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

[galaxychaser]

I can't write cursive either.  At least I know how to address an envelope.

Henry you are too adorable.  I wish I had one kid to dote one. Sadly Jebus is not sending me anyone decent to procreate with :(.

I wish I was born a Duggar I'd be now a parent of 10 little fat munchkins.

[kalamac]

10 hours ago, floridamom said:

My opinion is if cursive writing is not taught in schools and it's a lost skill,, how are the future generations going to look back and read any documents, letters, etc that are written in cursive? It's a step in the illiterate direction to me. Not a good thing going here.

I'm glad cursive is dying out. I've had to process a lot of handwritten forms in my time, and so many people who know cursive have not only put their own 'flourishes' on the way they write, they also blatantly ignore the whole 'please fill out in block letters only', doubling the time it takes for us to input data, as we try to decipher their loopy scrawly cursive, which somehow looks completely different from the last person's loopy scrawly cursive.

At least with the forms coming in from younger people even if the printing is messy, I can still read it.

Back on topic,  I'm still holding out hope that Jessa isn't pregnant, and the boys will continue getting all the attention they need.

[queenanne]

19 hours ago, SMama said:

Henry is adorable and the grunts made me smile. I wonder if #bestfatherandhusbandever did not answer Jessa because he was absorbed with the Bible studies game heard in the background.

Well, he is walking with "weights", lol... I always assumed the grunts were the toddler's way of expressing amazement at their own cleverness.  I never deduced it was because it's hard to get those legs up an' over...

[bigskygirl]

Grunting could mean something else if you catch my drift. Heading to the prayer closet with some snacks, root beer for me and wine for everyone else.

[madpsych78]

10 hours ago, floridamom said:

My opinion is if cursive writing is not taught in schools and it's a lost skill,, how are the future generations going to look back and read any documents, letters, etc that are written in cursive? It's a step in the illiterate direction to me. Not a good thing going here.

That to me is the main reason to learn cursive - so you can read cursive. I know how to write in cursive but I prefer to print, which I think is fine. People should be allowed to choose whether they print or write in cursive.

[Barb23]

Henry looks like me in physical therapy including the :"weights."

[xwordfanatik]

18 hours ago, louannems said:

That big Duggar head...!

He's a cutie, but you're right.  I just hope for his sake, he doesn't look like Uncle Joshley as he gets older.

[Arwen Evenstar]

He’s an adorable little chunker! He has the makings of an unfortunate hairline.  Poor little one.

[RedheadZombie]

On ‎1‎/‎30‎/‎2018 at 10:40 PM, Sew Sumi said:

Henry's officially mobile.

I love little Henry, but I really can't stand that baby-voiced, Michelle simper Jessa uses when speaking to her children.

[graefin]

One thing I've noticed (although I could be wrong) is that Jessa's kids seem to have a lot more toys at their disposal than Jill's. They also seem (IMO) brighter, more engaged with the world, and happier overall than Jill's. I'd definitely think there's a correlation.

[lookeyloo]

@graefin - totally agree.  Poor Israel seems to have the "deer in the headlights" look a lot, like he is always on edge that something is going to happen.  I have commented before that so far Jessa's kids look happy, healthy, well fed, and nurtured, but, we can't predict if that will continue when there are 8 babies.

[Loves2Dance]

On 1/28/2018 at 12:19 PM, monkeypox said:

Nine-year-old Kenzie should sure as heck know how many sides a hexagon has and how to spell "square." Maybe 6-year-old Michael made all the errors and Kenzie is being taught never to correct boys because they are her superior? Aren't kids typically taught shapes in preschool? It's a crime those kids are not being educated. They will grow up to be dumb-as-posts, just like their parents.

 

Agreed. My 7 year old 2nd Grader is learning Sides, Vertices and Planes of 3D images and Hexagon is one of them. For 8 year old Kenzie not to know that, is a bit alarming. 

ETA: Kenzie is 8 not 9. Still, she should know what a Hexagon is. 

