Dillards 29 - Teaching Them to Make Piñatas

[ViolaSebastian]

Surely there are temporary jobs in Arkansas for which Derick could apply. I'm just baffled--it's like saying to your employer, "Hey, Company. I want to take a four plus month vacation to Paris, but I want you to keep me on the pay roll as if I'm working, okay?" Yeah, that won't fly in typical employment and it shouldn't fly here.

[Cleopatra7]

56 minutes ago, Georgiana said:

Right.  It's just a little TOO much inspiration and too little innovation, which just reads like "trying to be something we aren't".  My whole house is "retro reno", and while you can flirt with kitsch and period pieces, you have to make sure you make it uniquely your own or it really goes sideways fast.  

It's actually rather ironic considering this is VERY heavy 1950's/clean cut establishment family, which Jill and Derick are more 1960's/1970's crunchy, free spirit hippy types...you know, the kind of people clean cut establishment people HATED.  

I think it would have been better if they leaned more into the designs of the 60's and 70's (not that they know what those are), and used a retro font more like this one (lose the rad psychedelic art, sadly):

 

Edit: TOO hippy?  I dig.  But what about THIS font?

I think the Dillards are still very establishment in their thinking even if they look crunchy sometimes. The Jesus People movement was/is into Christian rock, dancing, communal living, and charismatic gifts, all of which offend the Dillards' more IFB sensibilities. I could even see them thinking that the Peter Max aesthetic is "too colorful" or some such nonsense. The Duggar collective seems to be against anything that is too sensually stimulating, even if it is perfectly innocent.

[NotQuiteMotY]

15 hours ago, foreign fundie said:

I am afraid they would have no trouble finding a 'midwife' who would happily deliver a diabetic mum of a VBAC two weeks overdue 14 lbs each breech triplet in an RV, with the assistance of some essential oils and the mum's 14 sisters.

Btw if you think only fundies do irresponsible stuff like this, here is a video of a midwife who encourages a woman to have an unassisted breech delivery in the bathtub, as long as she swims with dolphins first. 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Tmnls40Dvio

Warning, don't watch while eating, as more comes out than just baby. 

I could only watch half of that out of sheer horror. I had to stop before the end of the birth; all I could think of was how compromised that baby's oxygen supply had to be. And the clip earlier in the video, where she's wiping his(?) face post-birth, didn't help. Even there that child did not look like it would have gotten anywhere near a healthy APGAR score.

[nickelodeon]

I can't stand the trend of calling every woman who has kids "momma", and that Jill does it makes it double annoying.

[Bad Wolf]

The baby's head seemed to take a long time to be born, and it seemed awhile until he cried. But what do I know? I had c sections. Why cold water in the beginning?

[snickers34]

Regarding their most recent blog post....

The cognitive dissonance of these two is beyond astounding. They are so beyond out of touch with humanity, with Jesus' message, with what actual suffering is, with what it means to 'support your family' (Derick, your words from an earlier blog post). To think it's in any universe appropriate to beg for money when they're doing so little for so few people, yet are so capable to work in actual job and no doubt have waaaay more money than those they're begging from is just beyond me. I'm stunned. I shouldn't be.

[singsingsing]

Did anyone catch the part about the teenage girl who had a stroke when she found out her sister had been murdered? Is that even medically possible?

[ViolaSebastian]

That video. So an epidural is crazy but an unassisted breech birth is totally cool? I'd like to think that I have a high tolerance for people incorporating meaning and spiritualism into things (you wanna have a didgeridoo played to your butt? Be my guest). But damn, dolphins sometime attack people because they're WILD ANIMALS. 

[Kittikatz]

I watched that video, and am officially scarred for life. Also, overcome with a strong urge to b*tch slap both the mother and the 'midwife' for gross stupidity. I hope that poor child wasn't damaged by how he was delivered - I know of four people who have had various birth injuries (two hospital births, two home births) and they all have faced challenges (to varying degrees) because of them. I wonder if people ever stop and research the possible outcomes for something like this - or if they are so focused on having a magical birth that they don't consider the possibility that their perfect birth experience could lead to a lifetime of problems for their child. 

[SassyPants]

@Cleopatra7- I think crunchy means something beyond deferring hair care, hygiene, house cleaning, laundry, daily jobs...

I think the Dillards are lazy. Daily jobs, much like hygiene, are too much of a hassle- Life in the US for most young couples/families, involves more than the Dillards are willing to do.

[VelociRapture]

30 minutes ago, Bad Wolf said:

The baby's head seemed to take a long time to be born, and it seemed awhile until he cried. But what do I know? I had c sections. Why cold water in the beginning?

