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I feel like I’ve already written this story and all I need to do is change the names and dates. The famous Duggar family of Arkansas, which has ten sons and eight daughters ranging in age from 8 and a half months to 21 years – all with names that start with the letter J, some more obnoxious than others – have announced that their Pollyanna-ish hyper-fertile mom, Michelle Duggar, is expecting her whopping 19th child. The Duggars shot to fame years ago with documentary style specials on Discovery Health channel highlighting their huge family and devout Baptist lifestyle. They now have a weekly TLC reality show that focuses on how they run their household with the help of strict schedules and a “buddy system” which assigns another sibling to take care of the new family members starting at six months of age.
The Duggars announced their pregnancy via satellite on The Today Show. They’re also expecting their first grandchild. Their 21 year-old son, Josh, is expecting his first child with his new wife next month.
Michelle, 42, told People Magazine that she doesn’t have prenatal testing done at all despite her age. She says that’s all up to the Lord and they’ll take whatever comes:
Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar of Tonitown, Ark., who have 18 children and one grandchild on the way, are expecting a new addition to their household – baby No. 19 will arrive in the spring.
“We are so thrilled,” says Michelle, 42. “We just couldn’t believe it is happening.” Jim Bob, 44, agrees: “This never gets old. We are so grateful for each child. We are looking forward to our first grand baby and our 19th child.”
Oldest son Joshua, 21 and his wife Anna, 21, are expecting daughter Mackynzie Renée next month, so she will be older than her new aunt or uncle.
“I think it is going to be awesome, it is going to be great,” says Josh about the news that his parents are expecting. “We have been looking forward to the arrival of my little girl and to now get to celebrate for my parents, it’s a wonderful thing.”
Another Fun Pregnancy
The families often get to see one another and are looking forward to the babies’ births.“I love all of this, it is so fun,” says Michelle. “Anna and I will have babies five months apart. My mother and my sister were pregnant at the same time and it was really wonderful. The kids were really close and still are. I have a nephew who grew up with me, we’re just three months apart.”
The Duggars live debt-free in a house they built themselves with their kids, all whose names begin with J: after Josh there are twins Jana and John-David, 19; Jill, 18; Jessa, 16; Jinger, 15; Joseph, 14; Josiah, 13; Joy-Anna, 11; twins Jedidiah and Jeremiah, 10; Jason, 9; James, 8; Justin, 6; Jackson, 5; Johanna, 3; Jennifer, 2, and Jordyn-Grace, 8 months. Their lives are featured on TLC’s 18 Kids and Counting, airing Tuesday nights…
Michelle says that since she was 36 years old, her doctor has given her and Jim Bob pamphlets about prenatal testing since there is an increase of risk of health problems in babies with older mothers. But, she says they don’t worry about those risks and don’t take the tests.
“We know what could happen,” she says. “We read through the information. If the Lord chooses to give us challenges along the way, we know His grace will be there, so we don’t opt to do the testing.”
As far as her own health, her doctor told PEOPLE when her last child was born that Michelle’s health was excellent: “Some women are made to have babies, and Michelle is to the nth degree,” ob-gyn Amy Sarver told PEOPLE in December. “She is in terrific health without any strain on her uterus.”
Michelle says she’s just glad for every day that she gets to enjoy being with her kids, even as she endures a 19th round of morning sickness.
[From People]
Whenever I see this family they look super-happy, really perky and just grateful to have so many kids. I honestly don’t know how I feel about them. On one hand they make me want to roll my eyes and slap my forehead with my palm but on the other hand I want to know their damn secret. How are they so content and calm all the time? Is this what devout faith looks like and is it worth the trade off in critical reasoning skills to be so damn happy and fulfilled? At least Michelle got rid of that terrible 80s hairstyle she was still trying to rock with the puffy wraparound top and curled under bangs. In case you think that the Duggars are having so many kids because they only have sex to conceive – think again. They shared way too much information about their sex life in an interview with AOL last year, including the tidbits that “we purpose to keep that spark,” and that they have regular sex when Michelle is pregnant. If they didn’t, they would only be doing it three months a year. I would get my tubes tied if I had a third of the number of kids they have. To each their own, I guess.
This woman should get fixed. PERIOD..
What in hell is wrong with those people? Seriously, I can appreciate a couple wanting a large family, but this is beyond ridiculous!
Yes, it is their right to have children, but my goodness, the insanity behind their decision making just floors me.
I hate to say it, but at least the Duggars are a normal family. The father and mother are both there to raise the kids. Nobody’s cheating. Nobody’s getting plastic surgery. Nobody appears to be a fame whore (at least not yet).
It’s only by today’s standards, when the pill and condoms and tube tying are options that a large family seems weird. In the old days, every married woman who was actively having sex would have had this many kids. They just wouldn’t have all lived through childhood because of lack of modern medicine.
If you spend 14 years of your life being pregnant one more kid will not make a difference. I say they should shoot for the litter of 20, after all it is a nice round number.
That is disgusting for so many reasons. How the F*&^% does she provide quality time for the infant and toddlers, not to mention the teens, she already has????
F***ing freaks, straining the environment and overpopulating this earth.
She needs to throw her uterus in the nearest river…PRONTO! They have made their contributions to man-kind by having the the first 2 or 3…it is time to RETIRE the uterus…IF she wants to use her “va-ja-day” then by all means use it with your husband, but it’s time to stop reproducing! It’s NOT fair to the older kids because, honestly, they are the ones really raising those kids! I would be pissed off at my mom and dad! I don’t get this couple…ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!
AMEN!!! THESE PPL NEED TO STOP!
When your CHILDREN start having babies, there’s your sign that it’s time for you to stop.
I dont c anything wrong w it. They support their children and luv them…leave them alone. My paternal grandparents had 23 kids (no sets of multiples) and although hard…it was also for religious reasons. They believed if the lord wants them to, they’ll keep having children. If the Dugars give the love & support their children need more power to them. Their kids look happy, stable and loved… the parents r doing their jobs as such. Stop judging them
It’s a vagina not a clown car!!