Edited February 1, 2018 by Loves2Dance

[Sew Sumi]

Kenzie is 8, but she should know her "shaps" by now. That's why I hold firm that board was Michael's handiwork.

[Loves2Dance]

On 1/30/2018 at 8:30 PM, Fostersmom said:

I'd bet my next pay check my nephew has absolutely NO idea on how to address an envelope. I remember learning how to address them as a kid in school, wrote letters even when I was in college in 1995, but now? I completely doubt it. 

Our local elementary school has named all of their hallways as streets and they have school mail. If you don't address is properly, it's sent back to the sender to try again. I refuse to let my kiddos get to adulthood without knowing the basic's of writing envelopes, answering the telephone, writing in cursive...etc. Thankfully, our school still teaches it. 

[Natalie68]

13 minutes ago, Loves2Dance said:

Our local elementary school has named all of their hallways as streets and they have school mail. If you don't address is properly, it's sent back to the sender to try again. I refuse to let my kiddos get to adulthood without knowing the basic's of writing envelopes, answering the telephone, writing in cursive...etc. Thankfully, our school still teaches it. 

All us old farts that deal with the 18-22 year olds will thank you!  

[awaken]

6 hours ago, Loves2Dance said:

Our local elementary school has named all of their hallways as streets and they have school mail. If you don't address is properly, it's sent back to the sender to try again. I refuse to let my kiddos get to adulthood without knowing the basic's of writing envelopes, answering the telephone, writing in cursive...etc. Thankfully, our school still teaches it. 

Same here. The hallways are streets and they have a mail system where they address and send letters to friends. And they teach cursive.  

[Madtown]

I'm OCD with tags. They have to be cut off, especially on kids toys. Henry is adorable though!

[zoomama]

19 hours ago, Loves2Dance said:

Our local elementary school has named all of their hallways as streets and they have school mail. If you don't address is properly, it's sent back to the sender to try again. I refuse to let my kiddos get to adulthood without knowing the basic's of writing envelopes, answering the telephone, writing in cursive...etc. Thankfully, our school still teaches it. 

that is brilliant!!!!!!!   gonnna share with my DIL who teaches 5th grade reading at a small school. 

[Barb23]

I love the school mail idea. 

Don't know if  someone mentioned this about the cursive writing. If the kids aren't taught it, how are they expected to have a signature, which is cursive?  Or will signatures have to change to printing? 

[Mollie]

Jessa just admitted on Instagram that she cooked a roast for the first time in her life. "Hubby grabbed a roast at the store the other night, and I must admit— I’ve NEVER made a roast before in my life." How is this possible?  She's been married for three years and she grew up in a family of 21 people where she and her sisters helped with meals.  A roast is just about the easiest thing in the world to cook:  you just stick it in the oven!  This is just another in a long string of examples about what a terrible mother Michelle really is.  Jessa decided not to call her mother to ask how to cook the roast; instead, she asked Google.

[saylubee]

6 minutes ago, Mollie said:

Jessa just admitted on Instagram that she cooked a roast for the first time in her life. "Hubby grabbed a roast at the store the other night, and I must admit— I’ve NEVER made a roast before in my life." How is this possible?  She's been married for three years and she grew up in a family of 21 people where she and her sisters helped with meals.  A roast is just about the easiest thing in the world to cook:  you just stick it in the oven!  This is just another in a long string of examples about what a terrible mother Michelle really is.  Jessa decided not to call her mother to ask how to cook the roast; instead, she asked Google.

Eh, I wouldn’t have expected the main Duggar family to eat a roast.  It can be very expensive.  I buy one for my husband on special occasions and it’s $15-$20 for a couple of pounds.  They’d probably need at least 4 roasts, maybe 5 to feed everyone.  I’m surprised she hasn’t made one for Ben before now, but maybe they didn’t want to spend the money on just the two of them.

[Mollie]

5 minutes ago, saylubee said:

Eh, I wouldn’t have expected the main Duggar family to eat a roast.  It can be very expensive.  I buy one for my husband on special occasions and it’s $15-$20 for a couple of pounds.  They’d probably need at least 4 roasts, maybe 5 to feed everyone.  I’m surprised she hasn’t made one for Ben before now, but maybe they didn’t want to spend the money on just the two of them.

