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

[DangerousMinds]

Agree. Jessa is the last person I'd want to see more of.

[Caracoa1]

I believe once the TLC gravy train ends I bet Boob will cut off the married kidults...I can see him pinching those pennies tight.  I think Jessa will bolt first to People Magazine and every talk show out there for a "Tell All" story and blow Boob's fundie family life to the sky!  She will definitely secure her future!

[JoanArc]

On 6/25/2014 at 10:31 PM, Marigny said:

Then they wouldn't get the paycheck that comes with having two wedding specials. 

You just know the five  couples (Plus Jim Bob and his she-narcissist) will write a book about marriage. There's another paycheck.

[Buggin]

I don't think anything is necessarily wrong with Wilberforce (though I did think he looked jaundiced in the other picture). My first was a much cuter newborn than my second, who held on to the wrinkly old man look for a couple months at least.

[lascuba]

I really think that Henry looks exactly like Ben's mom, unphotogenicity and all. Guinn's an attractive woman, but 95% of the time she looks super off in pictures, like that episode of Friends where Chandler's face turned grotesque every time he saw a camera on him. 

I'm wondering if he's also just a harder baby than Spurgeon. I haven't seen any of the videos, but ifJessa does look less enthused this time around, it might be because he's not sleeping as well as Spurgeon did. And if that's the case, I wonder if that will mean a longer wait before she gets pregnant again. I have a friend who jokes that if her second baby had been born first, he would have been an only child, because he had colic and was a horrible sleeper, while her first child was so easy that she was eager to have another baby. 

[maraleia]

On 3/11/2017 at 5:47 PM, Mollie said:

Something's not right about this new baby.  These one-month pictures of Spurgeon and H. Wilberforce show the new baby with red blotches on his face, a bloated tummy and noticeably shorter legs.  Plus, he just looks unhappy.  What do you think?

 

Something happened with this birth and they aren't saying what it is. Also, look at his toes.

In other news, Ben needs to slow his roll and realize the world doesn't operate the way the Gothard/Quiverfull movement does.

[SMama]

What did you notice about Henry's chubby baby toes? I zoomed in but did not see anything off. Maybe @doodlebug can assist, she's seen many of those uncooked babies.

Edited March 13, 2017 by SMama

[doodlebug]

8 minutes ago, SMama said:

What did you notice about Henry's chubby baby toes? I zoomed in but did not see anything off. Maybe @doodlebug can assist, she's seen many of those uncooked babies.

His toes look ok to me.  As far as looking unhappy, month old babies usually cannot smile on demand.  He looks alert, his hands and arms are flexed which indicates normal muscle tone and he looks like he's gained a normal amount of weight since birth.  I don't see any indications of major problems with him.

[SMama]

Thank you!

[queenanne]

I always feel sorry for babies with acne.  It always looks so angry, like it's trying to eat them.

[awaken]

Pediatric care provider here... the baby is fine. Just not as cute or an early smiler like his brother, has baby acne, and probably caught in a fussy moment for the photo. 

@Jynnan tonnix very interesting! So, did you eventually fall in love, or not?

[Jynnan tonnix]

9 hours ago, awaken said:

Pediatric care provider here... the baby is fine. Just not as cute or an early smiler like his brother, has baby acne, and probably caught in a fussy moment for the photo. 

@Jynnan tonnix very interesting! So, did you eventually fall in love, or not?

Not in any sort of head-over-heels, dopamine-fueled way. More like in the song, "Do You Love Me?" from Fiddler on the Roof..."I suppose I do"...I do wonder what I missed by never having been in a relationship where I had that feeling about someone. Because I always was very prone to crushes, just not generally on people I actually knew, and never, really, on anyone who reciprocated. I guess one of the reasons I eventually agreed to marry my husband was that not being blindly in love, at least I was aware of all his faults, so I was going into it with a clear head. He's not an easy man to live with, but he is spectacularly intelligent, hard working, generous to a fault, with an iron core of integrity, and that's a whole lot more than many people end up with when they marry the man of their dreams, so I'm OK with it.