Of course they can keep popping them out since they don’t take on the responsibility of the actual day-to-day care of raising them. Ethically, I think they are on very shaky ground, since by forcing their older children to raise their younger siblings, all the children end up with warped family relationships. What’s the difference between kids who have to take over family care when the parents are substance abusers, and the Duggar children, whose parents are addicted to popping out more babies?
EVERY person who walks this earth taxes the environment and pollutes.
And who decides what is enough?
now I feel like they are just doing it to see how many they can have. like an olympic sport or something. i think its well past the ‘we’re so happy to have a large family, babies are a blessing’ BS and morphed to a circus act where they arent even taking into consideration her age and risk of complications. its just irresponsible at this point. their kids dont even get to be kids and have childhoods since they are busy taking care of their parent’s irresponsible decision making and being parents themselves at a young age. these people are just ridiculous at this point. just because you can doesnt mean you should. retire the uterus and tie his tubes.
Another? Already? Her poor vadge.
Her life sucks, I don’t care how rosy a picture she paints for us. Her kids lives sucks. I don’t care how they spin it. Would you or anyone you know trade your life for theirs? No way in hell. God must love me more, since I’m not saddled with 19 kids and never had to spend my childhood raising other people’s babies. They’ve got the right, blah blah blah. It’s not about that. I hope their daughters run like hell from this crap lifestyle. But they’re raised under the same brainwashed spell. I wish them luck.
Alright, I’ve reached the point where I’m sick of all of these families already. The media needs to just stay out of these women’s uteruses and then any spotlight on them will go away. It needs to stop being newsworthy. So you have a bunch of kids? BFD.
Isn’t it in China where they are only allowed to have two kids per household? Maybe they were on to something? 😉 Okay, I kid, but I’m sick of these people and their broods.
LOLOLOLLOLOL “Just a Poster”
“It’s a vagina not a clown car!!”
Lee you took the words right out of my mouth.
And for the record, my mother & father always had smiles at the dinner table. It was only a couple years ago that I found out they went at it every night behind closed doors. People with smiles can be deceptive.
Wow, I wonder where the concept of choice went. It is their lives, they are raising their children on their own. This isn’t an octo-mom situation where tax-payers at large are footing the bill for her silly decisions.
It is pretty offensive to have total strangers telling a woman what she should and shouldn’t be doing with her uterus with the exception of killing other people in it.
I have read a lot about how they raise their children. I do not agree with many of their parenting practices. Know what that makes me? NOT THE PARENTS! It isn’t my decision.
And for the record, I don’t know that they are Baptist. I thought they were non-denominational fundamentalists of some sort. Gothardites perhaps? I don’t know but I am fairly certain they do home-church.
RE: Michelle saying, “We just couldn’t believe it is happening.”
Are we supposed to believe this idiotic comment? Why can’t she believe it? She, of all people, should understand by now that having unprotected sex year after year results in non-stop babies.
Having a ridiculously large family is obviously the Duggars’ “claim to fame” and they’re not going to stop if it keeps them in the limelight. If each of their kids follows in their irresponsible footsteps, they are going to be responsible for their own little population explosion.
This is child abuse, and completely irresponsible! They are as bad as Octomom! Where in the bible does it say go and over populate the Earth?
Puke. Mandatory sterilization needs to be seriously re-considered.
How disgusting.
Okay, I get the idea that overpopulation is bad for the environment. But, which one of the 18 children they already have would you like to tell they shouldn’t have been born?
#20 Girl – I agree with you 100%. Someone’s personal choice apparently only matters in the killing, not the birthing, of a fetus.
“a “buddy system” which assigns another sibling to take care of the new family members starting at six months of age”
So instead of calling the Dept. of Labor to complain, lets give them a reality show! Go, America.
According to the “reliable” source wikipedia, Michelle and Jim-Bob used birth control when they were first married. Michelle had her first child and started using birth control again and then planned another pregnancy that ended in miscarriage. Michelle and Jim-Bob interpreted the miscarriage as a punishment from God for having previously used birth control. It’s crazy what people will do to make sense out of a tragedy.
Never mind the baby on the way……I think her hair is the real crime here. It’s a friggen mullet!
Like I said in an earlier post, must be some incest going on in a family where the parents breed like rabbits but the girls are discouraged from showing their bodies and chastity is encouraged. What’s truly freaky is that they built that huge house and all of the kids still have to sleep together (boys in one room, girls in another). When do these kids get a moment to be alone with their thoughts? Oops, sorry, they’re not allowed to think independently, they’re brainswashed.
Give it a rest, Duggars.
What is wrong with them having a large family if they can take care of them? It is disturbing the amount of hate I see for this family when their life does not affect yours in any way. She does not want to use contraception because it is against her beliefs and she had some issues with it previously. There is nothing wrong with that if they have the money to take care of a large family, which they do. I have seen the show a couple of times and the way they run their house is pretty calm and the kids seem content. Yes, there are a few odd things about them but look at your own family and try to tell me they don’t have any crazy or odd things about them(if anyone says that, they are bold faced liars) If they thought it was so bad the oldest would not be starting a family already. (sidenote: he has said that he only wants a few children so they are not brainwashed or anything) Just let them be. They are not accepting money from anyone or anything but her husbands job. What is wrong with you people? They want to have a large family and they are coping with it quite well. So whats the problem? Just because you couldn’t fathom wanting that many children deosn’t mean that she doesn’t appreciate every child she has. If you have ever seen them, you would know that she really does. Yes, her other children help out but they are not slaves. They are just a close-knit religious family. Pleas stop the disgusting over-the-top hate for these people and save it for JK8 and Octomom…they desreve it.
The only reason i dont like that they have so many kids is the fact of how much time do they spend with each kid alone?
One of these kids is going to be depressed from not getting enough attention.
They freak me out in theory, but in fact they seem pretty nice (even “normal” if you’re used to being around that style of devout Christian).
She could always get her tubes tied! That way- No miscarriages. [however you spell it.]
Honestly, they even have FRIENDS with 17+ kids. Texas isn’t big enough for two of us. >:o
*sigh*
Anyways, I have to start my sophmore year at highschool today and too nervous about that to really give a crap about these people at the moment.