Well, the Duggars spend about $5 a pound for the ground turkey they use for the tator tot casserole, the 32 oz package of tator tots is $3, $5 for the Cream of Mushroom soup, and etc.  They could certainly buy a roast for the same price as that casserole.

[cmr2014]

8 minutes ago, Mollie said:

Jessa just admitted on Instagram that she cooked a roast for the first time in her life. "Hubby grabbed a roast at the store the other night, and I must admit— I’ve NEVER made a roast before in my life." How is this possible?  She's been married for three years and she grew up in a family of 21 people where she and her sisters helped with meals.  A roast is just about the easiest thing in the world to cook:  you just stick it in the oven!  This is just another in a long string of examples about what a terrible mother Michelle really is.  Jessa decided not to call her mother to ask how to cook the roast; instead, she asked Google.

You're absolutely right!

I've gone on and on about this before. The Duggars aren't the first, or the only, large family in America. One of the things virtually every other woman who has grown up in a large family has learned to do is to cook. Even if the Duggars didn't make such an endless display of their cheapness, the only way to economically feed a large family is by cooking meals for the family. As far as I can tell, the Duggars have always lived on processed foods. The only "meals" that I know of that they ever eat together as a family are 1) tater-tot casserole, 2) spaghetti made with canned tuna and 3) frozen lasagna. We've also seen J'chelle cook eggs for JB. For the most part, we only see children eating food cold out of cans, or eating fast food.

How is she a "traditional homemaker?" How has she prepared her daughters to be traditional homemakers? Cooking is not that hard, and she could easily have perfected a number of meals that will feed a large family: turkey, meatloaf, spaghetti and meatballs, stews, soups, and roasts. She could easily have handed off the making of side dishes to her children as they got older and given them the opportunity to learn how to make mashed potatoes, rice, vegetables, and salads, and eventually have moved up to helping with main courses. 

She is nothing but a baby-oven.

[floridamom]

The Duggars didn't need to shop at a regular grocery store., they needed to purchase their produce and meats from a restaurant/commercial wholesale supplier. I agree that whole turkeys, like at Thanksgiving, roasts and purchasing 'whole animals' that are cut and trimmed would have been healthier and less expensive than purchasing 50 pounds worth of individually packaged meat from the Aldi meat counter.

[Mollie]

9 minutes ago, floridamom said:

The Duggars didn't need to shop at a regular grocery store., they needed to purchase their produce and meats from a restaurant/commercial wholesale supplier. I agree that whole turkeys, like at Thanksgiving, roasts and purchasing 'whole animals' that are cut and trimmed would have been healthier and less expensive than purchasing 50 pounds worth of individually packaged meat from the Aldi meat counter.

They live in cattle country.  You can buy a half side of beef, pre-packaged and labeled.  It will store in your freezer for six months.  It's what cattle ranchers do to feed their own families.  The Duggars prefer to feed their kids things with little nutritional value like tator tots and cream of mushroom soup.

[Temperance]

I know people who eat like them.  Mostly I remember the cereal and the sundaes.

It also goes back to Michelle being the youngest and married at 17. She probably never learned to cook herself.

At the same time they shop for food  like they shop for clothes. They only buy what makes them feel like they're saving money.  In America, a lot of clothes are super cheap, and they could probably shop at stores and webstores and spend about the same. (With maybe special trips, to find very long skirts, but even those are coming in.) But they have to shop at thrift stores, because that's make them look they're big savers. 

[SMama]

From the few episodes I watched, and the great snark here, their meals were made from canned and frozen ingredients. The special Mother’s Day meal Jill an Jessa “cooked” consisted of packaged salad, Stouffer’s lasagna, frozen bread rolls, and some dessert made with frozen strawberries. My ten year old makes lasagna, and a mean cream cheese garlic sauce, as well as some other things. The difference is that while I’m no great cook, my daughter has been my souz chef since she was 16 months old. Standing on a step stool, watching and learning. The reason I know my way around a kitchen is because I was my grandmother’s souz chef since I could walk. IOW it takes time and patience to get children used to prepping and cooking.

