Brooklyn Elise Countdown Is Over - She's Here!

[Fundie Bunny]

Another point of view from a spanish university student. I can't juggle a job and studies during the years, but i don't need it. Maybe i could fit here and there tutoring classes for some extra money, i'll see next year. We all go out at least once a week (or two or three times, screw it we're not nuns), we have work to do, but not too much. If you have to go away for the weekend, you totally can, and the start of the term is the best time for it, when the exams are away and you don't have that much to study.

[jakesykora]

On 8/23/2016 at 3:19 PM, Melissa1977 said:

I think it's funny and Erin seems to have a good sense of humour, which surprises me because she seemed so strict and boring when she was single. And I hope she's being honest and she's not punishing her 15 months old for being...a 15 months old. But I always wonder how can these women be surprised about the amount of work moms have. I mean, Jessa can't clean, Alyssa hasn't time for long hair, Erin can't control 2 babies... I understand them, but they come from big families, how didn't they know kids are a hard work? It proves that they have not seen a real mother at home, nor a real parenting. It's all fake. But they are too deep in the cult to realise their childhood was a disaster . 

I'm guessing for some of them it's actually because they were from a large family that not all may not realize quite how much work it takes or how busy they'll be, etc.

No one (obviously) has an understanding of exactly how much work things took for their own mothers when they were the really young kids.

By the time any of them (well, obviously by the time any of us who had younger siblings) really realize what things are like in the earliest years of kids, their frame of reference is skewed by then seeing their mothers do it with some degree of help from the older girls.

As we all know, things in their homes tend to be so divided up (due to the jurisdiction thing plus buddy teams) and to a much greater extent than in most homes since there so many more to divide responsibilities among

I imagine many of them probably approach it thinking they each respectively handled their 'roles' and so they sort of go into their own adult lives not quite realizing to extent of work there really is. 

Thus likely unconsciously almost mentally 'minimizing' the degree of work it'll be since I'm sure they then think some line of thinking in the vein of 'well the amount of work it took growing up in our home was more b/c of more people.' And obviously that does make more work, but then it goes back to there being more hands to divide it among, which they don't have at this point.

[just_ordinary]

I think one difference between american (and I think british) and european universities is the amount of papers that have to be handed in on a weekly basis. In Germany if you study  liberal arts you can choose between four different examination options (well, not always). Either you hand in 3 essays (3-5 pages) over the ourse of the semester, give a presentation and write a essay (about 10 pages) on it, write an academic paper (differs between 15, 30 or 60 pages depending if you are a bachelor or a master or in one of the old study regulations) or do a written or oral exam at the end of the semster. You have to had at least one test in every examination options by the time you are going to graduate. You are genereally more on your own and have to figuere out things by yourself (like when do I put how much effort in, or what to choose in the next semster and build a decent timetable).

And even if we do not have tuition fees (there are if you already have a degree) university is not for free. There is of course a fee to pay but it is "only" between 300-600 per semster. Places at student residences are rare so about 80% have to rent on the free market. Most of the students are working part time, but if you earn more than a certain amount you also have to pay taxes. And after saying all of that: I do not know anybody who did not have a weekend away sometime in the semster (but normaly not right at the beginning). There were actually nights I partied and then grabbed my stuff at 3am to head into the libary (which is open 24h) to write my bachelor thesis. Those were the days...

[alba]

I think I've figured out what seems so wrong to me about going away the first weekend of the semester. It's because that's the party weekend!

Obviously, the Bateses aren't going out partying, but the first couple of weekends of uni (and Freshers' Week, though I'm guessing Clown College doesn't go for that) are the time to get to know people and make friends with your classmates. Surely even Clown College has fundie-approved Freshers'-type events in the first couple of weeks for students to "fellowship".
 

[Melissa1977]

1 hour ago, Timetraveler said:

I can't really explain why, but somehow I find the (newborn) pictures of both Brooklyn and Kaci very.....strange. Kaci looks better in the more recent pics, where she is a bit older, but Brooklyn's pictures....she really does look like a doll, it almost seems as if she is not alive.