My question is, how do they find time for sex?
oh yes jane Q doe and ‘girl’- the right to have babies is so seriously under assault in this country. everyone’s just having rampant abortions and the right to pop out babies like an easy-bake oven is totally threatened. Puh-LEASE! there is more legislation and politician wind-bagging about abortions than there has ever been or ever will be about women like this, so spare us the pro-life martyrdom.
ewww …they look like brother and sister,gross!
@hunnybe: That’s what I’ve been thinking!! XD
i think i just threw up a little. This is irresponsible and ignorant thinking. To think that God wants us to just blindly go through life as he makes all the choices is daft.
AND that many children IS irresponsible what if God had wanted to them to bless 15 children who werent born into a home with a loving mom and dad?? what about them? and what kind of impact does that make on the earth?? Im really opposed. i know they dont care but hey i said what i needed to say.
Unbelievable regarding the hypocracy of acting so righteous – regarding the episode where the kid who has engaged was not even allowed to hold his fiancees hand or even be alone with her until they were married while at the same time their parents are humping like dogs claiming that it is not their choice! There comes a time when this kind of behavior should be incredibly embarrassing to their children – maybe the parents need to practice abstinence instead of doing the deed and then claiming they had nothing to do with it – and barely being able to wait until one child is born before they do what they do to make another!!! Really nasty – try to control yourselves!!!
@ kelbear:
“The only reason i dont like that they have so many kids is the fact of how much time do they spend with each kid alone?”
This is a really important issue. How much one on one time does each kid get with Mom? With Dad? Very little I suppose.
It’s not fair to expect the older kids to parent the younger ones. They are an army, not a family.
I’m not proposing any new laws to ban human over-breeding, but there seems to be something very wrong here.
What exactly does the father do that could support a household of 20+ people? I thought I read gossip that the family’s church provides some income to help support the brood.
I wonder what level of socialization the children are able to experience outside of other siblings. The mother homeschools every child, after school, they have their household chores and of course the assigned younger sibling that they have to take care. When do they get a chance to be children? They have to schedule an appointment with their parents if they want/need a little face time.
I’m sorry, but just because there is no evidence that this couple is spawning criminals does not mean that there is not something off with their choice to have so many children so close in age.
I don’t see how they spend any at all with their kids when they seem to spend all their time having sex with no sense of control over the fact that they may be making another baby – It isn’t GOD who is controlling (or not) the results!
she looks like the cowardly lion after he visited the beauty salon.
I can’t even bring myself to read this entry. NOBODY needs nineteen kids. SHIT. Aren’t there already TOO many people on this planet? What makes these people think they are so worthy of reproducing on such an epic scale? Am I missing something?
Remember when the Brady’s were a Bunch?
There is nothing normal about having 19 kids. Nothing. When I was growing up there was a family with 8 kids and that was considered huge in 1975.
Mixed feelings on this one. The children seem to be happy and well cared for, but are they getting the individual mom/dad time most kids enjoy.
No – the parents are too busy acting on the “sins of the flesh.” There is more than one way to show love and affection and with their history they should know better – Oh, I’m sorry – they have nothing to do with it!
VAGINA: It’s not a clown car.
They’re such a cultish family. I think it’s disgusting that they keep breeding like this. They spend no quality 1-on-1 time with their kids. How can they when they’re expecting number 19. And for people to say they’re not doing harm to their family by being on the show – maybe not but they’re taking full advantage of all of the freebies and handouts and why is that okay for them and not Jon and Kate? Pot meet kettle perhaps? Theyr’e so backasswards when they’re out in public it’s not even funny.
loodles – are you stupid? Of course they’re accepting money from others. They’re selling their family to a reality show. They sure aren’t turning away all the free trips they’re going on, you KNOW they didn’t pay for the 10 washers and dryers they have…..you’re in denial or maybe you’re part of their cult.
This woman could use some serious psychotherapy – she seems to have an incredible NEED to feel important and the only way she can do it is to be a breeder – perhaps she sees no other way than to submit to her husband and portray herself as the next Virgen Mary. I don’t see how the children are not embarrassed by their parents behavior! It certainly is most embarrassing for women!
I just wish Michelle would get a new Goddamn haircut!!!!!!
*to each their own….I’m more down with the natural process of making babies rather then artificial. so, hey….if Jim bob still find’s that body of her’s to be a hot piece, more power to them both. just get that bitch to Holiday Hair, pronto!
I’d also like to add that I LOVE ‘chelly’s attitude. in a time when so many discard fetus’s when they THINK there may be a “problem” (i.e. M.R, dwarfism, etc) with them, I applaud her for looking at it as, “if I want a kid, I’ll take whatever the Lord gives me.” good for them, really. And actually, those who are “different” are truly so much wiser then “normal” people. They are His gifts and we have so much to learn from them, not discard them.
she still needs a new hairstyle, asap.
Ugh…my uterus hurts just from looking at them.
How can he possibly, uh, feel anything when they have intercourse? Her insides must be torn to shreds.
Also, I wonder how they’ll feel if at least one or more of their children are gay. The odds are there.
How could HE feel anything for HER????????? Just goes to show you that a man can stick it anywhere and he probably feels like a stud! Her insides ARE probably torn to shreds – not unlike rape victims (which shows that he has not an ounce of respect for his wife and the toll this takes on her body) – My God, you’re not even supposed to have sex for a specific amount of time and they go at it like it’s TIME UP – TIME TO GET IT ON!!!
If you put something up for public consumption, you’re putting it up for public debate as well. Similarly, you’re can’t reap the rewards of personal freedom without weighing the responsibilities that travel with it. If you can’t make that cognitive leap, go back to kindergarten: you’re not done yet! No amount of hand-wringing or faux doe-eyed naivete can dismiss that.
A few bad haircuts and that ‘Compound Chic’ attire don’t make them any less business-savvy. So they’ve got their cornpone Arcadia now. So what? Anyone who thinks that a call for more reproductice restraint is tantamount to telling people that they shouldn’t have been born is just being wilfully inflammatory.
