Anna Duggar - Merge

[zz22zz]

I will also say Asian education is lightyears ahead of the Duggar's homechooling and many U.S. public schools. I taught South Korean kids Conversational English online through live video chat and many of them were talking to me at midnight their time after school for 8 hours, Math Academy, Science Academy, a sport (usually marital arts, badminton, or ping pong (yes I know VERY stereotypical but I had over 100 students and that is what over 90% of them chose)), and instrument lessons (usually piano or a stringed instrument). They work their butts off. The students I worked with ranged in age from 3-15 and yes some the 3 year olds were being held up by their parents so they could see or so they didn't wriggle away. They are very serious about education, to the point they pay a lot of for English Conversation lessons to hear a 'typical US accent' and so their kids can converse in English when they travel to the US or Australia. The kids were engrossed in learning about the U.S. and it's customs and geography. The sad part was the older kids expressed real fears of an invasion from North Korea, and my students lived in the southern most town in Korea. A small rural city of 1 million people, that always cracked me up that they thought being in a city of a million people was living in the country.

I currently teach in the U.S> public school system and having taught 1st, 2nd, and 4th it is a struggle, especially I teach at risk, very low income kids. Some kids are super high but others are years behind and our mobility rate is so high it is hard to make progress. (mobility rate is when kids move in and out of the school. When I taught 4th I had 19 kids (no pun!) out of 28 come or go from my class, when you look at the picture from day one compared to the last day it looks like two different classes. I have to point out the 9 kids who were there all year. We also had students who had missed up to 4 months of 3rd grade (and that was the only grade I could get stats on). So I hate to say it but there are many kids out there getting less an education than the Duggarlings. I taught at one school were if the kids were not in in school many didn't eat, so after three day holiday weekends the kids would be visibly weak. They got free breakfast and lunch and could come for lunch even in the summer at the school but not on weekends or holidays. We also had a family with 9 kids in a K-4 school, NO multiples. They were not fundie as far as we could tell, just fertile. We often wanted to pull the mom aside and make sure she knew how this was happening. She also had 3 more at home and was pregnant! The Duggar kids are far from the most disadvantaged or abused kids in the U.S.

As for Josh going to college. In the U.S. every state I have every lived in (and I have lived in 9 of them) has at least one state university that will accept anyone with a high school degree or GED. It is generally called an "open door" university. It can be an excellent school in many ways, but they exist for the students who didn't have a good GPA in high school, have low ACT scores, dropped out, or in some other way were not able to get the credentials needed to get into other Universities. Point being Josh or any Duggar would not have to start at community college unless they wanted to or wanted to save money.

[bluebird]

I think I am referring to a time and place with grandparents, great grandparents where modern transportation was not available. My great grandma was born in the 1840's so running around doing errands and taking care of family members would not have been an easy task for her, lol. I think she was probably stuck on the farm darning socks, making bread, milking cows and taking care of kids...ahahaha!!!!!

[Coco]

I think I am referring to a time and place with grandparents, great grandparents where modern transportation was not available. My great grandma was born in the 1840's so running around doing errands and taking care of family members would not have been an easy task for her, lol. I think she was probably stuck on the farm darning socks, making bread, milking cows and taking care of kids...ahahaha!!!!!

Your great-grandma's life for years must have been washing diapers, and washing diapers, and washing diapers, diapers... diapers... diapers....

i imagine that life sometimes and just thank my lucky stars i didn't have to experience it. i did old school cloth diapers for about a year with my first baby because my hubby and i were financially strapped. Prefolds and masking tape and velcro plasic pants, not the cool cloth diapers. So much contact with fecal matter lol. :shiver:

Although, last fall i got a glimpse of how women managed to get through life back in the pioneer days. We lost power for 6 days and 5 nights because of a freak blizzard. No electricity or distractions meant we all slept earlier and got more done before nighttime. It was pretty awesome functioning in time with the sun. I've been in Amish homes before, there's a deep sense of quiet that almost wraps around you, you can hear yourself think. The outside world feels a million miles away. You can hear nature like it's inside, and the creaking of the floors and things like that. i can see how even with a bunch of kids and animals to take care of and doing everything from scratch, they still managed to have fun. I wish i had the willpower to be less plugged in, but entertainment is just so interesting.

i like TV. And FJ. :lol:

i think if Anna had to become more isolated if they moved back to Arkansas, she'd adapt well. Contentment would mean shutting down portions of her thoughts, but she's done that already by being so conservative and focused on just a few narrow issues. She's a loving mom and she could lose her self in her growing herd of children fairly easily. The Gothard lifestyle is one that can be fairly automatic. Not too much soul-searching or seeking out life directions in ATI. It's all been done for them. Even their children's future directions are basically set. It's sad, but I do think that's how some of these fundie moms cope. They cling to the preset plan and give up individuality and introspection.