Kaci was born at 36 weeks, she's almost a preemie, and probably weighted less than an average 36 W baby.  

Brooklyn was born very beautiful, but the lighting and the filters of the pictures gave her an strange look. She would have been prettier in a more natural picture. But she's specially beautiful I think, more than most newborns.

[Fundie Bunny]

2 hours ago, just_ordinary said:

I think one difference between american (and I think british) and european universities is the amount of papers that have to be handed in on a weekly basis. In Germany if you study  liberal arts you can choose between four different examination options (well, not always). Either you hand in 3 essays (3-5 pages) over the ourse of the semester, give a presentation and write a essay (about 10 pages) on it, write an academic paper (differs between 15, 30 or 60 pages depending if you are a bachelor or a master or in one of the old study regulations) or do a written or oral exam at the end of the semster.

That very much sounds like heaven

[VelociRapture]

@TimetravelerWe've had posters who are into photography post about those style of photos before. I think the general consensus was it had to do with lighting, too much editing, and that was just the general style you see in newborn photos right now.

I've thought about getting photos done for my daughter when she arrives. But I'm not a big fan of that style - where they look dead or like a doll all wrapped up so they can't move. We'll probably just stick with the typical pictures you take in the hospital and at home. Maybe for her first birthday we can see about having a few professional pictures of our family done.

[just_ordinary]

@Fundie Bunny: it depends. We fought a lot of fights when the Bachelor/Master system was established. There was a significant separation between university and "Fachhochschule" (think the term university of applied science does not cover that well). That means you had almost no fix structure while studying. Of course you had to do predefined subjects but you had quite the variety in seminars and lectures. As there was no Bachelor degree you would study longer and had a lot of time to really get into your specific interests (which had some downfalls as well sure). Most important: it was your right and responsibility to make sure you succeeded. Now it is almost as if you never left school. You have to proof you listened all the time and a lot of people don't think that is how you should be treated as an adult (I mean attendance list, wtf). Make sure you learned and pass the test at the end/ write a good academic paper. It was a totally different system just a few years ago. Downside: if you can't motivate, self-discipline and organize yourself you are in trouble. There were a lot of dropouts. If you wanted/needed a more set structure the "Fachhochschule" would be your place of choice but they have different degrees/ programs.

Sounds like heaven but when you face your intermediate examination (around that time people now get a bachelor degree) that could cover everything from the first semester till now you regret that you never sat in Formal Logic.

[lizzybee]

So I went on Crown College's website and looked at their academic calendar. Mon-Tues of this week the school had a "College Retreat" that was required for dorm students but non-dorm students were welcome. If they didn't go to that, they'd have a 4 day weekend. So that's reasonable even if they did have a lot of homework or reading that they could go somewhere for a couple of days to get away and still get the work done if they had some. They don't have class again until Wednesday and that also depends on their schedules if they even have a Wednesday or a Friday class. Depending on that some or all of them could have had more than 4 days off. 

ETA: Also the textbook deadline is August 30th. So depending on the teacher there might not be much assigned studying happening until after that point. 

ETA2: If Carlin is to be believed from the show (unless she changed her mind) she is taking online courses because she "travels a lot." There aren't as many online courses as there are other options at Crown proper. My guess would be the "Foundation for Christian Life" certificate and if I'm right about that, her courses don't officially begin until the 29th. If Josie is doing the online "Early Advantage" program, the same would be true for her (6 days ago, as per Instagram would be the 17th which was mandatory student orientation not classes which would explain why they all were there regardless of when they have their first classes).

[JillyO]

40 minutes ago, lizzybee said:

ETA2: If Carlin is to be believed from the show (unless she changed her mind) she is taking online courses because she "travels a lot." There aren't as many online courses as there are other options at Crown proper. My guess would be the "Foundation for Christian Life" certificate and if I'm right about that, her courses don't officially begin until the 29th. If Josie is doing the online "Early Advantage" program, the same would be true for her (6 days ago, as per Instagram would be the 17th which was mandatory student orientation not classes which would explain why they all were there regardless of when they have their first classes).