Sorry if this has already been covered, I started the response while waiting for said souz chef, then received a text that she had a fall at school. I threw my IPad on the seat and went to get her. It’s been over an hour since I started.

Well played Mr. Seewald, well played. Looks like Bin was tired of eating eggs, or the artery clogging TTH cuisine. That was a brilliant move, I’ll pick up a roast and something will have to be done with it. What is it with the Razor Back crockpot? Why such an obsession with a team from a higher education institution, the type Duggars dismiss as unnecessary?

[Me from ME]

Quote

That to me is the main reason to learn cursive - so you can read cursive. I know how to write in cursive but I prefer to print, which I think is fine. People should be allowed to choose whether they print or write in cursive.

I never got the hang of it and my cursive never looked acceptable. At one point I created a type of hybrid that contained less of those loops and flourishes. And then, many years ago there was an article in the NY Times Magazine about teaching italic handwriting to inner city kids who then took real pride in their penmanship. The Palmer system (cursive) was developed for secretaries before typewriters were invented because it was supposed to be rhythmic and less tiring. Long story short, I got a workbook and italic pen and tried to teach myself and have never looked back. People regularly compliment me on my penmanship which I find amazing since I always thought of myself having terrible handwriting. BTW forming the letters doesn't require a special pen but when I am using one it is quite attractive. And, the best thing is that I can write faster in italic than in cursive although my signature does look a bit like I am printing it - just a little more slanted and stylized.

[Barb23]

1 hour ago, floridamom said:

The Duggars didn't need to shop at a regular grocery store., they needed to purchase their produce and meats from a restaurant/commercial wholesale supplier. I agree that whole turkeys, like at Thanksgiving, roasts and purchasing 'whole animals' that are cut and trimmed would have been healthier and less expensive than purchasing 50 pounds worth of individually packaged meat from the Aldi meat counter.

IIRC, even the Gosselins went to a farm and bought half a cow's meat & froze it. It was an episode on the show. 

I totally agree about all the Razorback stuff. How easy is it for Jessea to throw the roast in said Razorback crock pot & add some veggies?  I add a packet of dry brown gravy mix, a packet of dry onion soup mix & a cup of water to mine  & voila, a nice meal with leftovers. Oh, and I love the smell while it's cooking!

[madpsych78]

Jeez, I saw that this thread was hot and I immediately thought that Jessa had announced her pregnancy. 

[SMama]

Oh yes, the smell. We make two crockpots of spaghetti sauce then vacuum seal them. Once we thought it’d be a great idea to make them overnight. The aroma was too distracting, SGirl was not happy that night. 

[Heathen]

38 minutes ago, Barb23 said:

IIRC, even the Gosselins went to a farm and bought half a cow's meat & froze it. It was an episode on the show. 

I totally agree about all the Razorback stuff. How easy is it for Jessea to throw the roast in said Razorback crock pot & add some veggies?  I add a packet of dry brown gravy mix, a packet of dry onion soup mix & a cup of water to mine  & voila, a nice meal with leftovers. Oh, and I love the smell while it's cooking!

Staged for the show. 

Jim Bob and Mullet are mediocre people with mediocre tastes. I'm not surprised they eschewed tasty, cost-efficient meals in favor of crap. 

Edited February 2, 2018 by Heathen

[queenanne]

58 minutes ago, SMama said:

From the few episodes I watched, and the great snark here, their meals were made from canned and frozen ingredients. The special Mother’s Day meal Jill an Jessa “cooked” consisted of packaged salad, Stouffer’s lasagna, frozen bread rolls, and some dessert made with frozen strawberries. My ten year old makes lasagna, and a mean cream cheese garlic sauce, as well as some other things. The difference is that while I’m no great cook, my daughter has been my souz chef since she was 16 months old. Standing on a step stool, watching and learning. The reason I know my way around a kitchen is because I was my grandmother’s souz chef since I could walk. IOW it takes time and patience to get children used to prepping and cooking.

