Guess what Michelle said.

[emmyfair]

It would never cross my mind to get my five year old to do the laundry, or even put everyones laundry in a basket. At this point, I'm really proud of him for remembering to put his own laundry in the basket, and I think that's enough. That's the insane thing about the Duggars and other fundie families, they seem to think children are just really small adults and should behave as such. What a total heartbreak for those kids.

[ladypuglover]

It would never cross my mind to get my five year old to do the laundry, or even put everyones laundry in a basket. At this point, I'm really proud of him for remembering to put his own laundry in the basket, and I think that's enough. That's the insane thing about the Duggars and other fundie families, they seem to think children are just really small adults and should behave as such. What a total heartbreak for those kids.

I also think 5 is too young as is 10 years to be doing the laundry all by yourself for the entire family. Kids can help with the chores like help sorting, starting or changing loads with a parent supervising but I feel that a prent should be part of all the chores assigned to children. A toddler can help mommy sort dirty clothes and a preschooler can help change loads but shouldn't be asked to bear the brunt of the chore. :snooty:

[bananacat]

I also think 5 is too young as is 10 years to be doing the laundry all by yourself for the entire family. Kids can help with the chores like help sorting, starting or changing loads with a parent supervising but I feel that a prent should be part of all the chores assigned to children. A toddler can help mommy sort dirty clothes and a preschooler can help change loads but shouldn't be asked to bear the brunt of the chore. :snooty:

I agree. Clothes are HEAVY when they are wet! Kids just don't have the strength to deal with a load of wet clothes, especially from a giant washer. There's also a height issue with top-loaders, and even pouring things without spilling is a skill that some kids take a while to develop. It's one thing for a kid to spill apple juice, but bleach is more dangerous. I think a lot of people underestimate just how much of a chore laundry really is. It's great for kids to help but only within reason.

[ElphabaGalinda]

Makes me wonder what Jana had to do when she was 5. I'm sure they started the older girls young. I hope what Hannie has to do isn't as inappropriate as it sounds but I wouldn't hold my breath. How long do you think it is until they make her start cooking for the whole family? She's the one I have the most hope for so I hope this isn't the beginning of the crushing of her spirits.

[Kitty]

I doubt Hannie will do the laundry all on her own. Seriously, the washers and dryers in the Duggar compound are fucking huge. Hannie isn't physically capable of that. I saw a pic, and IIRC the washers and dryers are stacked up... (my memory could be fucking with me).

I was under the impression that laundry in teh Duggar household wasn't done by just one person, so I'm thinking Hannie will have a sistermom helping her out.

[lilwriter85]

I doubt Hannie will do the laundry all on her own. Seriously, the washers and dryers in the Duggar compound are fucking huge. Hannie isn't physically capable of that. I saw a pic, and IIRC the washers and dryers are stacked up... (my memory could be fucking with me).

I was under the impression that laundry in teh Duggar household wasn't done by just one person, so I'm thinking Hannie will have a sistermom helping her out.

My guess Hannie and JoyAnna will be doing the laundry.

[Kitty]

My guess Hannie and JoyAnna will be doing the laundry.

Someone JoyAnna's age should be able to do laundry. It would suck having to do laundry for the whole family, especially a family of 21. Holy shit...

[Rosa]

My six year old has been helping with the laundry since he was 3 or so - he picks up dirty things off the floor and puts them in the hamper (in his room, grownups hit the basket all the time), he puts away things I've folded - his clothes, dish towels, anything that's not too heavy or stored up high.

And he LOVES taking clothes off the laundry line because he gets to stand on a (very stable) ladder and take off the clips and watch the laundry fall into the basket. Every once in a while he'll hang stuff up too, though very slowly - usually we do it together and I end up doing most of it.

As long as she's just picking up dirty laundry & putting it in the basket & following her big sister around watching her do it, I don't see it as a problem - I mean, it would be nice if some adult was in charge, but since that's off the table, helping big sis do laundry is probably fun. What else do the little kids do all day?

