The Duggars and Their World: Fashion, Food, Finance, Schoolin’ and Child Rearin'

[emmawoodhouse]

51 minutes ago, beckie said:

Doesn't Jinger have naturally curly hair, too?

Yes, but I responded to a question specifically about Jessa. 😀

[beckie]

9 hours ago, emmawoodhouse said:

Yes, but I responded to a question specifically about Jessa. 😀

It mentioned the rest of the jslaves, too. I thought that included everyone.

[BigBingerBro]

[emmawoodhouse]

I use the pic with Joy and the bodyguards as my avatar on FJ. 

[GeeGolly]

Its fun to compare the evolution of the Bates and Duggar families. As far as fashion, 4 Bates sisters are very and trend, without any consideration for modesty and there's 3 sisters who continue to wear 'modern modest'. Then we have the Duggar sisters - trendy Jinger and boho Jill, while the rest of them continue the 'modern modest', yet with occasional pants. Tori Bates and Jessa could go toe to toe with their frump wear.

As far as either families' brothers 'aging well', there is a Bates brother who does not wear his weight well. I'm not knocking his size, but his face has changed dramatically. The Bates boys have always been light years ahead of the Duggar boys, to the point of maybe too much.

As far as the parents go, I think both sets are wearing the same clothes they always have.

[BigBingerBro]

[GeeGolly]

When discussions pop up about any of the Duggar 19 breaking away, IMO "breaking away" has a couple different meanings. It could mean rejecting Fundyism, rejecting JB & M, or a true break away and rejecting both.

So far we've seen a handful of sisters part ways with some Gothardisms. As far as I can see, that's it.

Derick was/is mad at JB, but not because of what JB believes, or because of how JB & M raised Jill, he's mad at JB over money. The Dillards may belong to a more mainstream church, but they still carry, IMO, some extreme beliefs.

It'll be interesting to see how the Dillards' and Vuolos' statements impact their relationships with JB & M. But in the end it could just end up being a small family disagreement over a difference in opinion, and then things go back to normal.

[Scarlett45]

Quoting @Ohiopirate02

Quote

JB has done a great job of giving his adult offspring just about whatever he/she would want to stay in the fold.  It does help that he and Michelle beat out any curiosity their children may have once had, but all of their needs are being met as well as many of their wants.  JD wants to become a pilot and JB buys him a plane.  Some of the Howlers want to go hunting with their buds in Colorado, and there is enough money for that.  Others want to go snowboarding out of state, and they all have top of the line gear.  The Duggar kids are more travelled than most of us on these boards.  

Jessa is living the exact life she wants.  If she did go to Daddy and complained about how small the Mold House is, JB would instantly find her 3 properties nearby that would fit her growing family.  

 

I agree with this. I have mentioned this before, but I have a close friend that grew up very similarly to the Duggars, she is now 100% estranged from her parents (she had to file a restraining order against them), she cannot follow any of these types of families because she finds it triggering, but she knows I hang out on these boards and asked me about the case against Josh..

My friend says she was able to break away, 1. God given high iq, 2. Being an only child of only children (if she had a bunch of siblings to care for she probably would've stayed for them), 3. being a Lesbian- the idea of being placed into a Quiverfull marriage to a man made her want to vomit. She didnt know she was a lesbian as a teen, but she knew the idea of kissing a man disgusted her. Because she was an only child her parents did let her go to college (likely to attract a man with a high paying job to help care for them in their old age).

Knowing my friend's situation, if the Duggars did not have the financial means to keep their kids "happy" with toys and freedoms, I think we would be looking at a very different situation. If some of the kids HAD to get trades/go into the mainstream world to earn an income to support the family I think we would see a greater variety in lifestyles at this point (with over half the kids being 18+). Even looking at the Bates family- Michaela has pursued education because she has not been able to have children. If the Duggars did not have the resources they did, one of the older girls providing the domestic support would still make sense, but no way would Jessa have married Ben for example- they wouldnt have had a way to support themselves!