What now? Where the fuck does Carlin travel all the time? Even more so than the rest of her family? It's not like she actually has places to be and things to do. Also, LOL at "Foundation for Christian Life" certificate. That's gonna take you far in life.

[princessmahina]

2 hours ago, JillyO said:

What now? Where the fuck does Carlin travel all the time? Even more so than the rest of her family? It's not like she actually has places to be and things to do. Also, LOL at "Foundation for Christian Life" certificate. That's gonna take you far in life.

Well, the only place she's going is to the altar, so... Anyway, Carlin is probably courting and is frequently going to visit a certain someone.

[Fundie Bunny]

4 minutes ago, princessmahina said:

Well, the only place she's going is to the altar, so... Anyway, Carlin is probably courting and is frequently going to visit a certain someone.

But isn't she courting that Bobby guy?

Nevermind, i confused her with tori

[Melissa1977]

9 minutes ago, princessmahina said:

Well, the only place she's going is to the altar, so... Anyway, Carlin is probably courting and is frequently going to visit a certain someone.

My bet: a Florida boy, somehow related to Websters.

[Bazinga]

On 8/24/2016 at 9:17 AM, formergothardite said:

Really? Even people I know who went to fundie colleges had lots of homework first weekend of college. It is just so odd to me to start college and then immediately go on a weekend trip that takes 11ish hours one way. 

I'm with you. I'd actually like to add that I think it shows their privilege. If the Bates didn't have their own TV show, these types of vacations probably wouldn't be happening. I know when I was in college, the only vacation I ever took was a trip back home to see my parents (ha!). Other then that I stayed in town like most everyone else.

[VelociRapture]

3 hours ago, Bazinga said:

I'm with you. I'd actually like to add that I think it shows their privilege. If the Bates didn't have their own TV show, these types of vacations probably wouldn't be happening. I know when I was in college, the only vacation I ever took was a trip back home to see my parents (ha!). Other then that I stayed in town like most everyone else.

I didn't take a vacation the entire time I was in college. I just didn't have the money to justify it - I needed to pay for books, food (that wasn't from the cafeteria), gas, and trying to save so I could pay off my student loans after graduation. 

I don't remember how much homework I would have had the first weekend back. Not nearly as much as my husband - I majored in English and he majored in Accounting. We could both study wherever though, so we probably could have gone on vacation if we had the money.

[CharlieInCharge]

15 hours ago, VelociRapture said:

snip

I've thought about getting photos done for my daughter when she arrives. But I'm not a big fan of that style - where they look dead or like a doll all wrapped up so they can't move. We'll probably just stick with the typical pictures you take in the hospital and at home. Maybe for her first birthday we can see about having a few professional pictures of our family done.

This is what we did. There was no way I was gonna have it together enough for a photo shoot for the first few months. We did a professional shoot with the whole family and a little friend of my son's when he was a year old. It was great because by that age you see their personality a lot more. I love those photos! 

[Coconut Flan]

The online student may be attending the "other Crown College." 

[elliha]

15 hours ago, CharlieInCharge said:

This is what we did. There was no way I was gonna have it together enough for a photo shoot for the first few months. We did a professional shoot with the whole family and a little friend of my son's when he was a year old. It was great because by that age you see their personality a lot more. I love those photos! 

In my family the tradition is to have pictures taken around the child's first birthday. We did it for our daughter and will most likely do so for our son too. We might also take a family photo this time but nothing is decided about the latter. 

[BeccaGrim]

On 8/25/2016 at 8:49 AM, JillyO said:

What now? Where the fuck does Carlin travel all the time? Even more so than the rest of her family? It's not like she actually has places to be and things to do. Also, LOL at "Foundation for Christian Life" certificate. That's gonna take you far in life.