When did culpability become a four-letter word? Don’t like it? Give back the money, or sleep in separate beds.
as much as there is to easily make fun of this family, i cant help but be in awe. People are saying such rude things about them, but really…i dont see a problem with it. Its nice that they are bringing well-adjusted human beings into the world. If MOST people had 19 kids the world would obviously be a far more f*cked up and overpopulated place. But most people dont have the patience, love, and peace of mind that this family does. They may be perfect laugh-at targets, but their positive energy and way of living is truly inspiring.
Really turned off: God you sound like such a superficial bitch. So what if they aren’t living the lifestyle you deem worthy, A lot of ppl don’t so does that make us stupid too?
And WOW and Hieronymous Griex, Are you really typing the argument that the gross human rights violations going on in China are the way to go? Force abortions on women cause having too many would be socially unacceptable to you? Lets apply that case to real life. Say your favorite sister or your mom is still of childbearing age and already have 2 previous kids and she excitedly tells you she’s pregnant with a third. Are you really going to tell her to her face to abort it and get rid of the baby cause she needs to be happy with what she has and having too many more is disgusting? I doubt it. You two are nothing but Two-facers.
First, people, would you please read the whole article and notice the video. She has a new haircut. It is better than it was. Let it go. It’s hair. There are bigger issues here.
Mainly, how is this hurting you? So they’ll have 19 kids. That’s not normal for our society, but that’s their choice. I applaud them for being able to financially support all of their children and for the mom to stay home with all of them. At least they aren’t having 19 children and dumping them in daycare so they can both have careers!!! They have based their decision to have more children on their religious beliefs and they are raising them to be strong in their faith. Is it old-fashioned? Sure. Is it something I would choose for me? No. Does that make it wrong? No. Welcome to America. You have the right to choose what is best for you and your family. Ta-da!
I have three beautiful children of my own and, while we’re done, I can totally understand wanting to have more and more and more. Each child has filled me with so much more love that it would be addicting. If these three are so precious and wonderful, what would the next one be like….or the next one…But we have reached our financial limit and my limit of energy and time for the kids, so I know when to say enough. For me. This is my personal choice. That’s hers. And I support her in her right to choose how many children she wants to be blessed with just as I had that right.
What is wrong with you commentors? They take care of their children and live debt free….maybe you should be more worried about crack-whores who have tons of children that are taken away by the state. Stop being so judgemental about a lifestyle you have never been apart of. I’ve seen a handful of episodes and we need more positive Duggar children to balance out the crazy, hateful, self-obsessed people in the world.
OK, so you want to have a ton of kids and can afford them? Fine I have no problem with that.
My biggest issue is that they make such a big deal about saying that the kids watch very little television…yet there they are collecting a tidy sum of money for their own TV show. Seems hypocritical to me.
You know, I have nothing but goodwill for this family. If only tinged with a little bit of jealousy. Those kids are growing up with both parents, I didnt. the father seems to love and respect his wife, I didnt know my father and the men that my mother did bring home beat the shit out of her. The kids are well supported and in a stable home, I was moved constantly and lived at the Samm’s shelter in San Antonio for a while. And I’m sure very few on here grew up with half of what these kids have. The thing is, this family is growing up with everything I’m sure a lot of the posters on here are lacking and you can always attribute this vapidness to bitter Jealousy. Pure and simple. But I know my heart is much bigger than that and I”ll always wish them the very best.
They can have as many children as they want! Who do the rest of you think you are to make such negative comments? If only half of you were half as good at parenting as the Duggars are, this world would be a better place. Go Duggars!
So many of you are so closed-minded, except for your own lifestyle decisions, of course!
hatsumomo: I’m not a woman but I find the husband’s actions to be self-absorbed and narcissistic to the extreme – It’s sex and desire unabated -I don’t care what your religiious beliefs are as long as you keep it to yourself, but let’s be honest about the parent’s relationship – is sex the only way they can show their “feelings” toward each other?
Yo Ronnie, our freakin’ planet cannot sustain stupid f**ks like this procreating to procreate. Its greedy to have that many kids and that broad needs her head examined because she has some kind of neurosis. Have you ever seen her on TV? Nucking futs, she is and she is not all there. All this family projects is a carnival sideshow; its insulting. If she wants to do the right thing she will put this one up for adoption and give another woman the opportunity to have a child. Just because you can, does not mean you should.
I just want to kick both of those idiots in the head. Or at the very least slap the mullet off that cow.
Jesus Christ.
Show of hands please – all of you posters who are praising the Duggars for their family lifestyle, how many of you trash the Gosselins for “abusing” their children, etc? You KNOW that the Duggars aren’t turning away the freebies. And whoever said that about the kids not watching much TV and they’re actually ON TV, yep, total hyprocisy in action.
Come on. Even the pioneer women didn’t have “this” many children. They usually stopped at 11 or 12. I figure she’ll probably have three or four more after this one as there is no attempt whatsoever at any kind of birth control. Now people want to see just how many more she will end up having. Bets anyone? I say three.
Sorry Turned off, all your bitchiness lead me to believe you are a woman. I forgot men can be just as petty.
So your only beef with them is that all they do is have sex to show their feelings? Never mind he married her to show his lifelong commitment to her and she chooses to have her children with him because she believes he is the ultimately the best financial and family partner she can find. Are you in a loving and stable relationship? If you gained 50 lbs and your penis was as useful as a limp piece of string cheese, would your partner still be sexually attracted to you? If you answered no to the last two qustions then you got some issues to work out and need to stop hating on happy people.
I dont think people have an issue with them choosing to have children or not. I think we’re just concerned for their children & their obvious lack of knowledge when it comes to procreation.
And Gistine, Dont even start on the whole ‘wont someone think of the earth’ tirade. Our planet cant handle over population, but can sustain mass-consumption and pollution on a global scale? Plu-eeeez, grow a brain girl.
I’m just waiting for her uterus to fall out. This is really a pathology at this point. It’s like a hoarder, only they’re hoarding children!