I didn't watch the video (because it sounds horrible.) No idea about the cold water.

I had a medicated, vaginal delivery. It took about an hour and fifteen minutes for me to push my baby out. Partly because I kept trying to do two pushes per contraction because I thought that's what the Doctor was telling me - she was actually just encouraging me to keep pushing in one long push. Lol!

I don't think it's abnormal for pushing to take a while, especially if this was the mom's first (and the baby's position wasn't ideal.) Maybe someone with more education or experience in this area can confirm or deny that.

[Incognito22]

How do you write a 5 paragraph update and only use 5 or 6 periods?  I thought I was the queen of run-on sentences.  Let me pass that crown on over. 

[PennySycamore]

40 minutes ago, singsingsing said:

Did anyone catch the part about the teenager girl who had a stroke when she found out her sister had been murdered? Is that even medically possible?

It sounds weird to me, too, @singsingsing.  I've never heard of a stroke being caused by something not medical.  I know people sometimes say " Oh, s/he'll have a stroke when they see/hear/experience this" but that's not how it works.

[Bethella]

1 hour ago, singsingsing said:

Did anyone catch the part about the teenager girl who had a stroke when she found out her sister had been murdered? Is that even medically possible?

18 minutes ago, PennySycamore said:

It sounds weird to me, too, @singsingsing.  I've never heard of a stroke being caused by something not medical.  I know people sometimes say " Oh, s/he'll have a stroke when they see/hear/experience this" but that's not how it works.

The only thing I could guess is that the news about her sister caused a blood pressure spike which ruptured a preexisting aneurysm but it seems unlikely to me. edited to add: I'd be more likely to suspect something psychosomatic than an actual stroke.

[ViolaSebastian]

8 minutes ago, Bethella said:

The only thing I could guess is that the news about her sister caused a blood pressure spike which ruptured a preexisting aneurysm but it seems unlikely to me. edited to add: I'd be more likely to suspect something psychosomatic than an actual stroke.

I also imagine that it would be difficult to definitively diagnosis a stroke without an MRI machine, which most likely isn't easily accessible. 

It also makes me wonder if Derick or Jill incorrectly interpreted "ataque de nervios" to mean a stroke. 

[NotQuiteMotY]

37 minutes ago, VelociRapture said:

I don't think it's abnormal for pushing to take a while, especially if this was the mom's first (and the baby's position wasn't ideal.) Maybe someone with more education or experience in this area can confirm or deny that.

Apparently it was her second. The first one was "drugged" and she decided that she didn't want to be that disconnected this time around. Because, y'know, there's TOTALLY no middle ground between delivering with drugs in the hospital and unassisted breech in a bathtub!

[nickelodeon]

And apparently the Dillards are helping this traumatized and bereaved family by... having them over for "American food"? These blog posts are like neverending chronicles of the Dillards doing nothing but the very least.

[Dandruff]

3 hours ago, Cleopatra7 said:

 Please continue to pray with us for:

-Continued financial support as we still need to raise additional support for the rest of our time here on the field as well as the time we will be home surrounding the birth of our second little boy due in early July. Thank you to those of you who are supporting us already! (Donate online: www.dillardfamily.com)

So they want support on the mission field and support off the mission field.  

How about:  Stay home, stop pestering people, and get a paying job.  Save money.  If you find that you still have a boner for travel and preaching, do it on your own dime.

[PennySycamore]

My OB was all for natural birth and assisted my with both an attempt at a VBAC with my third and a successful VBAC with my fifth.  (I also had a VBAC with my premie.  He told me I didn't need a section for a 2 pound baby.)  He did tell me, though, when were talking about birth when I was pregnant with #5 that if the baby was breech, then he'd do a c-section.  I could tell that vaginal breech birth scared the shit out of him.  I got the feeling that he'd seen some bad stuff with breech birth.

I hope that Jill will not be so stupid as to attempt a home VBAC with this baby.  Yeah, it's probably a hope in vain.  

[metheglyn]

5 hours ago, Georgiana said:

  Reveal hidden contents

The aroma of sweaty kids and stinky feet still lingers in the hospitality house (the place where we are living while we are here working on the mission field in Central America) a couple hours after everyone has gone, but we all had a wonderful time playing and enjoying refreshments together.

Although we try to make the hospitality house as inviting and comfortable as possible to those who may visit, we don’t easily forget the violence and hardships in our area that remind us of the reason we are here, to preach the gospel, encourage the church, and be the hands and feet of Jesus to a hurting world. 