[cdp73]

13 hours ago, doodlebug said:

His toes look ok to me.  As far as looking unhappy, month old babies usually cannot smile on demand.  He looks alert, his hands and arms are flexed which indicates normal muscle tone and he looks like he's gained a normal amount of weight since birth.  I don't see any indications of major problems with him.

Doodlebug, it's kind of sad that your assessment from looking at a photograph is the most professional medical care this child will receive.

[flyingdi]

I kind of think Henry just has a big head compared to the rest of his body.  That's how it looks to me.

[Nysha]

On 3/11/2017 at 5:17 PM, BitterApple said:

I hope he's okay, but in the videos I've seen neither Bin nor Jessa seems particularly enthused this time around.

They've got an active toddler and a newborn, so they're probably exhausted. Plus, Henry isn't as pretty as Spurgeon was and nothing he does is going to be new, like it was when Spurgeon did it. I think Henry's okay, they're just having 2nd kid adjustment issues.

[AUgirl]

53 minutes ago, Nysha said:

They've got an active toddler and a newborn, so they're probably exhausted. Plus, Henry isn't as pretty as Spurgeon was and nothing he does is going to be new, like it was when Spurgeon did it. I think Henry's okay, they're just having 2nd kid adjustment issues.

Mine were four years apart and going from one to two was extremely hard for me. It didn't help baby 2 was cranky and screamed all the time and would not let anyone touch him but me. 

[tabloidlover]

They were spoiled with Spurgeon (HATE typing that name) because he was a happy and easy baby.   I'm thinking Henry is not so easy.  Add on having a toddler, and life could be pretty hard.  Their marriage didn't look too sturdy to begin with, who knows what it's like with the added stress.  

My first was extremely hard, colicky screaming 13 hours a day, acid reflux spit up all the time..... Thus my first is my only.   The thought of going through it again terrified me. 

Edited March 14, 2017 by tabloidlover

[laurakaye]

1 hour ago, AUgirl said:

Mine were four years apart and going from one to two was extremely hard for me. It didn't help baby 2 was cranky and screamed all the time and would not let anyone touch him but me. 

Same exact situation for me.  I was completely exhausted, having to constantly tend to a colicky newborn and still make sure my 4-year old was taken care of.  I recently asked my son (my older child) if he remembers what it was like when his little sister cried for hours on end, and many times at the end of a particularly hard day, I would be crying, too.  Fortunately he has no memory of that time, but I felt incredibly guilty for leaving him in front of the television while I tried to soothe my new baby.  Going from one to two is very stressful, especially if the first baby is easy.  This is probably the case with Jessa, and she also knows that it's her lot in life to pop out 7 or 8 more in as many years.  Maybe she's re-thinking this life plan?

[sheshark]

My first, breech via emergency cesarian, was hyper, muscular and loud!  The nurses kept telling me how 'alert' she was, proud mama I was.  Four exhausting years later, I went for it and had the quiet boy of my dreams.  He woke up to nurse and then went back to sleep.  The nurses congratulated me on having him 'on schedule' so soon.  Ha.

[Nysha]

13 hours ago, tabloidlover said:

My first was extremely hard, colicky screaming 13 hours a day, acid reflux spit up all the time..... Thus my first is my only.   The thought of going through it again terrified me. 

 

My granddaughter is an only child for the same reason. 

[DangerousMinds]

Eh, Jessa and Bin are both young, unemployed, and have no bills to pay. They also have many family members helping them out. No sympathy from me.

[Jynnan tonnix]

My first was a very demanding and contrary baby who woke up screaming at full wail every morning (not to mention during the night). He really didn't sleep through the night with any regularity before close to his first birthday. But glutton for punishment that I am, and because, as an only child who did NOT enjoy it, I was determined to have at least two in close enough succession that they could be friends, I had my second 22 months later. She turned out to be a very happy, easy baby and toddler. Not really having had a lot of baby experience before becoming a mother myself, I had no idea that there even WERE easy babies until she was born! My third was also very easygoing, as I have heard many people say that third babies have a tendency to be. My own parents were both third children and babies of their families, and both remember being somewhat the "favorite".