Yo dummy hatshomo, what do you think those Duggar kids are going to do? Stop hugging the trees you idiot and realize mass-consumption begins with people including yourself. You leave a mark too, albeit a skidmark on the earth as well, you pontificating maggot. I’m not talking about the planet as I am the quality of life on it, retard. Stop spewing vitriol and pull your common-sense-lacking head out of your ass and realize this is a human issue.
Uh, our family tree includes a bunch of families with 9-12 kids, even one generation ago. One civil war era ancester had 14 kids. These were farming families, where more kids are a real benefit to the family. In societies with multiple marriage, it’s normal to have 14-20 kids. A two- or three- child norm is just that. A norm! (I myself have 2 and am done, here in the Bible belt a lot of people ask me why we don’t have more.)
JESUS CHRIST some defensive people need to get the sand out of their vadge on this message board. Get a life.
Actually, after reading through comments, I am now sort of in agreement. As long as they take care of their children, bring them p with love and decency and don’t sap off of the government. what is it my business or anyone else’s if they have more children. Personally, I could not do that, but kudos to those that have the love, time and patience to give a family of 19 children. As long as they are well taken care of, who cares about it. Those saying they drain our resources, well so do all the violent criminals (rapists, murderers, child molesters) living in our prisons, but we don’t seem to mind that. My point is, these people are harming no one, so let them be. I have changed my mind about them in the time it took me to read others viewpoints and posts and have learned a few things today in the process.
“at least the Duggars are a normal family.”
Normal? The girls aren’t allowed to wear pants and do most of the housecleaning chores.
Good things: New non-mullet hairdo for mom.
Bad things: Makenzie/Makenzy/Mehkenze/Mykynzy Renée. What the hell was wrong with Meredith? God alone known what sort of Nu-tryndy name Granny and Grandad will come up with for the next sproglet.
*face-palm*
Don’t know how I feel exactly about these folks, but they’re self-sustaining, did this naturally without spending beaucoups $$ for artificial conception, didn’t have them all at once, her doctor says she’s healthy, and they’re not in the tabloids having plastic surgery or doing awful things, so I have to say leave em be, it’s a free country.
There is no right or wrong number of children- to each his own. If the parents are happy and able, and the children happy and loved– which they really do seem to be– then it is their right to choose how to live their life.
They look so much happier than a great majority of one and two children families. Some people have kids because its ‘the thing’ to do or just an accident, and you can tell they are bitter and resentful as hell of their offspring. She is thankful and enjoying it. And yes it used to be totally normal to have many kids. What about when there WAS no birth control available?? Suddenly having kids is BAD because it can be stopped? Wow… talk about not enough love to go around!!
Absolutely appalling! This is not a family, it’s a litter! The media needs to stop glorifying people like the Duggars, John and Kate and Octomom.
And also– this is how it used to be, and I think is better- when the whole family stuck together and siblings cared for offspirng too. They still do in so called “under developed’ countries. what we call advanced or baackward is, IMO, backward itself. Why is it unethical to allow siblings to care for each other? WTF- is it better if you shove your kids into daycare?
This is about what we have lost in our culture- family, unity, a community mentality, where others could be trusted and would all live together or close together and share. Those cultures still practicing that are a lot happier than we are. We have no more communities or clans or tribes or togetherness at all, even plain nuclear families are all breaking up and falling apart. Everyone is too selfish and cant imagine anything or anyone being anythign but selfish…
If they’d adopted 19 needy kids, then I’d be impressed.
And as far as romanticizing the days when women pumped out kids and families lived together…I’ll take the modern era. If you love spending tons of time with your biological family, great. I love some of mine, not so much with some others. The beauty is in choosing and you can’t choose your family. Personally, I’d rather select my tribe and not feel obliged to conform to some traditional ideal of who I was best suited to be around or how many children I should have or not have.
Good for them. If they enjoy living in a zoo, more power to them.
I figured Michelle would not be outdone by her daughter-in-law. They’ll be like a couple of dueling vaginas.
Who cares??????It’s their business….
Are any of you haters supporting this family.
Thank you for listening.
Do those parents look like they are related ?
Disgusting. She should be neutered. Their responsibility is to the planet and future generations by not burdening the already limited resources. Just think about how many offspring their offspring will have. Kind of like rats.
How old is she? She’s not in menopause yet.
I think, we don’t take interest in them anymore, otherwise they continue again and again.
This freaky family only needs some paparazzi’s attention to pay their bills.
Damn!
While I don’t understand the compulsion to have huge numbers of children, and find it a bit unsettling, I do think tee-hee does have a point; although I would seriously caution against getting too sentimental about the past. I work, deal with and promote our past every single day and you can be damned sure I wouldn’t live there for all the tea in China (or all the coffee on Blue Mountain 😉 )
But lads, could we ease up on the “they’re destroying the environment” comments please? Does the irony of the fact that you’re getting indignant about squandering the earth’s rescources whilst typing on a computer not bother you at all? A computer/mobile phone which is presumanly made out of plastic, with metal components and uPVC cabling; powered by electricity generated mostly either through fossil fuels or nuclear power; living in a house which even if it’s made from timber still has wall-to-wall uPVC in the form of carpets, paints, varnishes, wiring; being illuminated by an energy-munching tungsten light-bulb or a highly-toxic low-energy one; eating food that’s either highly produced or quite possibly shipped in from afar…. ok… you get the point I hope.
Many commentators have stated that in the west we will need an increased birth-rate in developed countries to counter-act the generally aging population by providing money and manpower for the care of the elderly. Either that or actively seek more immigrants – and we all know that there’s no friggin’ hope of that happening.
Having fewer children wont do much to help when it is US ourselves who wont do anythign to help— since we wont chagne our ways and habits we just put it on our kids and say have fewer of them, because theyre not gonna learn anything about the environment form us, anyway— THAT is backward thinking.
Im not getting sentimental about the past at all, and neither with everything that comes with it (or rather hat wed lose).
… Im just looking at the bottom line that in todays society, nobody cares or helps or is proactive– and therefore we just try to cut corners and sit on our duff holding EVERYONE ELSE to blame for whats wrong. If people cant help or change the world, thus it makes it wrong to even choose to HAVE KIDS, and it even gives us the right to forbid others form having kids- one of THE most basic rights and privleges as humans– well then its just S-A-D.