We had the privilege of having some of our friends, who have been going through a really difficult time, into our home this week for an American meal. They lost their grandma a few weeks ago, then 8 days later their 20-year-old cousin was brutally murdered as she was selling coconuts at a roadside stand. When our friend’s teenage daughter received the news, she immediately had a stroke! They continue to live in fear of being kidnapped or killed and now seldom leave their home. 

Twice this week, one of the ladies from church and I (Jill) were able to meet here in the house with a young momma whose husband recently left her with two children, one of whom has special needs. We were able to bless her with dinner, encouraging fellowship, and some gifts sent down by friends in the States. I look forward to continuing to reach out to her and let our little ones play together.

Derick has continued to preach once a week and Israel and I have enjoyed being involved in special music for several of those church services. A sweet girl on the last short-term missions team gifted me with a violin when she left. She said she bought a cheap one to bring on the trip and wanted to leave it with me once she found out I played violin and wasn't able to bring mine down here.

 

 Please continue to pray with us for:

-Continued financial support as we still need to raise additional support for the rest of our time here on the field as well as the time we will be home surrounding the birth of our second little boy due in early July. Thank you to those of you who are supporting us already! (Donate online: www.dillardfamily.com)

-Continued health. We have been dealing with seasonal allergies as the shift from “dry season” to “rainy season” is beginning.

-That hearts would be softened to the gospel and Christians would continue to grow in their relationship with Jesus. 

-Those who are facing difficult situations, that God would give us wisdom in how to best reach out to them. 

-The young momma who is still awaiting a call to the hospital for brain surgery. 

 

Praises: 

-We are very encouraged to see the local church growing and follow-up happening weekly as the local church and ministry we work with brought on another pastor several months ago who is able to focus more on evangelism and discipleship. 

-We continue to reach out to the local youth in whatever ways we can and enjoyed having several guys into our home for dinner last Sunday after a game of soccer on the sport court that the ministry we work with built. We look forward to continuing this outreach. 

-Velma has come to church multiple times recently and we have visited their home and delivered homemade baked goods a couple times since the first visit. Keep praying for her!

There's the blog entry for those of you who don't want to give them click$.

 

Edit: have we discussed this logo before?  It looks like a satirical riff on mid-century family comedies.  HEAVY on the satirical.  I'm 90% sure 7/10 of the diners near me used the same graphic designer/font.  It'd be hilarious if they were joking, but since they're serious...it's rather awkward and kitsch. 

It's a whole theme. Ben & Jessa and Jim Bob & Michelle et al. are using exactly the same template and font, just with different colors. Thus far, Jinger & Jeremy are using a different blog template, while Josh & Anna don't have an active website, but it's popular among many of the family members.

 

[Carm_88]

^ In the above family picture, Jinger looks like she's a different race. Holy spray tan! To be completely fair, Jessa does too but Jinger really really sticks out. 

[Grimalkin]

       At least they are helping someone. Schrader would never share his treats with someone, and I don't see him inviting a woman and her kids into his home for a meal. He seems to only talk to men and cares only if they are 'saved' according to his own idea of what that means. 

[Georgiana]

It's amazing to compare Jill's posts to Jessa's.  I've never been a Jessa fan, but her posts on Instagram are often relatable, especially when they feature her kids. Jill manages to be both boring and deeply unlikable at the same time in her blog.

[ak1188]

4 hours ago, VelociRapture said:

I don't think it's abnormal for pushing to take a while, especially if this was the mom's first (and the baby's position wasn't ideal.) Maybe someone with more education or experience in this area can confirm or deny that.

*Let me preface this by saying I've worked in a NICU for 7 months, but I still have a lot to learn and do not know much about labor and delivery.*

Pushing can take a while and not be an issue as long as the baby doesn't go into distress, but in this case nobody was monitoring for that.  With a breech delivery, you run the risk of compressing the umbilical cord and cutting off oxygen delivery, which can cause lasting problems and even brain death in a baby that had been developmentally normal up until delivery.  This baby came out with poor muscle tone, poor color, and a very weak cry (I gave it an APGAR of 6, for the poster who asked about it, but it was a very charitable 6), all of which would have warranted some kind of intervention had this been a hospital birth.

All that being said, MOST babies are fine, even if their APGARs suck at first.  Most deliveries go smoothly, even the high risk ones.  But when you have one go wrong, it's scary and the end result can be tragic.  I recently took care of a baby who was brain dead at birth due to a bad delivery, and it was heartbreaking.  It's not something I would wish on any family, and I get angry when people like the woman in that video willfully put themselves and their children at risk.

*ends rant, steps off soapbox*

[Karma]

That video scared me. The amount of time the baby was just dangling from the mother by its head seemed way too long to my completely uneducated about home births mind.  Nothing about seeing that would tempt me to do an unassisted home breech birth.