12 Children vs 12 Grandchildren

As many of you know that Jeremy and Jinger are expecting the family's 12th grandchild which is a baby girl. We thought that it would be a wonderful idea to compare the Duggar Children to the Duggar Grandchildren and see how they lined up. Here are the line up:

When Jim Bob and Michelle had twelve children, they had seven boys and five girls.
1. Josh
2. Jana
3. John
4. Jill
5. Jessa
6. Jinger
7. Joseph
8. Josiah
9. Joy
10. Jeremiah
11. Jedidiah
12. Jason

Right now the family has eleven grandchildren with one the way due any day now. The family has two granddaughters with one on the way and nine grandsons.

1. Mackynzie
2. Michael
3. Marcus
4. Israel
5. Meredith
6. Spurgeon
7. Henry
8. Samuel
9. Mason
10. Garrett
11. Gideon
12. Baby Girl Vuolo

I wonder how the line up will be when the family has nineteen grandchildren. How do you think it will be?

Mother's Day wishes

Jim Bob gather many of the children along with Austin, Ben, Henry and Spurgeon wished Michelle, Grandma Duggar, Jill, Jessa and Anna a Happy Mother's day.

 Derick and Jill with Israel wished Ms Cathy and Michelle Duggar a Happy Mother's Day.

 Jeremy and Jinger wished Mom Vuolo and Mom Duggar a Happy Mother's day. 

 

Duggars and mothers premiere episode

Tonight mark the return! The family have us an update on where Derick and Jill's engagement ended last season. Michelle revealed that her daughter is ready to be a wife however the family has three months before the bride and groom can say I do.

The couple along with Michelle and the girls load up to meet with their wedding coordinators. They all are friends with the family. Jill is the first daughter of Jim Bob and Michelle to be getting married. The girls figure out that there is more things that they need to do before walking down to say I do. Jill learns that she has too do a lot. Michelle doesn't know how they are going to pull this off.

Derick's mom could not make it to the mother's day lunch in because she was sick well it turns out that she was diagnosed with cancer and has to go under chemotherapy. Derick and Jill grab Jessa so they can go visit Cathy at the hospital. Derick knows that it's been good to see how they deal with new changes. He was happy to have Jill by his side during this time.

At the Duggar home, the family decides that it's time for the Seewalds and Dillards to meet and what better day to do it on is Mother's day. Derick only has one brother named Dan who is two years younger than him and Ben has four sisters and two brothers.

Jessa wants to impress Ben's mom on her cooking skills but her skills are very limited and getting better so she helps her sister make the meal. She tries to imitate her older sister but admits that she is not as good as she is. Jessa tries to copy her style but she doesn't have it yet. She admits that cooking is fun and exciting but she always burn something. This time it was the dinner rolls but manages to save them with butter.

During the lunch, Jim Bob and Michelle ask Ben if he wants to move into their guesthouse and work around their property while he finish school. Ben decides to pray about it.

Jana doesn't think that it's normal for a guy to move into the girl's guest house but moving closer is a good idea.

Derick and Jill along with Dan and Chelsea are having a video chat with Cathy. (Good news now: Cathy is cancer free!)

Jim Bob and Michelle decided to give Derick and Jill a new house which is the same house that they fixed in 2012 in Puppies, properties and Patients and Kittens and Konstructions.

Jim Bob takes the kids over to the house to give it another deep clean. The house is three story mansion and has a lot of room for babies. Derick and Jill fell blessed to be able to live there until Jim Bob and Michelle decided to sell it.

Joy Anna feels that someone would feel that it was unfair to Josh and Anna that Derick and Jill got this house but the family did not own this house when Josh and Anna got married.

While cleaning, James got a hug splinter in his flinger and he was afraid when his father was trying to cut it out. Jessa quickly took over and managed to get it out right as Josh and Anna arrived to the house.

Jessa and her sisters are making up the guest house for her boyfriend who accepted their parent's offer. He arrived and was amazed by Jessa's decorating job.

Michelle revealed that her daughter is excited about this move. Ben reveals that the next step will be a rock and a piece of metal which means a ring which Jessa loves that idea.