[Nysha]

I think if money had been an issue in the Duggar family and there was no TLC Jessa might not have married Ben, but she'd have married his IBLP doppelgänger. Her life would look more like Joy's did when she first got married. Her husband would have some rinky-dink self-employed job & they would have lived in a travel trailer or a dingy 1 bedroom apartment. And she would be as unhappy with that life as she seems to be with her real life.

[GeeGolly]

6 minutes ago, Nysha said:

I think if money had been an issue in the Duggar family and there was no TLC Jessa might not have married Ben, but she'd have married his IBLP doppelgänger. Her life would look more like Joy's did when she first got married. Her husband would have some rinky-dink self-employed job & they would have lived in a travel trailer or a dingy 1 bedroom apartment. And she would be as unhappy with that life as she seems to be with her real life.

Ben did have a job, a car and was attending school when they met, so if they didn't have the show, that rinky-dink self employed guy, might actually be Ben.

[Zella]

I'm really not convinced that Ben still isn't a rinky-dinky self-employed guy. I have a hard time believing his preaching gig is full-time with bennies. 

[Minivanessa]

4 minutes ago, Zella said:

I'm really not convinced that Ben still isn't a rinky-dinky self-employed guy. I have a hard time believing his preaching gig is full-time with bennies. 

Me too. I went to the FB page of his church not too long ago. It has a very small number of followers, which indicates a small congregation. 

[emmawoodhouse]

4 minutes ago, Zella said:

I'm really not convinced that Ben still isn't a rinky-dinky self-employed guy. I have a hard time believing his preaching gig is full-time with bennies. 

I agree. I believe he's still working for Boob in some capacity. I think Laura is tutoring the lost girls now, but Ben could be Boob's admin asst.

[Zella]

1 minute ago, Jeeves said:

Me too. I went to the FB page of his church not too long ago. It has a very small number of followers, which indicates a small congregation. 

Yeah I'd been wondering about that. I grew up in those kinds of churches, and they never had a full-time pastor. The more diligent ones spent a lot of their free time doing pastorly type things (like visiting the sick), but they still had regular jobs through the week. 

1 minute ago, emmawoodhouse said:

I agree. I believe he's still working for Boob in some capacity. I think Laura is tutoring the lost girls now, but Ben could be Boob's admin asst.

I could see that. Might explain why he's apparently the family attack dog now. (God how sad is it when your muscle is Ben Seewald. This is not how you build a functioning crime family, Jim Bob.) 

[GeeGolly]

23 minutes ago, Zella said:

I could see that. Might explain why he's apparently the family attack dog now. (God how sad is it when your muscle is Ben Seewald. This is not how you build a functioning crime family, Jim Bob.) 

Well, considering his other options to pick from...

On second thought, JB is not going to have anyone but himself and Michelle up in his business. So maybe Ben is, well, I have no idea what Ben is doing, lol.

[Zella]

2 minutes ago, GeeGolly said:

Well, considering his other options to pick from...

On second thought, JB is not going to have anyone but himself and Michelle up in his business. So maybe Ben is, well, I have no idea what Ben is doing, lol.

For future son-in-laws, he might need to update his questionnaire. "Are you able and willing to defend my honor without question on the battlefields of Facebook and Twitter?" 

[iwantcookies]

Ben is no Tony Soprano. 

[cmr2014]

1 hour ago, emmawoodhouse said:

I agree. I believe he's still working for Boob in some capacity. I think Laura is tutoring the lost girls now, but Ben could be Boob's admin asst.

He must be doing something to earn his "paycheck" from "Duggar Enterprises." I doubt it's anything related to the "house flipping" or car businesses since we never see him in the company of the Howlers. I wonder if he sees himself as too good for manual labor now that he has his Bible college degree, or if he doesn't get along with the Howlers?

I suppose there are always toilets needing a good scrubbing . . .

[Ohiopirate02]

The Duggar's favorite secular movie is on ABC tonight.  I did turn in at the right time to see the smoking hot chemistry between Julie and Christopher.   And then I had to go read one of my favorite pieces of satire ever

https://www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/i-regret-to-inform-you-that-my-wedding-to-captain-von-trapp-has-been-canceled

[GeeGolly]

A little Christmas + Duggar humor. And a lot of truth.