Our attention is focused not where it should be— OUR own faults…and each other.
And yeah if you dont want to be told how many kids to have,then maybe you SHOULD be in the past, cos it looks like veryone here today will jump to tell you exactly how many you can or cant have and how wrong you are for any and everything they personally choose to dislike.
geez its a vagina not a clown car!
put the d*ck down!!!
hatsumomo – Gee, thanks for straightening me out! Incredibly sexist!
I agree with Lee. And my issue is with the slavery those young girls are in. They do all the housework, all the child rearing and are kept ignorant while the boys go on to college and are taught how to live in the world. Studies have been done which show that after so many children, like 5, the children don’t get the adult attention they should have and are affected negatively by it. I could care less what the parents do, but those young girls should not be paying the price for it.
I find it distressing that the people who are supportive of this family seem to focus on the financial aspect of parenthood and forget that raising a child takes time, love, caring, and nurturing. And I’m sorry, but no parents with 18 children (17 at home) can provide adequate love and care to ALL of their children. I for one hope that she teaches her daughters that there is more to them than a functioning uterus and teaches her son that being a man is about more than spreading your seed. It also occurs to me, that caring parents would allow their children, a childhood, not one filled with babysitting a parade of younger siblings. And someone please explain to me, exactly how they provide homeschooling for all of these children. And teehee, you ARE romanticizing the past and you don’t need to birth twenty children to instill a sense of community or caring for others.
ffs, this isn’t her fault. quit saying she needs to get fixed. It’s an invasive procedure for the woman to get her tubes tied, it’s not as invasive for men to get a vasectomy, though it would be recommended to use aenestetic.
look, they both want kids. it’s not just her, and if he really didn’t like all these kids, he’d get a secret vasectomy. quit blaming the woman in this scenario. save it for kate and octomom.
I’ve wondered that too, how much time could they possibly give each kid? Especially the toddlers and babies, who need a lot of attention and care.
I have to also wonder, if every new pregnancy didn’t land them on the Today Show and People mag, would they continue having so many kids? Possibly, but who knows.
I know they see all as God’s plan or whatever, but I also want to say, hey, God gave you a brain to keep track of your cycle, and legs to walk you down to the store for some birth control.
hmm: Well put!
At this point it’s like throwing a hotdog down a hallway.
And I wonder, does she actually go through labor or does the baby just fall out of her vag?
This is sick. And it’s been sick for a while. If a person hoards things or cats or whatever, the authorities come in. But you can apparently hoard babies, no problem. I heard one person describe the Duggars, Gosselins and others as “baby greedy freaks.” I never thought I’d say anything nice about the Gosselins, but at least they STOPPED.
People need to understand this about the Duggars little cult-church: it’s not Baptist. It’s its own animal. And she has NO SAY in how many children she has. She has no say in when she gets pregnant. There is never any birth control used, ever. She weans each baby at about six months and at that point, it’s on.
It’s a way for women to be able to just turn off their brains. She’s not expected to think or make decisions in this kind of life. “Daddy” makes all the decisions for her.
And yes, she will keep having babies until her ovaries give up and die. That statement of hers about being so SHOCKED by this new baby is just ridiculous. How in the world would she be even close to being shocked? This is her LIFE. And she will pump out probably five or six more babies before she hits menopause. At this point, their reproductive capacities look more like fish than dog. Forget human.
The ONLY point is to have as many babies as possible. No matter what. At any cost. That’s the entire philosophy. Pretty sophisticated, huh?
The thing that I find even more alarming is their “education.” They did a special on the mother’s “home schooling” and as an educator, I can tell you I was horribly saddened. None of them are educated much higher than a fifth grade level in any subject, and that’s being generous in some areas (math and science). All they do are worksheets and some computer programs a few minutes a day. Those poor kids don’t stand a chance–all they are prepared to do is form their own baby army/cults. Of course.
why am i not surprised?
You’d think the oldest one would be effing sick of babies by now.
They may be a bit freaky and unconventional, but I wish them nothing but the best. They can provide for their family, and seem to be loving and caring. So what if they’re different- are they really affecting your life and hurting you that much?
Josh “We have been looking forward to the arrival of my little girl and to now get to celebrate for my parents, it’s a wonderful thing.”
CLARIFY: “My mother stole our limelight by getting pregnant again.”
GROSS is when your kid is the same age as your grandchild.
She pushes them out like a termite queen.
Trillion, well said. I’d be more impressed if they adopted. The Duggars are selfish. IMO.
Uzi, I agree. But the media wants us stupid, over-worked, slutty and over-whelmed with children so we can keep getting “farmed” properly. Hence Kate, Octo and Duggar-bug.
#11 that was funny as hell i forgot what i wanted to say.
The new haircut must’ve been a major turn on to The Sperminator. Interesting that they like to give all props to God, when God isn’t the one on Rabbit Mode. How the hell are they “so surprised”? Has someone not explained to her how this is all really happening and there theoretically was only 1 virgin birth. These people crack me up with the UberChristianity, and Junior getting into the go forth and make babies business.
Now they need to come up with another J name, don’t they?
Personally, I’m guessing it’s the Righteous Duty of all the other kids to look after each other. I wonder how many can’t wait to get the eff out and have their own room/ own bathroom/ own hairbrush/ new clothes?
This was actually pretty funny in the original Yours Mine and Ours movie…this is a bit much. Good on ’em for getting media attention by popping out another one…or two.. how old is KajilliaMom anyway?
OY VEY!