[LogansMama]

Why do I feel the "Our Story" page on ja20 is not sincere? It reads more like Jesus PR than anything else. I get the strong feeling that these people are using Jesus for their own self-agenda and don't really give two s*its about anyone else.

Of COURSE it's Jesus PR. The Duggars say that's the only reason they do the show in the first place.

Also, much applause for "Jesus PR". That was awesome and highly appropriate. :clap:

[LogansMama]

I'll have to find where I read it - it may have been in a Duggar book or early episode. It's definitely not just a rumour though.

Definitely wasn't in one of their books. I've studied all 3 religiously (no pun intended) and there's no mention of Anna's education.

[LongDogMom]

Actually, I think she would have a breakdown if they moved back BECAUSE she would be isolated. Homeschooling in/near a big city is so much different than homeschooling back in Arkansas. And, we see very little of their lives. I would be surprised if Anna didn't have a support network of friends turned family out there. If she went back to Arkansas, she pretty much only has Josh's family.

True. I can see her feeling a lot more under the microscope if Michelle and Jim Bob are popping over all the time. Plus if Josh goes into politics again, the pressure of having all the kids looking good and behaving well for campaign stuff...not to mention herself being well dressed and schooled in how to act and what to say.

Personally I think if they aren't using birth control and they keep having kids at the rate they are...well, eventually she will hit a point when it's just very very difficult to look after that many kids and be a good mom and wife (her definition) without serious help and Mac might be some help but she won't be enough and she'll still be young herself, and the Duggar girls can visit and help a bit, but it's not the same as living there full time. Plus I get the feeling that Anna wouldn't want to just hand over her parental responsibilities the way Michelle was comfortable doing. So I think with all the expectations on her including her own (of what the perfect wife and mom should be according to the Duggars), Anna will eventually hit a point where it's just too much and she could have a breakdown. I mean they follow a religion that says everyone should be smiling and happy all the time or they aren't righteous enough or whatever. Being unhappy is a sin according to Gothard. It's a scary situation to be in for any woman. I'm sure it all seems fine until it isn't. The first baby, great. The second through fourth or fifth, great. But once you start having six or eight or ten and are still expected to homeschool them all and get meals on the table and do laundry and keep the house clean and look nice yourself etc. Sorry...I can't even imagine that kind of pressure.

[19 cats and counting]

Ok as someone who works in politics (and has hired before), as douchey as Josh is, he does have certain skills that he can bring to a campaign (if he were not a reality star). HE seems to be good with video and graphic design (I can totally see him designing mailers) and perhaps web stuff. (All of are skills that I lack). If he were a Democrat and I saw his resume and work samples (I'd count the wedding invitations), I'd at least interview him for a position on a digital team (something that only large campaigns or state parties have). Whether or not I would hire him depends on how well he interviews.

FRC does not seem to utilize his skills and basically only hired him as a celebrity spokesman to reach younger voters (who overwhelmingly don't agree with FRC's message).

Personally I see him moving back to AR by the time he's 30 and running for Congress. And I'd relocate to manage his opponent's campaign to stop him from being a congressman.

[NotALoserLikeYou]

Definitely wasn't in one of their books. I've studied all 3 religiously (no pun intended) and there's no mention of Anna's education.

I think it was on the show, maybe one of those text blurbs. I remember it

[jarona]

Of COURSE it's Jesus PR. The Duggars say that's the only reason they do the show in the first place.

Also, much applause for "Jesus PR". That was awesome and highly appropriate. :clap:

The wealth of information I receive here is invaluable for my voyeuristic obsession with these people :pink-shock: :lol: I had no idea that Jesus PR was the only reason these disgusting people did the show. All the more reason TLC should drop them. I really thought that the premise of the show was for JB and Michelle to exploit their children to get free stuff and for TLC to foot the bill for so much of their living expenses--while also promoting Jesus. I'm still reeling from last night's show. Michelle commanding who was it--Jordyn or one of the younger girls to get her sewing machine. In all my days of home sewing I would never have any of my kids bring my machine from upstairs--god forbid they fall down the stairs and get hurt. Also--(forgive me for being obsessed with this) the machine is a Pfaff--there is NO way she bought that used. No way. I'm thinking product placement. Then the pizza making just seemed so forced. They need to take Josie to a specialist. I think she is having issues. :pull-hair:

[apandaaries]

Thanks, I don't know how I missed that :pink-shock:

I really don't want to pay for it though, I guess I'm going to have to quit my Duggar fix cold turkey. :pull-hair:

We are also a cable-free household, but youtube can be helpful. The episodes kind of pop on and off line. It's not the best (I still haven't seen them go to Scotland or Israel and I am DYING to see those episodes), but it helps. Then there are all the recaps in various spots. It still gives them media attention and online hits, but that way you don't have to contribute to their evil empire quite as directly.

[Feberin]

Personally I think if they aren't using birth control and they keep having kids at the rate they are...well, eventually she will hit a point when it's just very very difficult to look after that many kids and be a good mom and wife (her definition) without serious help and Mac might be some help but she won't be enough and she'll still be young herself, and the Duggar girls can visit and help a bit, but it's not the same as living there full time.

Currently the gaps between her children keep getting a little bit larger. Marcus will be over two years when M4 makes her debut. If there is a similar age gap next time Mac will be almost eight or possibly even already eight years old when M5 is born. I think a lot of it depends on what kind of mother Anna wishes to be to her children and how much work she feels comfortable dumping on Mac. If Anna is okay with turning her girls into M'slaves and instituting a buddy system Mac will be a lot older and therefore more capable then Jana was to help. Also I think the degree to which Anna wants to homeschool will play a huge role. Right now it appears that Anna has really made educating Mac a priority and does a lot of activities with her. That would be hard to keep up as their family grows but if Anna is fine giving Mac a stack of worksheets and calling that their schooltime it would probably be much more manageable.

[marieantoinette]

I don't think we will see a meltdown anytime soon. I think she gets more help than we expect even though she lives in DC now. It wouldn't be anything for Jinger to hop on a plane or John David's plane and go over and take over for awhile. These people are rich and Jinger doesn't have a job, so time and money is a non issue for them now. Not only that, but Anna is a space cadet. She probably just looks atthem blankly with a smile while the kids torture eachother. I know someone who has 4 kids and hhas a very similar personality and she just blocks out the deafening yelling and screaming of her out of control children. I can't stay at her house long without shaking with anxiety from the insanity. It takes a special kind of person to handle that kind of chaos

[bunnybunz]

Anna should not be homeschooling anyone, she may not be "stupid" but she is uneducated and ignorant. Her Twitter feed is so obnoxious, she's always retweeting about things she clearly knows nothing about, like Muslim holidays and Israeli politics. This is one of my main beefs with the Duggars, they know more than everyone else because Jesus. They don't have to get a real education, because Jesus. And they're all pretty much on target to breed even more than Michelle, so we will soon have HUGE population of kool aid drinking jesus-freaking clones trying to influence our government.

I'm sorry because she seems popular here, but I get such a bad vibe from Anna. Her dead, vacant eyes... *shivers*

[Ursula]

We had a topic about pretty much this exact same thing a few months ago, "How Many More Before Anna Cracks?" link here: http://www.freejinger.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=87&t=24311

I'll just copy and paste what I said in it because I still stand by it today:

Anna will never crack, at least not in the same way Michelle did/was forced to. She (Anna) will never have to. Josh and Anna seemed to do just fine with 2.5 kids, and it was around the time Marcus became mobile that Jana and Joy were shipped off to help. Two J'slaves was probably unnecessary which is why Jana stuck around while Joy went home, but I'm sure one or both will be sent back when M4 is born. Anna lucked out like crazy marrying into the family she did if she truly wants 10+ kids.

Look, the youngest fuck trophy of Boob and OfJimBoob is about to turn five. Josie is still a little girl but hardly needs the constant attention of her buddy. Jill and Jessa are starting their own families but it will be a few sprogs down the line before they'll require help. Even if Jana and Jinger are married and unavailable for free slave labour in a couple of years they will still have Joyless and by that point Johanna, Jennifer, Jordyn and Josie will ALL be old enough to ship off to their older sibling's homes to help with laundry, light cooking, clean up chores, etc. They won't have graduated home fooling themselves, but the Duggars have never been shown to give a shit about education, especially the education of a lowly female, before. As long as they can read and write and do enough math to file taxes, they're golden. Also by that time Mackenzie with the weird spelling will be plenty old enough to start being an official buddy herself. Don't forget that the oldest Duggar daughters started being buddies around 7/8 years old themselves. Johanna and Jennifer are 9 and 7 right now.