Trivia questions:Duggars and mothers premiere trivia

Trivia answers: Duggars and mothers trivia answers (Coming soon!)

Recap: A duggar say yes

In this week's episode of 19 kids and counting, Ben and Jessa give us a look inside of their courtship and how their relationship began. Ben and Jessa met at the Duggar family church. Jessa and Ben exchanged phone numbers to get to know each other. Ben decided to get the premission of Jim Bob and Michelle to court their daughter before asking Jessa.
Ben is 18 years old and lives in Hot Springs, Arkansas with his parents and six younger brothers and sisters. He owns his own business which is a windshield repair and is a freshman at National Park Community College. Jessa told us that Ben is tall, dark and handosme which was pretty much what was on her list of what she wanted to marry.
Jim Bob and Michelle along with 17 of their children revealed their sister as an energetic, strong-willed child. They also told us that she likes to tell it how it is, loyal to her family and friends. She tries to keep a good handle on her emtions. John David reveals that his sister is opinionated.
Jim Bob and Michelle make the announcement that their daughter is courting to the rest of the family right after it's becomes offical. Jim Bob and Michelle talk to the new couple that just because they are courting doesn't mean that they have to be maried really fast. Jim Bob joking suggest that they wed about four or five years down the road. He just wants his daughter and Ben to work on building their relationship on trust and God's love.
Later on the show, Jim Bob and the boys want to clean up some yard work and what better way to test Ben's character about taking care of their sister. They have him come out and help.
Meanwhile Jessa and the girls are busy getting ready for dinner. Michelle wants to help encourage Jessa on cooking since Jessa thinks that she is a bad cook. After the boys are finished, it's time for dinner. Jim Bob and Michelle asked Johannah to stand between Jessa and Ben since they just started the courthip and have decided to wait on the physical until they are married.
Jessa and Michelle are heading to Hot Springs to visit Ben's family members so they can get to know the other family. Jessa and the older girls are upstairs packing. They want to spend a lot of time together since they might be soon be leaving if God is wanting that.
Jill and the other girls know that marriage is not going to happen in age order because God works in his own time and not what we want him to work. Jinger and Jessa have always been close since they are 14 months apart. Jinger thinks that it's bittersweet since her sister is in a courtship and might be leaving.
John David filies his mom and sister down to where Ben lives. Ben drives a truck which only has the front seat and that means that Michelle has to sit in the middle to protect the new couple's relationship.
Ben and Jessa are going on a date with Ben's parents and so Michelle watches the kids while they go out so Ben's parents can get to know her daughter. Jessa and Michelle get to meet Ben's extended family when they come over for BBQ and fellowship.
Back home while Jessa and Michelle are away, Jim Bob takes care of the youngest girls. Jim Bob takes the kids to pizza and ask them what they think of Ben which has nothing but good things.
Jim Bob asked his daughter, Jennifer, about if she has plan to married some day and she doesn't have any plans.
Jim Bob thinks that both Jessa and Jill's coursthips will bring more guys forward to seek the older duggar girls and maybe even some of the boys.
* This is the first time that there has not been an opening of all of the family. *

josie turns 4

The last of the duggar children is turning four years old. Josie was born three months eariler then what they expect her.

Fun facts: Josie, mackynzie and jordyn are the same age for the eight days.

Michelle Duggar on Raising a Strong-Willed Child

FAMILY MATTERS on 10.18.13

Michelle Duggar19 Kids and CountingBIO

 

Question from a "19 Kids and Counting" fan on Facebook: How do you handle particularly strong-willed children?

Well, I’ve had a couple of strong-willed ones go through here! I had one that really gave us a lot of challenges. We felt like we going back and forth saying, “Don’t do that,” and they would say, “Why?” They would just push it again and again and I’d think, “They’re never going to get it. It’s just not getting through.”

But we were consistent; that’s really important for parents with young children. If you’ve got a young child and they’re strong-willed, just be consistent -- lovingly consistent. Don’t get bent out of shape. Don’t get upset in the situation. They may push the limit, but they need to know what the boundaries are and they need to understand that those boundaries are not to restrict their fun. Jim Bob would always give this example: He would say, “We have always told you children don’t play in the street. Are we saying that to ruin your fun? Is that to spoil your life? Why would we say don’t play in the street? We put those boundaries in your life for a good reason. It’s to protect you because we love you.” Oftentimes as parents, we can see things that are a danger. And that’s why when we say it, the first time we’ll say, you obey it. There’s not a question of arguing with us about it. It’s just, yes, Ma’am, I will obey you.