[BitterApple]

57 minutes ago, Jynnan tonnix said:

 My own parents were both third children and babies of their families, and both remember being somewhat the "favorite".

I was the third, and to hear my older siblings tell it, the favorite. Up until my Dad passed away a few years ago, he'd send me $100 in a card every few months, even though I've been self-supporting since I was 18. When you're the youngest, you're always the "baby" no matter you're age. 

[Fosca]

As a third but NOT the baby, I suspect being the "favorite" had more about being last than being third.

On topic, Henry is about the ugliest baby ever.  It doesn't help that he's there next to Spurgeon, that even a renowned baby-hater like myself thinks is cute.  If Henry is a handful and not fun/photogenic, it will be interesting to see how quickly Ben and Jessa have another.

[Albanyguy]

11 hours ago, DangerousMinds said:

Eh, Jessa and Bin are both young, unemployed, and have no bills to pay. They also have many family members helping them out. No sympathy from me.

Yeah, when Spurgeon was born, Jana had to walk the floor with him at night, so that Jessa and Ben could get their beauty sleep. I'm sure the same thing is happening with Henry.

[Natalie68]

12 hours ago, BitterApple said:

I was the third, and to hear my older siblings tell it, the favorite. Up until my Dad passed away a few years ago, he'd send me $100 in a card every few months, even though I've been self-supporting since I was 18. When you're the youngest, you're always the "baby" no matter you're age. 

I am the baby also (of 3 girls).  It wasn't until my dad died that I found out he had told my sister I was his favorite.  She felt slighted.  I never would have known by how I was treated.  

[BitterApple]

5 hours ago, Fosca said:

 

On topic, Henry is about the ugliest baby ever.  

I feel bad for saying it, but Henry really is homely, the poor thing. I know he'll turn out good looking because both Ben and Jessa are attractive, but he's going to have a lot of awkward phases along the way.

[Jellybeans]

I think Henry is cute.  

[RazzleberryPie]

I think Henry is cute, too.

[ChiCricket]

I think he's cute...as a potato. (some babies have to outgrow their potato-ness)

Edited March 15, 2017 by ChiCricket
-

[Jynnan tonnix]

2 hours ago, ChiCricket said:

I think he's cute...as a potato. (some babies have to outgrow their potato-ness)

Exactly! I still maintain that he could easily grow up better looking than Spurge.

[cmr2014]

1 hour ago, Jynnan tonnix said:

Exactly! I still maintain that he could easily grow up better looking than Spurge.

Henry's problem isn't that he's ugly, it's that his parents are members of a cult and he will never leave the compound, never go to school, never have friends, never make any choices for himself, etc. Spurgeon may or may not grow up to be a better looking person, but it will hardly matter, his life won't be any better . . .

[Nysha]

17 minutes ago, cmr2014 said:

Henry's problem isn't that he's ugly, it's that his parents are members of a cult and he will never leave the compound, never go to school, never have friends, never make any choices for himself, etc. Spurgeon may or may not grow up to be a better looking person, but it will hardly matter, his life won't be any better . . .

 

This is so true. 

[Brown eyed girl]

https://instagram.com/p/BRraYQIFIpY/ 

Spurgeon is too cute singing. 

[Love2dance]

8 hours ago, Natalie68 said:

I am the baby also (of 3 girls).  It wasn't until my dad died that I found out he had told my sister I was his favorite.  She felt slighted.  I never would have known by how I was treated.  

So sorry @Natalie68. Sounds like hard memories for both of you. 

[Jynnan tonnix]

48 minutes ago, cmr2014 said:

Henry's problem isn't that he's ugly, it's that his parents are members of a cult and he will never leave the compound, never go to school, never have friends, never make any choices for himself, etc. Spurgeon may or may not grow up to be a better looking person, but it will hardly matter, his life won't be any better . . .

Well, that's an entirely different matter. I suppose that even knowing what we do about this circus, we still somehow see the children born into it as having at least some good chunk of a lifetime to escape. And inside the cult or outside of it, his looks shouldn't be paramount anyway. Though, if you really think about it, a girl's "countenance" is a definite asset in their world, and while a guy certainly doesn't seem looked down on for somewhat unfortunate looks, I think there might be a big difference in the way a real standout among the Duggar men (if they had one) would be treated. 

