Jana's Future 3 - Baking and Real Estate

[SassyPants]

I had this weird neighbor kid (a teen at the time) in the early 70s who role played Dark Shadows.

[Greendoor]

I read on one of these threads that the general threat is that Jana will be told if you don't start behaving.  

I think she is not just in control of what email and other comes into that place, but also VERY much the adult female.  Don't ever underestimate her understated comments she has eyes of steel when she speaks.

 

 

On 4/1/2017 at 7:33 PM, AnnaRuk09 said:

Exactly. When Jana or her sisters served as counselors, it was for volunteering for the institute. I don't think any of the Duggar girls have ever had a job. I've heard of speculation of Jana working for them (years ago), but it was purely speculation. 

Jana lead one of those "Journey to the Heart" retreats the unmarried females go to.

 

[Carm_88]

32 minutes ago, Greendoor said:

I read on one of these threads that the general threat is that Jana will be told if you don't start behaving.  

I think she is not just in control of what email and other comes into that place, but also VERY much the adult female.

Jana has been the adult female since Michelle's laundry room breakdown. Don't underestimate her? Nah. I would say she is tough, she had to be. She's been an authority figure for a very long time now and to some of the younger kids, she is what we would consider "Mom." 

[Greendoor]

I agree Carm.  Incredibly sad.  

I think she and John David will stay single a long time.  Having raised so many (granted his "duties" would have been very different) I don't see either wanting a large family.

 

 

[cinnomonlover]

This film is called paradise and the main character looks like Jana Duggar. It's actually a good movie. 

 

[Suz8710]

Oh how I wish Jana could experience some of that. I've never heard of that movie before.

[snickers34]

On 4/16/2017 at 0:53 PM, Suz8710 said:

Oh how I wish Jana could experience some of that.

See, I have to respectfully disagree. Going to Vegas (sorry, pretty trashy), drinking, and dressing scantily doesn't need to be for everybody. There's plenty of people that go their whole life without drinking. And I know women who always loved kids, babysat constantly through high school, went to school to be a kindergarten teacher, then got married and had kids young. I don't always get the sentiment on here that she NEEDS to move to NYC, date some crazy artist, and drink (or some variation of that) to really experience life. It's simply the fact that she's been brainwashed into believing that's not an option for her that's the issue.

[Maggie Mae]

2 hours ago, snickers34 said:

See, I have to respectfully disagree. Going to Vegas (sorry, pretty trashy), drinking, and dressing scantily doesn't need to be for everybody.

Not everything in Vegas is trashy. Just most of it. And Fremont Street. But beyond the trashiness, they have amazing shows and restaurants. No drinking required. 

2 hours ago, snickers34 said:

It's simply the fact that she's been brainwashed into believing that's not an option for her that's the issue.

She doesn't have to experience those things - who even knows if she knows anything about those things. I mean, the family traveled. But the books they were allowed (not many), the tv shows (their own, maybe HGTV), and the "curriculum" they used for home schooling means that the Duggar children don't know what they don't know.  And of course the fact that the kids didn't go to school, never talked to a schoolmate who went to England or listened to a kid brag about their family's trip to Hawaii. They never read all those YA books that we talk about on these forums. They never read a mystery novel set in Chicago or a Baby-sitter's book where they go on a cross country road trip, learning a few weird facts about random places in the US. They never watched Les Miserables and learned about the French Revolution. They didn't get the full life experience of learning about different cultures, different places, different ideas through literature and film like most of us did in our schools. They are shallow people and it's because they are brainwashed into this damn cult. 

[snickers34]

@Maggie Mae...not sure if you're just adding to what I said or providing a counterpoint, but I don't disagree with most of what you said. Sheltered and haven't had an opportunity to live a 'normal' American childhood? Absolutely. 