It's going to continue on in a cycle like this. In 10+ years when Johanna, Jennifer, etc. are getting married and having their own children the younger girls of Jana, Jill, etc. will be sent off to help them, then those younger girls will get help from the youngest of Johanna, Jennifer, etc. AD INFINITUM. It is only the first generation Quiverfucked parents who have a hard go at it. After that, enough poor souls have been brought into their world to take care of the poor souls who continue to be brought into their world.

Anna won't meltdown because she'll always have the (forced) help of an unmarried female in-law. Girl has got it MADE in that family. So do all the second gen Quiverfuckeders. Because of the sheer number of them, there will always be help. Hell, don't be surprised to even see some MALE minors helping out. James, for example, will probably be thrilled to babysit his new younger brother.

[19 cats and counting]

Anna should not be homeschooling anyone, she may not be "stupid" but she is uneducated and ignorant. Her Twitter feed is so obnoxious, she's always retweeting about things she clearly knows nothing about, like Muslim holidays and Israeli politics. This is one of my main beefs with the Duggars, they know more than everyone else because Jesus. They don't have to get a real education, because Jesus. And they're all pretty much on target to breed even more than Michelle, so we will soon have HUGE population of kool aid drinking jesus-freaking clones trying to influence our government.

I'm sorry because she seems popular here, but I get such a bad vibe from Anna. Her dead, vacant eyes... *shivers*

I'm not too crazy about Anna (although I do like her better than Josh) but she's not on pace to breed like Michelle has. When M4 is born, Mack will be about the same age Josh was when Jinger (#6) was born. (Of course there's twins in there for Michelle and not for Anna).

[purposed2015]

The wealth of information I receive here is invaluable for my voyeuristic obsession with these people :pink-shock: :lol: I had no idea that Jesus PR was the only reason these disgusting people did the show. All the more reason TLC should drop them. I really thought that the premise of the show was for JB and Michelle to exploit their children to get free stuff and for TLC to foot the bill for so much of their living expenses--while also promoting Jesus. I'm still reeling from last night's show. Michelle commanding who was it--Jordyn or one of the younger girls to get her sewing machine. In all my days of home sewing I would never have any of my kids bring my machine from upstairs--god forbid they fall down the stairs and get hurt. Also--(forgive me for being obsessed with this) the machine is a Pfaff--there is NO way she bought that used. No way. I'm thinking product placement. Then the pizza making just seemed so forced. They need to take Josie to a specialist. I think she is having issues. :pull-hair:

Pfaff machines used to come into our local Salvation Army Thrift Store quite frequently.

[RosyDaisy]

I'm hoping Josh and Anna make friends with other couples who will gently guide them away from Gothardism and help them further their education.

[HereticHick]

By the way, I just checked on Kayak--there are NO non-stop flights between the 3 Washington DC area airports and the airport nearest to the Duggars (Bentonville/Northwest Arkansas--airport code is XNA). You always have to change planes in someplace like Charlotte or Atlanta.

If they fly to larger regional airports like Little Rock or Tulsa, they are still a long way from Tontitown-- Little Rock is about 200 miles, and Tulsa is 100.

As we saw in a recent episode, Anna flew w/ the 3 kids and no Josh down to Jessa's wedding (unless someone like Jana or a Hartono girl assisted & they didn't show it).

I would like to hear from those of you with experience w/ multiple little kids--in the future, do you think it is possible for her to change planes w/ 4 kids under age 6, without any adult assistance?

I really think that with the arrival of M4, Josh and Anna are going to be travelling to Arkansas a lot less, unless Jana moves in with them long term.

I am curious to see how this will affect them, and their possible drifting away from Gothardism.

[SassyPants]

By the way, I just checked on Kayak--there are NO non-stop flights between the 3 Washington DC area airports and the airport nearest to the Duggars (Bentonville/Northwest Arkansas--airport code is XNA). You always have to change planes in someplace like Charlotte or Atlanta.

If they fly to larger regional airports like Little Rock or Tulsa, they are still a long way from Tontitown-- Little Rock is about 200 miles, and Tulsa is 100.

As we saw in a recent episode, Anna flew w/ the 3 kids and no Josh down to Jessa's wedding (unless someone like Jana or a Hartono girl assisted & they didn't show it).

I would like to hear from those of you with experience w/ multiple little kids--in the future, do you think it is possible for her to change planes w/ 4 kids under age 6, without any adult assistance?