Pretty sure she follows Lawson around.  She really seems to spend a lot of time with him. 

On 8/25/2016 at 11:16 AM, Melissa1977 said:

My bet: a Florida boy, somehow related to Websters.

I'm telling you, she is following around Lawson. Sometimes she joins him on stage. She's very preoccupied with Lawson. 

[JemimaPuddle-Duck]

7 hours ago, BeccaGrim said:

Pretty sure she follows Lawson around.  She really seems to spend a lot of time with him. 

I'm telling you, she is following around Lawson. Sometimes she joins him on stage. She's very preoccupied with Lawson. 

I'm not really sure what you're getting at, but it sounds very much like you're implying something inappropriate. :-/ Maybe I am just being sensitive. 

[VelociRapture]

15 hours ago, JemimaPuddle-Duck said:

I'm not really sure what you're getting at, but it sounds very much like you're implying something inappropriate. :-/ Maybe I am just being sensitive. 

I agree with you. It does seem as if they're implying something. Could just be poor wording though.

If she's hanging with her brother a lot then I wouldn't be surprised if it was because she's helping chaperone him or something. Not sure if he'd need one because he's an adult male, but it seems like the obvious explanation.

[Palimpsest]

3 minutes ago, VelociRapture said:

I agree with you. It does seem as if they're implying something. Could just be poor wording though.

If she's hanging with her brother a lot then I wouldn't be surprised if it was because she's helping chaperone him or something. Not sure if he'd need one because he's an adult male, but it seems like the obvious explanation.

One of the other brothers always seems to be around too as an accountability partner for Lawson on his out of town gigs - Trace? I really can't tell most of the Bates howlers apart.

I expect Carlin's jurisdiction when traveling under the protection of her brothers is the wimmin's work.  Someone has to pack for them, wash their socks, and make sure their shirts are ironed.  

[BeccaGrim]

19 hours ago, JemimaPuddle-Duck said:

I'm not really sure what you're getting at, but it sounds very much like you're implying something inappropriate. :-/ Maybe I am just being sensitive. 

I was not being inappropriate. I'm sorry if I wasn't clearer. More like hero worship? 

[enine]

I went to uni in Germany, a lot of my friends went to uni somewhere else (France, Great Britain, Australia, Poland, Swednen...) and literally ALL of them, including myself, went on weekend trips or partied quite hard. Especially during the first couple of weeks of semester. No matter if their major was medicine, mechanical engineering, chemistry, neuro science, physics or english literature, german or cultural sciences.

Most of them had to write essays or study for tests at the end of the semester, so the beginning was really the only time where you could relax a little and go on trips.

[LawsonBatesEgo]

On 8/24/2016 at 8:19 AM, Melissa1977 said:

I think it's funny and Erin seems to have a good sense of humour, which surprises me because she seemed so strict and boring when she was single. And I hope she's being honest and she's not punishing her 15 months old for being...a 15 months old. But I always wonder how can these women be surprised about the amount of work moms have. I mean, Jessa can't clean, Alyssa hasn't time for long hair, Erin can't control 2 babies... I understand them, but they come from big families, how didn't they know kids are a hard work? It proves that they have not seen a real mother at home, nor a real parenting. It's all fake. But they are too deep in the cult to realise their childhood was a disaster . 

I'm guessing because help was probably more at hand in a large family and it doesn't completely mirror being a mother with a small family? Chad works outside the home, so it is just Erin at home with Brooklyn and Carson during the day. In a home with 10+ people, you could go lock yourself in a room and nurse while someone else watches the 15 month old, while Erin can't really do that when she's on her own. 

They knew babies are work, they changed enough of their siblings diapers to know that, but if Alyssa wanted to brush and dry her hair at home, there was someone else to watch the little kids while she did it. Jessa was used to jurisdictions for cleaning, now she is responsible for cleaning the whole home herself while also being pregnant and having to keep an eye on Spurg. It's a bit different and I can see why it is an adjustment for them.