[irisheyes]

18 hours ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

The Duggar's favorite secular movie is on ABC tonight.  I did turn in at the right time to see the smoking hot chemistry between Julie and Christopher.   And then I had to go read one of my favorite pieces of satire ever

https://www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/i-regret-to-inform-you-that-my-wedding-to-captain-von-trapp-has-been-canceled

Christopher Plummer’s little side eyes and half smiles make my heart go pitter patter even though it’s from 55 years ago. RIP Captain von Trapp. 
Topic: Aren’t the girls in their wet dresses a Nike! moment for Duggar boys?

[charmed1]

I really hope the news of those fundie missionaries who escaped capture in Haiti does not make the Duggars and their ilk double down on their missioncations. I am certainly happy that those people were unharmed and are now free. But I heard one of them say he hopes his captors “turn to the lord.” I just hope fundies don’t use this as fodder and further proof that they are the chosen ones and people in “danger” countries are in need of their salvation.

[Nysha]

I think Covid has given the Duggars a reason to stop the missioncations. The Haiti kidnapping will probably convince them that it's too dangerous to travel out of country to god-bother the people there. Plus, I'm pretty sure they had to pay all their expenses to get there and back and they're probably going to not have the spare cash to do that anymore.

[cmr2014]

1 hour ago, Nysha said:

I think Covid has given the Duggars a reason to stop the missioncations. The Haiti kidnapping will probably convince them that it's too dangerous to travel out of country to god-bother the people there. Plus, I'm pretty sure they had to pay all their expenses to get there and back and they're probably going to not have the spare cash to do that anymore.

There have been some reports that they've all had COVID, and they clearly have made no effort to avoid getting infected or infecting others.

I do think that the missioncations were heavily subsidized -- by SOS for publicity and by "love offerings," and I would imagine that both of those sources are pretty well dried up now.

JB is notoriously cheap, but he's also shown a willingness to drop big money on all kinds of bad ideas, but I think he's focused on his bad idea in Branson right now and won't be ponying up for any trips.

[crazy8s]

interesting read https://julieroys.com/bill-gothard-institute-faces-uncertain-financial-future/

[JoanArc]

On 11/6/2021 at 1:02 PM, BigBingerBro said:

Missing the picture of Toddler Josie wandering around with guns drawn about on the ground.

7 hours ago, crazy8s said:

interesting read https://julieroys.com/bill-gothard-institute-faces-uncertain-financial-future/

 

 It was a good run, but the cult won’t last forever. I’m sure another one will be along in a minute to take its place. 

[madpsych78]

12 hours ago, JoanArc said:

Missing the picture of Toddler Josie wandering around with guns drawn about on the ground.

 

 It was a good run, but the cult won’t last forever. I’m sure another one will be along in a minute to take its place. 

Like the cult of MacArthur

[Cinnabon]

15 hours ago, JoanArc said:

Missing the picture of Toddler Josie wandering around with guns drawn about on the ground.

 

 It was a good run, but the cult won’t last forever. I’m sure another one will be along in a minute to take its place. 

They’re already out there, in great numbers. 

[JoanArc]

10 hours ago, madpsych78 said:

Like the cult of MacArthur

 Isn’t he in his 80s as well? They really need someone Jeremy‘s age. But I guess these kind of groups don’t really turn out the charismatic type. And even our Jeremy could not do it. 

[charmed1]

I’m curious how learning and brain disorders are handled in the SOTDRT. Fortunately for Jill’s children, a teacher or learning specialist would be able to spot a potential issue, but are homeschooled fundie children with dyslexia, ADD, etc. just classified as being in satan’s homeroom or something or do they get actual help?

Edited January 18, 2022 by charmed1

[Westiepeach]

2 hours ago, charmed1 said:

I’m curious how learning and brain disorders are handled in the SODRT. Fortunately for Jill’s children, a teacher or learning specialist would be able to spot a potential issue, but are homeschooled fundie children with dyslexia, ADD, etc. just classified as being in satan’s homeroom or something or do they get actual help?