Some of you seem to be forgetting vital info. Most parents don’t see their kids from about 7ish in the a.m. until 3,4,5,6 in the p.m. depending on if they have sports, band,etc. The Duggars don’t spend quality time w/their kids? Hmmm, let’s see: She has homeschooled ALL of them, taught them musical instruments, and they attend a home church setting where kids don’t go do different activites from the parents. They are together pretty much ALL the time. I only have 2 kids, had 2 miscarriages carrying twins, so I couldn’t have more kids, but I have traveled the world and this meme about over-population is beyond the pale. Please quit repeating this tale. Have you ever been to say, North Dakota? Wyoming? Alaska? There are unlimited miles for people in this country. In countries like Japan, they are having such low birth numbers that they are paying couples to have children and giving them extra time off from work and other incentives. In Germany, they are in dire straits are far as the low numbers of new generations coming up to pay for the programs to support their systems. This would be the case in the UK, also, if the Muslims and Hindus hadn’t started migrating there and they have high birth numbers. TheDuggars don’t cost me a penny, are a zero drain on our government, so more power to them. Try worrying about the crack hos having 7 kids with 7 different daddies and no child suppport. This is where the real problems lie. Oh, and our ever expanding immigrant population with their anchor babies. This is where your tax monies go. Then you pay to keep a large number of them incarcerated after they grow up. 70% of the men in our prison system right now are men of color raised by a single mother. These are the true issues to address.
So because they are pious Baptists, they are entitled to squander as much of our natural resources as they please?
How very un-Christian of them.
@103 are you saying that all of the crack hoes you mention are single women of color?Because if that is the case that is a bald faced lie.There are plenty of white crack whores running around(lohan anyone)but always black people put in a negative light.There are plenty of white women also that are single mothers.I guess that noone in prison had 2 parents either.People make a choise to become a criminal and I am so sick of people blaming everyone else for their problems.Lets stop with this ignorant ass racist crap(anchor babies and crack hos)and look at the real reason that drugs are on our streets.Where is the crack coming from?It sure as hell ain’t black people bring it over here so why don’t you check your facts.As far as the Duggers go I really don’t care that is their business but there is no reason to try to find a reason to spout racism with sugar on top. While it is true about black men being in prison,they are not the only ones commiting crimes but are the first one fingered.How many times has black men been accused of a crime but later found to be innocent?Especially the’a black man stole my car and kidnapped me’routine.Sound familiar?
Number 11’s clown car comment is from idontlikeyouinthatway dot com.
I wonder how many of you screaming about our “Natural Resources” are doing your part in saving the planet and helping future generations. I am sure all of you are green and recycling, driving a Prius and working tirelessly to try and save the planet. Just because you don’t have 19 children, doesn’t mean that you aren’t harming the planet. We all harm the planet every last one of us, so 1, 9 0r 19 it doesn’t matter. The world continues to grow and if not in the U.S, then elsewhere. You cannot tell people NOT to have children. When you do that you are violating human rights, and since so many who are wanting to conserve nature also worry about other countries and their human rights violations in regards to other matters, it seems a bit of a contradiction.
The fact is, they are going to have a 19th child, it’s their business. They do take care of the children and it is not up to any of us to tell the people how to raise those children. They seem like decent people who aren’t out killing, robbing, raping or molesting, so if they can raise 19 members of society with some decent work ethic and some values, I could care less if they are Einsteins or simple people. If there are 19 of them, at least there will be 19 potentially decent people vs some families that raise one serial killler or rapist!
Someone should give the Duggar family some condoms.
I never said you ought to have kids to instill a sense of caring– WTF?? Christ. People cant even read corectly!
I said its sad that you feel the need to limit your or other peoples birthing of children because of the poor condition we have put the world in, as though its the kids’ fault and not ours when we came first.
And that does not imply that having more kids will fix it!
And I dont even see why anyone would think that 19 families with 1 kid each is anything different …. the bottom line again IMO is the ethic we do or dont instill in our kids and follow ourselves, REGARDLESS of how many of us there are.
Coming from a family of 12, I can assure you that it is NOT good for the kids!I’m the 3rd oldest and I never NEVER had a childhood–I was too busy taking care of all my younger brother and sisters, not to mention having little to no (positive) attention from my parents.I watched the show–the parents remind me of MY parents–always caught up in what THEY wanted and cloaking it in “what God wants.” Bitter much? You bet I am, and all of my older siblings feel the same way. The younger ones feel pretty much the same way. Only one of us has had more than 2 kids. So yeah…it is NOT good for the kids.
I’m usually a “to each their own” type of person, but there’s one thing that bothers me about this. I live near these people and also know people involved in the foster care system in the area and know that they are desperately lacking enough loving foster homes. If these people really want a home full of children, I would think the most Godly way to do it would be by helping defenseless children in need.
They cannot possibly be good parents to that many children. Children need individual time and attention, and with that many siblings it is physically impossible for each of them to get that.
I wish something would occur to prevent them from becoming pregnant again, since they are obviously far too stupid to stop on their own.
I feel so sorry for those poor kids.
“I love all of this, its so much fun” said Michelle..
WTF? She makes the whole baby thing sounds like playing with Barbies!!
Having children or not having them is a personal choice. I confess I do worry that the children, while taken care of financially, fed, clothed, educated, health care, etc., they may not be getting the one on one attention from their parents that is so important. But to be fair there are pleanty of children who are from small families who don’t get proper emotional attention either, and NOT because they are the product of a ‘single mother’ or a ‘crack whore’ or some such bigoted assumption, but because some people, be they married, single, rich, poor, well educated or functionally illiterate, just aren’t very attentive parents.
That being said I have to wonder about the health implications of so many births on a human female. A bitch goes into ‘heat’ @ every 6mos (starting between 6-12 mos), and CAN be bred throughout their life (no doggie menses, poor ol gals), but it isn’t recommended. I, and this is somewhat debatable among vets/breeders, suggest my patient parents who insist on breeding limit 3-4 (max)litters per bitch waiting to breed until she is at least 2yrs and stopping at 7-8 yrs old, after that they have earned their rest; the risk of too early, late or frequent breeding can cause calcium depletion and other serious health risks to the bitch and the pups. I obviously understand that human anatomy is a different beast, but I have to wonder if this is safe for mother and child, especially considering her advancing age. Though I can’t judge her choice, I do wonder if there is a time to give your body a rest. I know that she may still be viable, but with that comes the debate of Can vs. Should… a 12 year old or a 50 year old can bear children, but considering the health risks should they?
They have enough kids to form their own baseball team. Oh, wait! Is this the family on TLC’s “18 Kids and Counting” who already have their own baseball team? Or a different family? Bah, I don’t care enough to know the answer.