Training a strong-willed one to obey was probably the greatest challenge I faced as a mom. I could train three others and they would quickly learn what I meant. But that strong-willed one, we’d go through these training opportunities over and over. Sometimes I would think, “Oh, they’re never going to get it. It’s not getting through.” But I knew I had seen a few of my others go through this and it was beneficial and did work in their lives, so I just didn’t give up. Even though they would butt heads with us, I would be fun but loving and say: “Mommy loves you so much that I’m not going to let you act that way. You cannot talk disrespectful to Momma, and you will obey, and hopefully, you will eventually obey joyfully.” But either way, they need to obey. I won’t budge.

They know I mean business because I just stand firm in what I say. Remember, you’re going to make it as a parent, and they’re going to catch on eventually. Jim Bob told me that he was not strong-willed as a child, but he struggled with dyslexia and it just took two or three times for things to connect for him as a child. He would remind me, don’t give up -- that could be a little Jim Bob that we’re looking at. That gave me hope!

Duggars on courtship!

Michelle Duggar on Courtship

FAMILY MATTERS on 09.20.13

Michelle Duggar19 Kids and CountingBIO

 

Photo: DCL

Question from a "19 Kids and Counting" fan on Facebook: How do you decide when one of the children is ready for courtship?

In my home, we like to think very carefully about courtship and getting to know potential husbands and wives. Why would you consider really getting to know someone closely if you didn’t think that there would be a potential for marriage? A person really needs to ask themselves, are they at the point in their life where they are ready for marriage? If they are, they need to be careful in how they handle this whole idea of getting to know someone because the emotions and the hormones that are involved in that season of life can really get out of hand if you really don’t have a good perspective.

We want them to make sure they’re ready for marriage, and that they are really prepared for it. For one of my daughters, there would be a lot of things that she would want to consider. Can I really, truly manage a household? Am I able to manage the money, purchase the things I need for my home and get all those ducks in a row to be married and run a household? 

In a potential suitor, we’d want a gentleman that loves the Lord and is growing in his relationship with him. He really needs to have that relationship as the priority of his life that drives him to do the things that God would want him to do. And he would have to be prepared to provide for his wife, which would mean he needs to have an income to support them and the stability to have a home, whether renting or owning. He’d also need to be a good protector for his wife and future family.

At this point, we’ve got a number of our older children that I think are ready for that next step in life. Our son John David has got a job and a home. He’s leasing that home out as rental income and putting the money aside. He’s also getting his pilot license right now and he’s been a fireman and a police officer, and now he’s a constable. So he’s definitely at that place in life where he’s ready to be a husband and a provider and he would be open to courting a young lady if he felt she would be the one for him.

Then our daughters, we’ve got Jana, Jill, Jessa and Jinger that are very capable of being married and having that close relationship with a special one. They manage a lot of our household; they like to do a lot of our shopping for clothes and food. That’s not a big deal for them, they love doing it anyway. But they’re good at it and good at managing things.

It’s just a matter of praying as different individuals come in to our lives. If they really sense that there’s an interest, the girls will study him and try to find out more about him in their time together. They need to get along really well and might get to know each other a little better through emailing or talking. There’s a lot of ways you can get to know somebody besides just being alone with them. They need to be a friend before they would even consider making a commitment to courtship.

And that’s kind of how it goes. It’s not just pairing off and going and doing things together alone, but getting to know them and their families too. Finding out from those that know the potential suitor, is this person quick to anger? How do they handle problems at work? Do they really have it together?

I think it’s probably going to be a little different for each of the kids. It’ll be interesting to see as time goes on how all of it pans out.

Have a burning question for Michelle Duggar? Send it to her and it could appear in an upcoming post!

Throwback Thursday 3/14/13

Duggar returns tonight

19 kids and counting is returning tonight with brand new episodes