especially huge.

I'm even more disgusted than usual with MEchelle. Wonder how long she could possibly go without using the words "I" and "me."

[farmgal4]

I thought this was going to be "Jill's Special Delivery."  Instead we get clip after clip of Mechelle "delivering every one of them!"  Who the hell cares?

 

And Lord forgive me, but Josie is not right!  Our 2 1/2 year old granddaughter has better language skills, and when they showed her licking/biting the crib, and snapping at imaginary flies or whatever during her TH, I couldn't believe my eyes.

 

Gotta go watch the Willis family now.  I hope the Duggars time on TLC is limited.  It's too painful to watch.

I'm glad you brought up Josie. I really haven't watched this show since she was a baby. After watching tonight, I don't really know what to think about Josie. I know that I can't understand a word she says; she desperately needs speech therapy. And the way she acted during her THs? Part of me thinks that she's just very immature and spoiled and is just showing out in front of the cameras. But then I also had this nagging thought that something is not right about this child. If there IS something wrong, it wouldn't be surprising given that she weighed a little over a pound at birth. I'm really very amazed that she's anywhere near normal in any area. The problem lies in the fact that the Duggars are too stupid to get her help if she needs it.

[Sew Sumi]

How long until Jill is sperminated again? You know she's disappointed with Izzy's birth.

Well, she can have sex again in 11 days. If she's like her mother and starts her cycles right away, she could be knocked up with a pee-stick confirmation by this time next month. Yikes. 

[NJRach]

I noticed in this episode that Josie looks stiff when she moves. It's hard to explain, but she is very herky-jerky, especially when compared to Jordyn, who is closest in age to her. Her hands just don't look like they are very flexible either. Maybe she needs some Occupational Therapy.

[BitterApple]

Josie is an odd duck because she vacillates between appearing completely normal and strangely "off". When Michelle went all bug eyed and helium voiced with her in the kitchen Josie had a look on her face like "I'm not a freaking idiot lady, you can talk normally." But then when she does her TH's she's scattered and twitchy. It's hard to figure her out

Edited May 6, 2015 by BitterApple

[farmgal4]

I'm confused about Jill's explanation of the baby being breech transverse - isn't there just breech, or transverse? Upside down or across. Was this baby diagonal or something? 

 

And did I really hear her say something about turning the baby? Huh??? Like someone is going to stick their hands up there and turn a 10 lb baby?

 

I got the shakes when I saw how much time had elapsed after Jill's water broke and when she decided to go to the hospital. Why risk the health of your baby by toughing it out?

 

I think Jill being a midwife is a scary thing, based on what we saw tonight.

If there hadn't been a doctor available (someone with the education that the Duggars don't feel is necessary), I shudder to think what would have happened to Jill. On and off labor for days and days, a baby who never was in a position to be born, infection from the broken water, Jill just fading away. Ugh. Horrible to think of.

Doctors actually turn babies from the outside, with lots of lubricant and hands on the belly. It's very painful for the mother and can be dangerous for mother and baby. There's always a risk of uterine rupture and/or the cord wrapping around the baby's neck. It would have never worked for Jill because the bag of water had already ruptured and the baby was way too large.

[SoSueMe]

Truth in advertising, TLC people.  The woman didn't even have a twitch until 90 min into the episode.

 

Stay tuned for another gender reveal.  I don't think so.  I know I won't.  What all this gender shit anyway.  No, everybody here don't answer me.  I know the difference between the words gender and sex.  They want to know the sex of the kid.

 

How about we give them a W0RD party, A and A words, adjectives and adverbs.  Everybody write one along with ways to use them in sentences and put them in pretty boxes.  I'll provide the paper plates and punch.  

Gender/sex....have any of the Duggars ever spoken the word "sex"? Serious question, I'm fairly new. Also I noticed they seemed to avoid the word " vaginal birth"  (vs. c-section) tonight. I think they may have referred to it as "normal" or "regular" birth? 

Edited May 6, 2015 by SoSueMe

[Dejana]

I'm confused about Jill's explanation of the baby being breech transverse - isn't there just breech, or transverse? Upside down or across. Was this baby diagonal or something? 

 

And did I really hear her say something about turning the baby? Huh??? Like someone is going to stick their hands up there and turn a 10 lb baby?

 

I'd imagine Jill hoped they could turn the baby externally. I would guess it's something midwives would do more than OBs these days, especially in the US.

 

This could have been an hour special at the most, but two hours will get TLC good ratings anyway, so why not?

 

Jill having her knees blurred during the manicure—how modest (and Michelle) of her! I thought Derick getting a pedicure would be considered too "unmanly" in these circles but Jesus did have his feet washed, so that's probably the only reason this group would consider it acceptable and not confusing gender roles somehow.