[keeperrox]

Having a 5/6-year-old help with the laundry is a great thing, IMO. Teaching my children to take care of their things and their space is something I hope that I will be able to focus on when the time comes. However, expecting a 5/6-year-old to do all the laundry for a 20-person household is unrealistic. Shit... expecting ONE person to do all the laundry for a household of that size, regardless of his/her age, is unrealistic, IMO.

[gilora]

I thought Grandma Duggar was the laundry slave?

I think Hannie is just helping to gather the dirty clothes, which is not a terribly taxing job for a 5 or 6 year-old. Besides, they will need to have another sister-mom ready in the unlikely event they actually permit one of the older daughters to "leave and cleave."

[MrsYoungie]

Sure hope it's not just Joy and Hannie in charge of laundry. Two young girls doing the chore that just about drove their mother to a nervous breakdown 15 years ago or so? Beyond cruel.

[Kitty]

I also think that they like that image and I think that the want their viewing audience to believe that they super experts managing money so it is probably why they won't admit that they are no longer shopping at thrift stores. Boob and Michelle probably think they can fool people but they can't. When I read some of the theories on twop about the Duggars buying Aeropostale and other brand names at thrift stores, I sort of did believe it, because a friend of mine who works next a thrift store said that a lot of people drop off lightly used brand name clothes at the store and that particular will buy certain items from people. But once there was a camera shot of an Aeropostale bag I knew that the thrift stores days were over for the Duggars.

I do think they probably don't buy extremely expensive clothes. I do wonder if they are buying new shoes for all of the kids now.

It's entirely possible that they do shop at thrift stores, but buy more stylish clothes. Or the older kids pop into something like Plato's Closet for gently-used clothes and bags and stuff. You can find all sorts of shit from American Eagle, Hollister, and Aeropostale there. There's also consignment stores that have cheap clothing and bags.

I'm not sure why it's so unfathomable that an old Aeropostale bag might be in a thrift store anyway, but meh. I don't shop at thrift stores much anymore, but when I do I always see name-brand stuff.

It wouldn't surprise me if Michelle did fudge the facts a bit re: her kids going to the mall and buying things on sale/clearance, but honestly it also wouldn't surprise me if they're so used to scrimping and saving that they buy things as cheaply as they can.

[Brainsample]

:shock:

she's really going to make a 5 year old do laundry for 21 people?!

I wouldn't even trust a 5 year old with her own laundry.

Sounds more like something on a Kid Farm spoof clip.

[slickcat79]

Sure hope it's not just Joy and Hannie in charge of laundry. Two young girls doing the chore that just about drove their mother to a nervous breakdown 15 years ago or so? Beyond cruel.

I remember watching the first special, when Jill was in charge of the laundry. There are several scenes of her and Joy working on it together, and Jill was younger then than Joy is now. You can also see Jana mention that her parents' room is part of her jurisdiction, so JB and Michelle can't even be bothered to clean their own room themselves. Having the little girls help with chores that are beyond their years is nothing new for the Duggars.

clip is here:

*edited to fix names

[lilwriter85]

It's entirely possible that they do shop at thrift stores, but buy more stylish clothes. Or the older kids pop into something like Plato's Closet for gently-used clothes and bags and stuff. You can find all sorts of shit from American Eagle, Hollister, and Aeropostale there. There's also consignment stores that have cheap clothing and bags.

I'm not sure why it's so unfathomable that an old Aeropostale bag might be in a thrift store anyway, but meh. I don't shop at thrift stores much anymore, but when I do I always see name-brand stuff.

It wouldn't surprise me if Michelle did fudge the facts a bit re: her kids going to the mall and buying things on sale/clearance, but honestly it also wouldn't surprise me if they're so used to scrimping and saving that they buy things as cheaply as they can.

Someone on the old FJ said that a nightgown that Johanna had on in an episode, was on a hot list for the Christmas holiday shopping. It was a Gymboree nightgown that was selling for $30. I think that is another sign that the thrift stores are over for the Duggars.

I agree Michelle fudged up the facts about her kids buying clothes at the mall. I also agree they are probably buying clothes as cheap as they can. They probably avoid more expensive mall stores like The Buckle.