Don’t they just pray everything away? And if it isn’t helped… just pray harder?

[thehorseofpower]

Most of my husband's family are super strict Seventh Day Adventists who bought into the church's recommendation to homeschool their kids pretty hard core. One family member ended up with a daughter diagnosed with Asperger's and admitted when she was still in elementary school that they couldn't meet her educational or behavioral needs and put her in a public school where she could receive real help. This quickly led to the other two kids in the family going to a church-affiliated school, so all of them ended up out of homeschooling before middle school. It probably helped that their mother has a degree in education from a real college and was able to have some perspective on the situation despite going into parenthood bound and determined to homeschool all the way through.

All that to say I believe it is certainly possible for a family with a very fundamentalist mindset toward keeping their children in a controlled environment where they only learn what the parent wishes them to learn to change course if a child has learning issues they cannot meet and the parent becomes overwhelmed...but I don't believe the Duggars value education enough to ever do this. They seem to have such a low opinion of formal education that I imagine they simply sweep any learning issues under the rug and pretend they don't exist. I don't think the kids now are even taking their GED exam anymore - if I remember correctly they used to announce the children who got GEDs st their graduation from "Duggar Acedemy" but haven't done that since somewhere around Jinger?

[emmawoodhouse]

1 hour ago, thehorseofpower said:

Most of my husband's family are super strict Seventh Day Adventists who bought into the church's recommendation to homeschool their kids pretty hard core. One family member ended up with a daughter diagnosed with Asperger's and admitted when she was still in elementary school that they couldn't meet her educational or behavioral needs and put her in a public school where she could receive real help. This quickly led to the other two kids in the family going to a church-affiliated school, so all of them ended up out of homeschooling before middle school. It probably helped that their mother has a degree in education from a real college and was able to have some perspective on the situation despite going into parenthood bound and determined to homeschool all the way through.

All that to say I believe it is certainly possible for a family with a very fundamentalist mindset toward keeping their children in a controlled environment where they only learn what the parent wishes them to learn to change course if a child has learning issues they cannot meet and the parent becomes overwhelmed...but I don't believe the Duggars value education enough to ever do this. They seem to have such a low opinion of formal education that I imagine they simply sweep any learning issues under the rug and pretend they don't exist. I don't think the kids now are even taking their GED exam anymore - if I remember correctly they used to announce the children who got GEDs st their graduation from "Duggar Acedemy" but haven't done that since somewhere around Jinger?

I remember a huge party for Josiah that was on the show. They also talked to Joy about her "graduation." Not surprisingly, she said she was done with school. I don't recall any mention of graduations of anyone younger than them. 

[BigBingerBro]

Throwback Thursday

[sagittarius sue]

30 minutes ago, BigBingerBro said:

Throwback Thursday

Wow, I can see how Tessa's daughters resemble her in their eyes.

[TrixieTrue]

32 minutes ago, BigBingerBro said:

Throwback Thursday

Is Jill on the far left looking at the camera? If so, Israel takes after her more than I realized. 

[GeeGolly]

Michelle's hair. LMFAO

[Churchhoney]

On 1/17/2022 at 7:25 PM, emmawoodhouse said:

I remember a huge party for Josiah that was on the show. They also talked to Joy about her "graduation." Not surprisingly, she said she was done with school. I don't recall any mention of graduations of anyone younger than them. 

They did have a "graduation party" for Jed, Jer and Joy all together. And during that time period, some people apparently wondered why those three would have a party together when they aren't the same age.  Meeeechelle seemed to feel she had to answer that query, so she said something about how they just decided it was more efficient to only have a party every two or three years  instead of having one every time somebody graduated. (!!!!) ....(Because, you know, who the heck cares if somebody "graduates"? Even if it is only the "Duggar Academy diploma," it's all these people will ever get....But, I guess it's not baptism or marriage, so who gives a crap?)