However, I do think it's funny that you mention a schoolmate from England. The family quite literally went to England on a trip. That's waaay more than a lot of kids have done. Plus you make a ton of assumptions about specific things they've been exposed to or not, but we don't entirely know exactly which parts are true. I think my overall argument is that a lot of folks are making assumptions about how cultured most children live in the US today. That EVERYONE else besides fundies is living this sophisticated, multicultural, interesting life. There's plenty of kids that don't know people that have been to Hawaii or know someone from England. 

[Maggie Mae]

27 minutes ago, snickers34 said:

@Maggie Mae...not sure if you're just adding to what I said or providing a counterpoint, but I don't disagree with most of what you said. Sheltered and haven't had an opportunity to live a 'normal' American childhood? Absolutely. 

However, I do think it's funny that you mention a schoolmate from England. The family quite literally went to England on a trip. That's waaay more than a lot of kids have done. Plus you make a ton of assumptions about specific things they've been exposed to or not, but we don't entirely know exactly which parts are true. I think my overall argument is that a lot of folks are making assumptions about how cultured most children live in the US today. That EVERYONE else besides fundies is living this sophisticated, multicultural, interesting life. There's plenty of kids that don't know people that have been to Hawaii or know someone from England. 

Providing a counter point about the Vegas thing and just adding on to the rest of your statement. I seriously think that they don't know what they don't know. They go places, but I don't think they learn about them or are even very interested in learning. 

[Suz8710]

I didn't mean Jana should literally experience every single thing shown in the movie but generally speaking, something that would expose her to new people, ideas, experiences, etc. Vegas is such a place and it can be as trashy or as non-trashy as you want it to be. I think what we can all agree on is that this girl just needs to get out.

[SeekingAdventure]

I wish for Jana to have a room for herself where she can drink a coffee and read Harry Potter 1-7 while listening to IDK, Ed Sheeran or stg like that and sing along, not having to worry that the lyrics might be immodest or whatever.

 

Honestly, I have done class trips with my old school mates where we listened to the worst songs you could imagine (very explicit) and I did not choose to hear them, but nevertheless, hearing them didn't make me a raging whore or something like that. And I am not saying she has to read only HP or something like that, but just have some of the experiences that most of us got to have as teens/tweens.

[FundieCentral]

Did anyone see the TLC Clip the Duggar Family Blog posted? (http://www.duggarfamilyblog.com) 
So sad when Jana says she's looking forward to attending Jessa's birth as the main thing coming up this year. Attending your sister's birth somehow shouldn't be the highlight of the year I don't think... At least the Bates Girls all get to go to College at Crown. 

[Suz8710]

Thanks for posting that, @FundieCentral

The whole interview was so vague and awkward, why did they even bother? I would normally say it's because they don't like to say much, but it seemed like they would look to each other thinking "Crap! What am I contractually able to say?" At least, imo, it didn't appear completely rehearsed. 

Also talk about serious boobage waving in poor JD's face.  

[AnnaRuk09]

I didn't find anything odd about her counting the birth as one of her year's highlights. And that's  simply because IMO it seems like something she would genuinely say. Her personality is very bland and simple, and I don't mean that in a negative way.

I know plenty of people who are "boring" like this, including me to a certain extent. Jana has always come across as a super ordinary no surprises type of person. I've actually heard fans accuse her of being really boring. To that idk, but I think it's just her personality, which to me is completely fine. But she def. could have said something other than boy/girl difference!

[singsingsing]

If you have a good relationship with your sister, wouldn't the birth of a new nephew or niece be one of the highlights of your year? If my sister ever has a baby it's going to be one of the highlights of my entire life! I don't see anything strange or sad about that at all.

[front hugs > duggs]

35 minutes ago, singsingsing said:

If you have a good relationship with your sister, wouldn't the birth of a new nephew or niece be one of the highlights of your year? If my sister ever has a baby it's going to be one of the highlights of my entire life! I don't see anything strange or sad about that at all.

I agree that her saying this isn't the most snark worthy. 

But I just had to say more for my own amusement - you'll be excited IF your sister maybe has a baby (totally understandable).