[WhineandCheez]

Quote

Ben just posted a video on Instagram warning people to not see the movie "The Shack" as it presents a false god image. 

Funny, because a coworker was telling me about the movie and inside, without my expression changing, I'm thinking, "Man, that sounds waaaay too Christian for me."

 

Quote

 

https://instagram.com/p/BRraYQIFIpY/

Spurgeon is too cute singing. 

 

Phew, that's harsh.  A baby singing about Jesus' blood and sin? I grew up Mennonite and even we were singing about Jesus loving the little children of the world.

Edited March 16, 2017 by WhineandCheez

[Barb23]

45 minutes ago, WhineandCheez said:

 

 

Phew, that's harsh.  A baby singing about Jesus' blood and sin? I grew up Mennonite and even we were singing about Jesus loving the little children of the world.

I thought the same thing.  I know he's just repeating the words & he is cute singing & really concentrating on it, but still.....

Which reminds me --What's the song the Duggar 19 used to sing at their performances when they were young?  IIRC, it had to do with Jesus & blood.  Not exactly Jesus Loves Me .

[Minivanessa]

58 minutes ago, WhineandCheez said:

Phew, that's harsh.  A baby singing about Jesus' blood and sin? I grew up Mennonite and even we were singing about Jesus loving the little children of the world.

Yeah, they are all into the hellfire and damnation. Michelle posted a video, Watch Josie Recite Her Favorite Bible Verse. Which was actually Michelle reading to prompt Josie, who was IMO just parroting what Michelle said. And wiggling, wriggling, moving around, and waving her arms. 

I absolutely do not think the verse was Josie's favorite, and maybe I'm going straight to hell but I also doubt that Jose really understood it. I mean, what kid that age relates to: "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night."

They start 'em young on the sin and damnation stuff.

[Natalie68]

13 hours ago, Love2dance said:

So sorry @Natalie68. Sounds like hard memories for both of you. 

Thank you.  Its been hard and Saturday will be the 2 year anniversary of his passing.  

[Churchhoney]

2 hours ago, WhineandCheez said:

Funny, because a coworker was telling me about the movie and inside, without my expression changing, I'm thinking, "Man, that sounds waaaay too Christian for me."

 

Phew, that's harsh.  A baby singing about Jesus' blood and sin? I grew up Mennonite and even we were singing about Jesus loving the little children of the world.

Oh, I'm sure they'll eventually make sure that Spurgie knows that that song's all about good news, though. Maybe they'll even share how it means that Tabitha's honored umbrella of protection whatshisname never has to say he's sorry for anal rape, several kinds of betrayal, and perpetual public trashing of what some misguided people consider his victim. But, you know, blood has washed away his sin. So that hussy can bite it. Our way is the great way, Spurgie. 

[Arwen Evenstar]

1 hour ago, Churchhoney said:

Oh, I'm sure they'll eventually make sure that Spurgie knows that that song's all about good news, though. Maybe they'll even share how it means that Tabitha's honored umbrella of protection whatshisname never has to say he's sorry for anal rape, several kinds of betrayal, and perpetual public trashing of what some misguided people consider his victim. But, you know, blood has washed away his sin. So that hussy can bite it. Our way is the great way, Spurgie. 

Yeah, I don't think that kind of thinking they have is very pleasing to the Lord. It's arrogant and discredits those who have benefited from second chances.

[jilliannatalia]

On 3/12/2017 at 6:15 PM, SMama said:

What did you notice about Henry's chubby baby toes? I zoomed in but did not see anything off. Maybe @doodlebug can assist, she's seen many of those uncooked babies.

I have no knowledge of any condition of which it would be indicative, but there's a rather large gap between his big toe and toe #2.

[Mollie]

9 minutes ago, jilliannatalia said:

I have no knowledge of any condition of which it would be indicative, but there's a rather large gap between his big toe and toe #2.

Nicolaides-Baraitser syndrome

https://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition/nicolaides-baraitser-syndrome

Also Down syndrome.