Anyway, I remember the party because we simultaneously laughed about it and felt kinda sad about it because at their "graduation party" the vast majority of "guests" were little kids and moms and there were a bunch of little-kid activities available. Meanwhile, if there were ANY actual "friends of Jed, Jer or Joy" there, there weren't enough of them to be visible. 

Edited April 7, 2022 by Churchhoney

[Westiepeach]

1 hour ago, Churchhoney said:

They did have a "graduation party" for Jed, Jer and Joy all together. And during that time period, some people apparently wondered why those three would have a party together when they aren't the same age.  Meeeechelle seemed to feel she had to answer that query, so she said something about how they just decided it was more efficient to only have a party every two or three years  instead of having one every time somebody graduated. (!!!!) ....(Because, you know, who the heck cares if somebody "graduates"? Even if it is only the "Duggar Academy diploma," it's all these people will ever get....But, I guess it's not baptism or marriage, so who gives a crap?)

Anyway, I remember the party because we simultaneously laughed about it and felt kinda sad about it because at their "graduation party" the vast majority of "guests" were little kids and moms and there were a bunch of little-kid activities available. Meanwhile, if there were ANY actual "friends of Jed, Jer or Joy" there, there weren't enough of them to be visible. 

Well, being as they have no actual friends…

[Churchhoney]

2 hours ago, Westiepeach said:

Well, being as they have no actual friends…

Yep. And that's the way their parents and their pastors and their cult leaders have planned it. Friends lead you to the devil! ... Having no friends makes your life hell bud you don't realize it because all of the above tell you you're actually in heaven....

[cmr2014]

20 minutes ago, Churchhoney said:

Yep. And that's the way their parents and their pastors and their cult leaders have planned it. Friends lead you to the devil! ... Having no friends makes your life hell bud you don't realize it because all of the above tell you you're actually in heaven....

If I recall correctly, this was one of the major selling points to Gothardism as part of his sure fire plan to prevent rebellious teens. The "no friends" isn't just our perception, but an actual part of the belief system. Friends would provide someone to talk to who isn't a parent, or a sibling and, of course, kids are trained to tattle immediately any time they hear anything out of line.

There was that guy who did the blog posts about his reminiscences about his interactions with Josh as a teen and he mentioned telling Josh about abuse he had suffered, and the first thing Josh did was go and tattle to the abuser. Josh is a criminal and an asshole, but I doubt any of his siblings would have behaved differently.

[awaken]

6 hours ago, GeeGolly said:

Michelle's hair. LMFAO

It looks so labor intensive!

[Tigregirl]

5 minutes ago, awaken said:

It looks so labor intensive!

Between her and The Boob, how many cans of Aqua Net did they go through each week?

[jcbrown]

22 hours ago, Tigregirl said:

Between her and The Boob, how many cans of Aqua Net did they go through each week?

There are holes in the ozone dedicated specifically to them.

[Scarlett45]

On 4/7/2022 at 3:07 PM, TrixieTrue said:

Is Jill on the far left looking at the camera? If so, Israel takes after her more than I realized. 

Based on the size of the kids I’m assuming that’s Jana. Jill would be on the right. 

[GeeGolly]

I wonder if the Duggars have made their "Angeled Eggs" in preparation for Easter Resurrection Day. 

[GeeGolly]

So so far, through what I assume are hours of depositions, we found out Derick still doesn't own his part in Jill's fractured relationship with JB, the Dillard therapy was short term and suggested by the court, Jinger doesn't no how much money she makes and JB's an asshole.

Not many surprises here.

[GeeGolly]

The Duggars favorite famous Fundy (washed up) TV star, Kirk Cameron, made a film, The Homeschool Awakening. The description is absolutely horrifying.

[Notabug]

3 hours ago, GeeGolly said:

The Duggars favorite famous Fundy (washed up) TV star, Kirk Cameron, made a film, The Homeschool Awakening. The description is absolutely horrifying.

I read an article with an interview with Cameron on the topic and it is just as bad as you might think.

[jcbrown]

30 minutes ago, Notabug said:

I read an article with an interview with Cameron on the topic and it is just as bad as you might think.

Thank you for taking one for the team.