If every single one of Jana's siblings has even three kids, that'll make 54 nieces and nephews. And I think that estimation is very generous. And you said if you have a good relationship with your sister. I'd say we've seen some tension between Jana and Jessa (obviously that doesn't tell an entire story, but there seem to be closer sister bonds in he family then them). 

I come from a TINY family (I only have five first cousins coming separately from my one single maternal aunt and my one single paternal uncle). We are all incredibly close. I have trouble believe all the siblings are best friends, and that Jill's sixth kid would really be close with Jed's second kid. I'm not saying you wouldn't be excited to welcome five new nieces and nephews in a year (on the Duggar side alone, let alone any in laws). However, I'm not sure if each of those 54min nieces and nephews could really all be the highlights of your years. Especially if Jana does get married and have her own little blessings one day. 

This is obviously just an opinion, and I hope I didn't come off as argumentative, because that was not my intention. I personally have no idea in a massive family how one would view all the individual relationships.

I would be interested if anyone here is maybe one of a couple dozen grandchildren or anything to hear how you form special or individual relationships with your grandparents or something like that (sorry for the potential thread drift topic-big families fascinate me which is what originally drew me to the duggars).

[FundieCentral]

@AnnaRuk09, @singsingsing Sorry, misrepresented her words slightly. They were both asked what is coming up for them this year. Then John-David talked about working on working on gaining higher qualifications for his pilot's license and working on home projects, and Jana (seeming kind of sad), said that Jessa is having a baby and she is looking forward to attending the birth. 

So in that context, it makes me sad the she doesn't have anything else coming up than her sister's life event, if that makes sense. As in, she has no life events of her own coming up (she could have said that she is looking forward to Joy's wedding, or Jill getting a dog, or any other thing for that matter - but it's still not "her" thing). That's what I was trying to say. 

I would certainly count my nephew/niece's birth as a highlight too  but I also have other things to do in my life, including family obgliations, studies, holidays, volunteer events etc. 

[AnnaRuk09]

@FundieCentral No worries! I can totally understand the sad factor. We know Jana has said very recently that she's still waiting for Prince Charming. Actually, whenever Jana has been asked that, whether last year or 3 years ago, she and her family have always said she's still waiting for the one.

It must be super hard seeing your all your sisters, all younger than you, get what you've always desired before you. And with her family being very famous, the weight of that thought and reality must be tenfold. Since God hasn't brought her Prince like her other sisters yet, discouragement is pretty much inevitable. 

 I'm sure there's sadness in her that she doesn't have an events of her own coming up like "the one." If you would of told me 3 years ago that Joy would get married before Jana, there's no way in heck I'd believe that. But Jana has proven that she will not settle less than the best. Her time will come and I hope her future husband treats her like a queen and makes all her sisters feel jealous lol. 

[SeekingAdventure]

6 hours ago, front hugs > duggs said:

I would be interested if anyone here is maybe one of a couple dozen grandchildren or anything to hear how you form special or individual relationships with your grandparents or something like that (sorry for the potential thread drift topic-big families fascinate me which is what originally drew me to the duggars).

I think I have about 30 cousins on my mothers side. My mom has 10 siblings, she's the oldest. So my cousins range between 33 and 1,5 years, and I have great cousins that are older than cousins. I am not close to most of them, simply because of the distance, which is not all too big. Most of them live about an hour away from us, but my mum is the only one that lives farther away, most of the others live in the village or close to the village my grandparents were from (my grandfather had a farm, so he had quite a bit of land for some of my relatives to build, and some others live nearby, also on farms. 

There's a handful about my age (plus minus 2 years i'd say). My brother went to high school in a town close to where most of my maternal family lives, and used to live with my aunt for 5 years, he therefor is a lot of closer to most of them, just because he saw them regulary for years. Now he lives 5 hours away and sees them once every blue moon I'd say. I usually see my cousins at weddings (but we do not have many of them anymore, everyone is already married), funerals (which is not the best occasion) or anniversarys or christenings. But nowadays, we do not get invited as much anymore, because most of us cousins have boy and girlfriends, some are married, some have kids, and it is just too big of a party if there are already at least 80 people only cousins+plus one, aunts and uncles.