Edited May 6, 2015 by Dejana

[pinguina]

Saw the "special" delivery episode tonight. Some things were just weird:

*Planning a lunch date with your daughter to talk about pregnancy and labor - Fiends that have been pregnant had spontaneous converstaions with their mom about pregnancy and labor. They didn't need to make an appointment with their moms to talk about it.

*Although this was supposedly about Jill and Derrick's baby, Michelle sure managed to talk an awful lot about her pregnancies and labor (with video and pictures!).

*Maybe if Jill had gone to a see a real doctor they would have discovered that the baby was in a breech position before she went into labor.  My friend's second baby was in a breech position.  She found out when she went to her DOCTOR'S appointment in her 7th or 8th month.  She went later and they turned the baby inside so  she could have a regular delivery.

 

And this was just too cool (in my opinion):

* Derrick's mom giving him a note written by his dad about Derrick before he was born - that was just so real and showed such a connection between Derrick and     his dad!

* The bib was cute too!

*Cathy being at the hospital so genuinely excited about the birth of her grandson.

 

Also - don't know where to put it but here goes - saw the Willis family.  They seem like a nice and real family.

[NEGirl]

Well, we all knew we would not be able to see Jill giving birth without seeing  Michelle's various births over and over. The first hour was very boring and I could not stand watching Derick getting his toe nails clippred-gross.  I hope they sanded down those bite marks all over the crib before it was given to Jill.   The scene with Cathy when she gave Derick the journal were very touching.  After seeing those "Pistol Pete" scenes I truly hope Jill and Derick send their kids to school and college, but time will tell.

[wanderwoman]

Watching Jill try to wait out the birth was making me tense. There comes a point when YOUR wants or desires for a natural birth have to come second to your baby's need. The midwife is scary and Jill knows just enough to be dangerous. I'm all for natural birth and midwives, but 70 hours of labor with meconium staining and you still want to try turning the baby?

There is definitely a major "glitch" with Josie. We left the NICU today with a binder full of things to watch out for and our baby was bigger than Josie. I think Josie has an organic problem that is further hampered by her family's chaotic lifestyle, last-born-baby spoiling, and lack of parental investment.

[Wellfleet]

Gender/sex....have any of the Duggars ever spoken the word "sex"? Serious question, I'm fairly new. Also I noticed they seemed to avoid the word " vaginal birth"  (vs. c-section) tonight. I think they may have referred to it as "normal" or "regular" birth? 

 

No, come to think of it. I don't think I've ever heard Boob say the word sex or vaginal etc. Lest you think he's a complete prude however - he and Me-chelle have demonstrated coitus - as Sheldon Cooper would say - doggy-style as a matter of fact - on a miniature golf course for the benefit of Jessa and Ben. 

Edited May 6, 2015 by Wellfleet

[Morgalisa]

I love Josie. I think she is funny and cute. I wish she had a spin off.

[Wellfleet]

Josie is an odd duck because she vacillates between appearing completely normal and strangely "off". When Michelle went all bug eyed and helium voiced with her in the kitchen Josie had a look on her face like "I'm not a freaking idiot lady, you can talk normally." But then when she does her TH's she's scattered and twitchy. It's hard to figure her out

 

It is hard to figure out exactly what's wrong, but there is something. Just speaking from a teacher's perspective, and though I'd never be qualified to make any kind of diagnosis, I'd still have a lot of questions. Can she say the alphabet? Or just sing it? Can she count? Can she identify the sound each letter makes? Group items by size, color or shape? Can she hold a pencil? Write her name? Cut with scissors? Ride a trike? Bounce a ball? Draw a picture of herself? Can she connect dots? Put a puzzle together? Can she skip? Follow simple directions? Use descriptive words? Recite short pieces [poems, rhymes etc]? Etc etc...

[Sew Sumi]

Hannie is so over her entire family. First with diaper changing the baby-dolls, then describing how she got into Muffy's baby shower gifts to be the first one who saw them. 

[birkenstock]

It was weird how Michelle/Jim Bob centric the special was in some places. I scowled at the TV when Michelle went on about how the spouse always comes first. All I've seen from Jim Bob and Michelle is putting their own interests over their kids. I agree the married couple should make time for themselves and their relationship. However, they created 19 individuals that need to have actual lives and be nurtured. You gave birth to every one and need to take care of them, Michelle.  Jim Bob is just as responsible for this since neither seem to have any problem leaving the state and country without their children.  I hope Jill and Derick can be more child-centric and actually let their children have their own lives and pursue their interests.

 

Jill saying that Johannah could take care of Israel on her own made me a little nervous.  Luckily,

there are adults who can help Jill with him. I can't imagine leaving a baby with a 9 year old.