Sorry if this has already been covered, I started the response while waiting for said souz chef, then received a text that she had a fall at school. I threw my IPad on the seat and went to get her. It’s been over an hour since I started.

Well played Mr. Seewald, well played. Looks like Bin was tired of eating eggs, or the artery clogging TTH cuisine. That was a brilliant move, I’ll pick up a roast and something will have to be done with it. What is it with the Razor Back crockpot? Why such an obsession with a team from a higher education institution, the type Duggars dismiss as unnecessary?

That's hilarious if that was actually Bin's thought process.

FWIW, not too long ago I was reading a message board where someone ridiculed pot roast as an old-fashioned meal they didn't think anybody ate anymore.  I guess that person only eats salads and similar, and is too hip for big chunks of meat?  I thought it was funny and insulting simultaneously.

[Vaysh]

1 minute ago, queenanne said:

FWIW, not too long ago I was reading a message board where someone ridiculed pot roast as an old-fashioned meal they didn't think anybody ate anymore.  I guess that person only eats salads and similar, and is too hip for big chunks of meat?  I thought it was funny and insulting simultaneously.

Joke's on them. Old-fashioned "genuine" food is in now, at least around these parts. There's often a modern twist to it, but traditional food like the kind your grandmother used to make is all the rage in fancy restaurants, cooking shows and the like.

Like many of you, I've always been absolutely baffled by the way the Duggars eat. Especially since they've always bragged about being so frugal. They literally have zero knowledge about food, nutrition, cooking methods or ingredients. I am still shaking my head at the episode where Mechelle declared instant noodles, cooked in a crock pot of all things, to be an excellent meal for kids because it had so much protein in it. Like wtf? Her marrying so young probably had a lot to do with her lack of skills and knowledge but seriously, even before the Internet there were plenty of cookbooks and food shows around. I get that not all people like cooking (my own mother hates it with a passion but she still managed to feed me decently) but if you're planning on bringing up a gazillion kids then maybe at least learn the basics?

[Loves2Dance]

3 hours ago, Mollie said:

Jessa just admitted on Instagram that she cooked a roast for the first time in her life. "Hubby grabbed a roast at the store the other night, and I must admit— I’ve NEVER made a roast before in my life." How is this possible?  She's been married for three years and she grew up in a family of 21 people where she and her sisters helped with meals.  A roast is just about the easiest thing in the world to cook:  you just stick it in the oven!  This is just another in a long string of examples about what a terrible mother Michelle really is.  Jessa decided not to call her mother to ask how to cook the roast; instead, she asked Google.

My mom hates roast, so I didn't grow up eating it. As a result, I never bought it. I'm 32 and I was probably 30 before I cooked a roast and only because it came in a subscription meal box. 

Fun Fact: I was 32 before I had the confidence to attempt meatloaf or lasagna. 

Edited February 3, 2018 by Loves2Dance

[bigskygirl]

My favorite meal is roast with mashed potatoes and gravy. I have used a toaster oven to fix roast, and it turn out well. If I can cook a roast without an oven or crock pot, a Duggar daughter can learn how to fix a half way decent meal.

[Westiepeach]

It took me a long time to buy and cook a roast. Properly. My mother, bless her heart, would cook roasts to death. 

[EVS]

I have a great  shredded Italian beef crock pot recipe. I basically cut the roast into 5 or 6 big chunks and then add beef broth, dry Italian dressing and a bunch of spices.  After about 8 hours,, the beef is really  tender and shreds easily. It makes the best sandwiches. 

Do the Duggars ever make chili? (I don’t watch the show.)  I’m making it tonight.  I would think that would be easy to make for a large family. 

[Loves2Dance]

35 minutes ago, EVS said:

I have a great  shredded Italian beef crock pot recipe. I basically cut the roast into 5 or 6 big chunks and then add beef broth, dry Italian dressing and a bunch of spices.  After about 8 hours,, the beef is really  tender and shreds easily. It makes the best sandwiches. 