 

The last time I really saw a lot of them was 2013, at my grandmothers funeral, I meet some occasionally, but very rarely, because we are all busy with work and everything and if you have that big of a family, it's not that easy to manage to catch up. I am also in a bit of a stupid situation, since I am the only one of us who has never lived, for at least a short period of time, in the area the rest of them lives, so they are closer because they grew up with each other. I managed to meet one of my cousins last year, travelling in South America, and we somehow spent more time together there than we had in the last 15 years back home, where we live a mere 70 km from each other. Since then, I have not managed to meet up with her again, as we are both back at home, both busy with work.

 

I do not know how it would work for the duggars to be all super close. Maybe because they are in a cult and they do not have that many outside influences that are not in a cult, which automatically brings them together. But my moms family is close too, but there are two of my aunts who do not talk to each other for a pity reason (i don't even know), so I think being in such a big family and not being able to leave, and lving in the same room for years, there must be a lot of unresolved issues.

 

I suspect that some of the older kids, especially the girls, are a bit envious of the younger boys, because they had all the hard work and the howlers, I dunno what they do all day, besides 'Homeschooling' but certainly not cooking, cleaning and raising Josie, since miracle baby Josie is the precious jewel of the family. I think maybe the girls have motherly feelings for her, but I do suspect, although not hope, that some of the kids certainly resent her for all the attention she gets.

 

[seraaa]

We know that the girls have friends who are not shown on the programme, and it occurs to me that Jana may have given the birth example as it is something TLC is going to film.

She probably has other stuff going on, like spending time with other friends, which she doesn't mention because we don't see it in the show. I don't think her life is as devoid of activities of her own as that answer might suggest.

[karen77]

I just hope she doesn't see her own reflection in her friend Tabitha's choices/situation. Waiting too long and then who do you end up with?? blech. I hope she doesn't settle for someone like that at some point, just to get married.

[Carm_88]

21 hours ago, front hugs > duggs said:

I would be interested if anyone here is maybe one of a couple dozen grandchildren or anything to hear how you form special or individual relationships with your grandparents or something like that (sorry for the potential thread drift topic-big families fascinate me which is what originally drew me to the duggars).

As I've said before I'm on the far end of a lot of cousins on both sides of my family. My Mom has 12 brothers and sisters and My Dad has 7. I was much closer to my paternal grandparents just because of location, I truly had a special relationship with each other them. Though honestly, out of each and every one of us we all said that we had a special relationship with them. I think you need to make time for each child. Which the Duggars will never do. 

[KeshetParparNesicha]

I have 30 cousins on my mother's side and 40-something on my father's. We're geographically closer to my dad's stepmother, but she never got along with my mother (no drama, just personality clash), so while we see her two or three times a month, we don't have a deep meaningful relationship. On the other hand, I'm quite close with my mother's father as we share a pattern of thinking and a sense of humor. My mother's parents try to host a few different grandchildren each weekend, invite interested kids to join them in their favorite activities, and are very intentional about family parties and reunions. I guess it worked because my younger siblings are really good friends with their same-age cousins.

[candygirl200413]

@KeshetParparNesicha you're the first person I've encountered in life to have more cousins than me! How close are you (geographically/relationship-wise) are you to them?

My dad has 10 siblings which I have 12 cousins as a result and my mom side has 11 siblings with around 30 cousins. about 75% of them still live in Eastern Africa and a few in Japan. I only have 1 cousin that lives in the US that we are in communication weekly since she and her parents live a 5 minute drive in a town right next to mine. I'm much closer to my aunt/uncles/cousins that my parents have been friends with for years who I honestly consider more as family than my actual extended biological family just because of geographic and personality.  My parental grandparents before they died often came to visit us in the US and actually wanted to maintain a relationship while my maternal could honestly care less of me.