[SMama]

I did notice the gap, but it's not bilateral, not sure if that matters. When I zoomed in it looked like what both my kids had done as infants when flexing their cute toes.

But I'm not a doctor, and have no idea what I'm talking about. Also thought @doodlebug would have noted if significant.

As much as I loathe his parents' hubris, I hope Henry is OK physically. Because his life is going to suck in every other aspect growing up in that cult, with intellectually challenged parents.

Edited March 17, 2017 by SMama

[jilliannatalia]

58 minutes ago, SMama said:

I did notice the gap, but it's not bilateral, not sure if that matters. When I zoomed in it looked like what both my kids had done as infants when flexing their cute toes.

But I'm not a doctor, and have no idea what I'm talking about. Also thought @doodlebug would have noted if significant.

As much as I loathe his parents's hubris, I hope Henry is OK physically. Because his life is going to suck in every other aspect growing up in that cult, with intellectually challenged parents.

My dad is an OBGYN and my mom is a retired pediatric nurse practitioner. I showed them the picture of H. Wilberforce.  Both said the child looked like he was afflicted with neither Nicolaides-Baraitser Syndrome nor Down Syndrome. My dad commented commented that it's not appropriate to base anything on a single picture, but my mom in particular thought he didn't look anything like a baby with either syndrome. She said he may have a case of FLK Syndrome. I already knew from my college and  brief teaching experience that it stood for "funny-looking kid."

[doodlebug]

5 hours ago, Mollie said:

Nicolaides-Baraitser syndrome

https://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition/nicolaides-baraitser-syndrome

Also Down syndrome.

Both of those syndromes have numerous signs and symptoms, none of which Henry has. The 'toe gap' is not a sign of either one although both syndromes can involve abnormalities of the fingers and toes. The separation between his toes is a baby thing, lots of them have it, it's a muscle tone thing, I think.  It's really a bad idea to diagnose kids, or anyone else,  over the internet.

[Mollie]

1 minute ago, doodlebug said:

Both of those syndromes have numerous signs and symptoms, none of which Henry has. The 'toe gap' is not a sign of either one although both syndromes can involve abnormalities of the fingers and toes. The separation between his toes is a baby thing, lots of them have it, it's a muscle tone thing, I think.  It's really a bad idea to diagnose kids, or anyone else,  over the internet.

The toe gap is a sign of both of those syndromes.

Nobody said the baby has either one.   

[RazzleberryPie]

I've seen tons of babies and adults who are perfectly normal and have that toe gap.

Wilber looks like a totally normal baby, maybe slightly fussing in that pic.

Criticize adult Jessa and Bin for their behavior all day long, or even their appearance, but this baby did nothing to deserve being accused of having abnormalities, or anything he could prevent himself.

Besides - look at Josie, who was a preemie, and I personally think is normal but just feral/undisciplined. They put her one a pedestal to loudly proclaim how special God made her and how righteous they are for not aborting her. If they had a kid with Downs, deformities, abnormalities, etc., they'd blow Josie out of the water with how blessed they were to be given a gift that other heathen people would abort, blah blah blah, etc. 

[queenanne]

1 hour ago, RazzleberryPie said:

I've seen tons of babies and adults who are perfectly normal and have that toe gap.

Wilber looks like a totally normal baby, maybe slightly fussing in that pic.

Criticize adult Jessa and Bin for their behavior all day long, or even their appearance, but this baby did nothing to deserve being accused of having abnormalities, or anything he could prevent himself.

Besides - look at Josie, who was a preemie, and I personally think is normal but just feral/undisciplined. They put her one a pedestal to loudly proclaim how special God made her and how righteous they are for not aborting her. If they had a kid with Downs, deformities, abnormalities, etc., they'd blow Josie out of the water with how blessed they were to be given a gift that other heathen people would abort, blah blah blah, etc. 

They would - IF they knew.  Has this baby seen a doctor in person?

That said, I do agree with the "wise not to diagnose anyone, including yourself, over the Internet" statement, because if you start looking you'll come away convinced you're afflicted with half a dozen hypochondriac-style ailments yourself, that are in fact nothing.