Do the Duggars ever make chili? (I don’t watch the show.)  I’m making it tonight.  I would think that would be easy to make for a large family. 

I don't think I've ever seen them cook one before. We did Chili tonight and it was awesome---and so easy to make in large batches for large families. 

[Lady Edith]

3 hours ago, floridamom said:

The Duggars didn't need to shop at a regular grocery store., they needed to purchase their produce and meats from a restaurant/commercial wholesale supplier. I agree that whole turkeys, like at Thanksgiving, roasts and purchasing 'whole animals' that are cut and trimmed would have been healthier and less expensive than purchasing 50 pounds worth of individually packaged meat from the Aldi meat counter.

Exactly.

I live in the city and fresh, reasonably priced food is easy to come by.  You just need to get it and cook it. 

All of my meat comes from a wholesaler who sells meats to restaurants and grocery stores (with an additional storefront that is hugely busy).  It’s FANTASTIC and we eat GOOD.  My most recent trip included (cut to order)  17 NY strip steaks, 10# of boneless skinless chicken breasts that were at LEAST 3” thick, 10# of ground sirloin, 3 lbs of house made kielbasa, and a pork loin sliced into chops and a roast.  All this for $114.  I then hit Aldi and Sam’s club for produce and sides.  I bought a month’s worth of food for $400 for a family of 5 big eaters.

So yeah, no need for the Duggars to eat the crap they do other than convenience.  If I can feed five people VERY WELL for $400-500 per month, they have no excuse. 

[mythoughtis]

Michelle never learned to cook because she never took the time to learn. Once she had several children and then homeschooled, she never looked in the kitchen.  same reason they eat off paper plates.   I seriously think  her female offspring with children will come to realize their children deserve better than what they themselves got from JB and Michelle.  

[SMama]

56 minutes ago, EVS said:

I have a great  shredded Italian beef crock pot recipe. I basically cut the roast into 5 or 6 big chunks and then add beef broth, dry Italian dressing and a bunch of spices.  After about 8 hours,, the beef is really  tender and shreds easily. It makes the best sandwiches. 

Do the Duggars ever make chili? (I don’t watch the show.)  I’m making it tonight.  I would think that would be easy to make for a large family. 

Would you care to share the spices you use? 

I think there was an episode where they had Cincinnati Chili that Michele allegedly made. Boob had a huge plate before they had a dinner double date with Volderjosh and Anna.  There is no way I believe the mother of 19 who cooks two eggs at a time made a batch of chili. 

@Lady Edith, please tell me you live in So Cal and tell me where that fabulous place is located. WOW, you have mad shopping skills. We should have a thread on that because I need to learn.

[Rabbittron]

I am lucky with meat my ex mil has some ranches and each year we pick a cow and for 1.00 a pound the meat packing place cuts it for me.

[EVS]

12 minutes ago, SMama said:

Would you care to share the spices you use? 

I think there was an episode where they had Cincinnati Chili that Michele allegedly made. Boob had a huge plate before they had a dinner double date with Volderjosh and Anna.  There is no way I believe the mother of 19 who cooks two eggs at a time made a batch of chili. 

@Lady Edith, please tell me you live in So Cal and tell me where that fabulous place is located. WOW, you have mad shopping skills. We should have a thread on that because I need to learn.

Sure. I’ll post the recipe in the small talk thread. 

[louannems]

15 minutes ago, SMama said:

Would you care to share the spices you use? 

I think there was an episode where they had Cincinnati Chili that Michele allegedly made. Boob had a huge plate before they had a dinner double date with Volderjosh and Anna.  There is no way I believe the mother of 19 who cooks two eggs at a time made a batch of chili. 

@Lady Edith, please tell me you live in So Cal and tell me where that fabulous place is located. WOW, you have mad shopping skills. We should have a thread on that because I need to learn.