I’m not overly familiar with this family, so their beliefs and views on male/female roles aside….I gotta say, I don’t get the full on hatred that seems to be spouting from this board re: 19 kids.
Anyone using the “child abuse” etc line should be prepared to then state that your grandparents etc were child abusers, because they didn’t have one room per child and spend numerous hours one on one with flash cards and storybooks with their kids. Even those with only a couple of kids still had to go about the business of living with their gardens, animals, bread-baking etc etc etc. My parents came from large families, albeit not 19 large…they both describe very happy childhoods.
I’ve known a few people who were born into big families, and have a friend or two who had nieces or nephews their own age, and they were all close to each other, as well as their parents. I’m only from a family of three with multi-year spacing, and my older siblings helped take care of me while my parents were at work….I do not feel abused.
The way I look at this is, families of this size are relatively rare, and counteracted by the fact that increasing numbers of women, myself included, either do not have children by circumstance or choice.
And I gotta say, that “is sex the only way they have to show each other they care” comment is a little sad. Happily married couples both love and lust after each other on occasion. That’s supposed to be a GOOD thing.
On a side note, not being able to bestow multi-$$$$ of gifts upon a child does not equal well cared for.
Nor does assisting in the care of ones siblings (and I mean this from both a male and female older child perspective-consequently i know plenty of “modern” parents who won’t allow their boys to do their own laundry, cooking etc, but have no issue with their girls doing so). A little responsibility and less of the “all about me” attitude never hurt anyone.
I think the Duggars are a great family and heckuvalot more stable than Jon and Kate. Congratulations to them!
So what if they’re having # 19? Is that so bad? At least they’re financially responsible for their children and raising them with sound Biblical beliefs.
I applaud them for their decision. Why should society decide how many children they should be alloted? That’s more sick to me.
The Duggars seem to have a stable, happy family. We are all captivated by them because some how they make it work where so many others are failing with not nearly the amount of responsibility the Duggars have. I firmly believe that with or without the world watching, the Duggars would be living out the same lives, stop judging.
Geez, no one is on crack, in prison, beating others up or shooting out the t.v. Seems like a pretty nice family to me.
Fact is, it is really unusual to see a real dad (sober) around his kids for more than an hour or two a week.
So who is doing the real parenting?
The older children?
God doesn’t make our choices for us.
We are responsible to make our own.
God isn’t going to tell them when to stop having children.
Do these children have anything to call their own ie; clothes or toys or is it all just community property in their home. Do these children get to choose their style of clothes or get told?
Notice how it shows the girls with long hair and always in skirts. Do they get to choose hairstyle or clothing style like other children?
When will the mother start to do the work of being a mom? Or will the older girls
have to bath dress and feed the infants toddlers and preschoolers all the time?
In other words be substitue parents.
Do these children ever get to things other children in their age range get to do play sports, go to the movies or the mall?
It wouldn’t surprise me to see them all leave home at an early age just to have a life of their own.
I bet that one or two of the Duggar children will make millions of dollars on a “Tell All” book in a few years. I am the second eldest in a very large family, my parents had two faces, one we called the “Sunday Face” the other the “Real Face”. Life looked perfect from outside, but you didn’t want to be inside. Several members of my family have moved far away to escape the farce of a life our neighbors and family friends thought we had. I know were all my siblings are, but most of them would rather not talk about our past because our parents are still living and I guess they’ll always have fear that our secrets will get out. They are not bad secrets, such as beatings or sexual abuse, but secrets of being made to feel inferior and unloved and burdens. We never got post secondary education because there were so many of us, it was never an option, we never got to play sports, or join anything or have friends, we only played with eachother and had to take care of eachother. We missed out on a lot and we felt it was our own fault because there were so many of us. And If I hear the words “WE DID THE BEST WE KNEW HOW, WITH WHAT WE HAD” I will scream, that was their excuse for everything!!!!!!
Jim Bob is in reality a real puritanical “JACKASS”!He has issues with the empowerment of the female gender,and educating females beyond fifth grade level.As their education level stands,none of those kids can pass any college assesment,or entrance exam tests.Bonehead ie.(remedial)Math and English anyone? A true Christian does not pidgeonhole his or her child,male or female for that matter.This “Little House On The Prarie”,attire and mentality is as some people would say is “For the Birds”!Beleiving in God should not mean “Military” or “Buzzcut” hairstles for the boys,or “Frumpy Smock” type dresses for the girls. The girls not being allowed to wear pants or jeans is not only assinine,but reppressive as well.A true Christian welcomes his or her child’s identity and individuality,not represses it.A true Christian also encourages his child,even his daughter to pursue higher education,to nurture their “God Given” aptitudes and talents. All his daughters are good for is being cooks,bottle washers,diaper changers,and “Future Baby Machines” in training. Jim Bob Duggar has serious control issues.Him and his wife get the pleasure of conceiving a child,while their kids especially the daughters,get all the “Dirty Work” taking care of those kids.
I hope that one or two or three of them will wise up and break away from this stifeling environment.Maybe in a few years,we’ll see a “Tell All;Daddy Dearest” book come out,and expose the Duggar parents for the repressive monsters they truly are.
I have to honestly say that this lifestyle isn’t for me, but who’s to say how many she should have? I agree with them 100%…the Lord only gives you what you can handle. Yes, she does rely on the older children to help out, but I have a 6 year old, and I expect him to help with his younger sister as well, so should I be condemned for that too?
I think we put too much stress on what ppl are doing wrong now-a-days…I think we should be focusing on what a loving family this truely is. They are so unlike the families of this generation. The children are (for the most part) really well-behaved, and what parent wouldn’t be proud of that.
We need to stop critisizing what everyone is doing wrong, and focus on the love they are bringing to each other’s lives. I don’t critisize the person living down the street from me with 3 kids that doesn’t even spend a minute with them…why should anyone look differently at them because they are having 19 kids?
Remeber…when you point a finger at someone else and what they are doing, you are also pointing 3 back at yourself…take a good long look in the mirror and see YOUR faults!!
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Hmm, I never thought about it that way. I do see your point but I think many will disagree
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