I really think that with the arrival of M4, Josh and Anna are going to be travelling to Arkansas a lot less, unless Jana moves in with them long term.

I am curious to see how this will affect them, and their possible drifting away from Gothardism.

If she checked on those 2 big bags and the car seats, and only had the kids, and their smallish luggage to actually handle, she could have done it. If Marcus was in a wrap, freeing up both of her hands, all the better.

[nst]

The wealth of information I receive here is invaluable for my voyeuristic obsession with these people :pink-shock: :lol: I had no idea that Jesus PR was the only reason these disgusting people did the show. All the more reason TLC should drop them. I really thought that the premise of the show was for JB and Michelle to exploit their children to get free stuff and for TLC to foot the bill for so much of their living expenses--while also promoting Jesus. I'm still reeling from last night's show. Michelle commanding who was it--Jordyn or one of the younger girls to get her sewing machine. In all my days of home sewing I would never have any of my kids bring my machine from upstairs--god forbid they fall down the stairs and get hurt. Also--(forgive me for being obsessed with this) the machine is a Pfaff--there is NO way she bought that used. No way. I'm thinking product placement. Then the pizza making just seemed so forced. They need to take Josie to a specialist. I think she is having issues. :pull-hair:

because she was licking her food and then putting it on the pizza - clearly that kid has something going on and the fact that Michelle didn't tell her to stop doing it -AMAZED ME

:angry-banghead: :angry-banghead:

[SassyPants]

because she was licking her food and then putting it on the pizza - clearly that kid has something going on and the fact that Michelle didn't tell her to stop doing it -AMAZED ME

:angry-banghead: :angry-banghead:

I cannot believe that Michelle let her do that- and lick and stick came so quickly out of her mouth, you just know that Josie must do this behavior all.of.the.time.

The Duggars are crappy parents-

Ironic- the crappy, disengaged parents are the ones who feel they need to overpopulate the Earth.

[lascuba]

IIRC, Ana's "degree" in education was an ATI certification program via correspondence. An advanced SOTDRT, if you will. Nothing to be impressed by, there.

[Jessica]

She mentioned her "degree" in an interview with the people who run the Duggar Family Blog right after Michael was born.

[SassyPants]

IIRC, Ana's "degree" in education was an ATI certification program via correspondence. An advanced SOTDRT, if you will. Nothing to be impressed by, there.

I disagree.

At least Anna was doing something and attained something. And remember, Anna was late teens at the time.

Follow through and tenacity are important, IMO. By completing this program, even if it does not mean much, she is far ahead of most of the Duggar adult/kids.

I'll also give her a thumbs up for completing something within the confines of her parent's home, as I am sure she still had other tasks that she was responsible for...it means that she was self directed. Compare that to Jill who was working on her MW training for years and still never completed the task. The Kellers are likely better parents and especially working role models.

[Ursula]

By the way, I just checked on Kayak--there are NO non-stop flights between the 3 Washington DC area airports and the airport nearest to the Duggars (Bentonville/Northwest Arkansas--airport code is XNA). You always have to change planes in someplace like Charlotte or Atlanta.

If they fly to larger regional airports like Little Rock or Tulsa, they are still a long way from Tontitown-- Little Rock is about 200 miles, and Tulsa is 100.

As we saw in a recent episode, Anna flew w/ the 3 kids and no Josh down to Jessa's wedding (unless someone like Jana or a Hartono girl assisted & they didn't show it).

I would like to hear from those of you with experience w/ multiple little kids--in the future, do you think it is possible for her to change planes w/ 4 kids under age 6, without any adult assistance?

I really think that with the arrival of M4, Josh and Anna are going to be travelling to Arkansas a lot less, unless Jana moves in with them long term.

I am curious to see how this will affect them, and their possible drifting away from Gothardism.

I am ALMOST CERTAIN that there were pictures (fan pictures, not "official" ones posted to a Duggar social media account) of Anna and the Ms at an airport in Washington or around their home area getting ready to board the plane to the old homestead for the Jessa/childbridegroom wedding....accompanied by not only Jana but Jason (at 14, he's more than old enough to be considered a helper "adult") as well. The pictures are most likely on Pickles. I'll try to find them when I get home from work tonight, unless someone else does it in the mean time, but yeah, she had help. And it wasn't just a case of Jana/Jason picking them up in AR either. The fans who took the photos were in/around Washington, DC.

Good luck with 4 Ms, Anna!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11eleventy!