Cooking two eggs at a time is silly in a huge family.  So is individual packets of instant oatmeal (shown in an episode where Jackson prepared instant oatmeal for his little sister).  We love our oats and cheaply buy 25 lb bags of oatmeal.  And we're just a family of four!

And the episode where JB made pizza using tiny packages of pre-grated cheese.  Why not buy the better and tastier blocks of cheese and give the kids a grater?

And buying frozen tator-tots when big bags of potatoes are fresher, more nutritious and cheap.

With a family that size, that huge pantry could have been lined with large, food grade containers filled with raw ingredients purchased in bulk.  Pinto beans, split peas and lentils, popcorn kernels, oatmeal, rice, etc.

And all that Styrofoam is truly just sinful!

I applaud Jessa for cooking a simple roast.  Good for her.  She is learning!

[Churchhoney]

On 1/31/2018 at 3:43 PM, louannems said:

That big Duggar head...!

Yeah. What the heck do they keep in those big heads, anyway? We know it can't be brains. 

[Churchhoney]

3 hours ago, Westiepeach said:

It took me a long time to buy and cook a roast. Properly. My mother, bless her heart, would cook roasts to death. 

Yep, that was my experience, too. I was well into adulthood before I learned that a roast wasn't supposed to fall apart into a heap of stringy, dry meat-matchsticks. After I left home, I avoided roast beef in all its forms for years and wondered what the fuss was about and why it was expensive. ... Finally I tried some and couldn't believe that I was eating the same stuff. Decided I would learn to cook it . 

[louannems]

7 minutes ago, Churchhoney said:

Yep, that was my experience, too. I was well into adulthood before I learned that a roast wasn't supposed to fall apart into a heap of stringy, dry meat-matchsticks. After I left home, I avoided roast beef in all its forms for years and wondered what the fuss was about and why it was expensive. ... Finally I tried some and couldn't believe that I was eating the same stuff. Decided I would learn to cook it . 

Standing rib roast is expensive and too rich tasting (fatty) for my taste.  I buy top round, bottom round, or eye of round, all of which are very lean.  And they do very well in the crock pot.  They are not expensive. Sirloin roast cost more than the round roasts, and have more fat, so more tender without all day crocking.

[Barb23]

2 hours ago, louannems said:

Cooking two eggs at a time is silly in a huge family.  So is individual packets of instant oatmeal (shown in an episode where Jackson prepared instant oatmeal for his little sister).  We love our oats and cheaply buy 25 lb bags of oatmeal.  And we're just a family of four!

And the episode where JB made pizza using tiny packages of pre-grated cheese.  Why not buy the better and tastier blocks of cheese and give the kids a grater?

And buying frozen tator-tots when big bags of potatoes are fresher, more nutritious and cheap.

With a family that size, that huge pantry could have been lined with large, food grade containers filled with raw ingredients purchased in bulk.  Pinto beans, split peas and lentils, popcorn kernels, oatmeal, rice, etc.

And all that Styrofoam is truly just sinful!

I applaud Jessa for cooking a simple roast.  Good for her.  She is learning!

I was going to post something similar. I think the pantry is shown stocked with the regular sized canned goods & boxes of things like macaroni mix.

I think Michelle's recipe for chicken noodle soup starts with cans of soup.. Sorry, don't feel like checking their "homemade" recipes on Ellie & Lilly's site. 

Remember how strange it was for Joshlsy to eat baked salmon &  fresh veggies that Anna made with help of nutritionist (ot whoever it was)when they were in DC?  Im sure it was first time he had eaten fish.

I know we've said before, how easy is it for them to stock up on frozen turkeys when they're  cheaper around Thanksgiving? Very easy to throw a couple in their ovens & have enough for a variety of meals & sandwiches. Oops i forgot roasting turkeys was a novelty for the older duggar girls.

I really would like to see what their meals consist of.  Its a shame we have to

give the Duggars meal ideas. BTW, I hope they celebrsted- today  was National Tater Tot Day.

[Portia]

Okay, I'm a snot, but I've got to say it: some people around here who are alarmed about children who can't address envelopes or write in cursive need to master their basic apostrophe skills.