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Yes, that is unfair given there are many frequent posters in the JRod & Lori threads as well as some who post at length analyses of their activities on a daily basis. Abbie may not be as nearly as popular as them but it’s not any different.

I focus on one Fundie Rabbit hole at a time for a certain amount of time before finding the next new rabbit hole. Before I found out about Braggie, I was one of the most frequent posters in the Gwen Shamblin threads. 

If a Christian fundamentalist has a public platform, anything they post is fair game to comment on and analyze.

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@luv2laugh You are right. Lori in particular inspires certain posters to rip her down repeatedly, over the same things. And at times it seems quite personal.

I think I can see where Kailash might have been concerned, a bit. (And forgive me as well, no offense intended)  In this thread, and the Remnant one, I believe you have alluded to some concerns about your own appearance? So sometimes your criticisms of Braggie where you say she is responding to us - it’s almost like you are just talking right back to her. It’s very personal to you. And that’s okay. It just appears much deeper than fundamentalism for you. And since you’ve studied her longer than most of us - it reads intensely.

Again, you are right. Many of us react strongly to many of these freakshows. You happen to be the expert on this one and it stands out.

Your insights are appreciated.

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If anyone stopped reading whatever Lori was spewing for two weeks and funneled that daily FJ blog reading time into Abbie’s blog through the beginning and/or Instagram, you’d find somewhat similar things. Since we know Lori and Ken read FJ, many posters respond directly to Lori there as well.

When I go down a fundie rabbit hole, I start from the beginning (or around that) and give my commentary. In addition, I did that with the Gwen Shamblin threads as well. Gwen’s threads have gotten pretty popular already to the point where others post and I simply “like” the ideas I agree with but I did enough work posting over on her threads in the past. Other FJ readers decided to take deeper looks into her and I moved onto a new Fundie Rabbit Hole to analyze. Occasionally, when & if time allows, I try to figure out if anything new with Gwen went down.

Some of the most interesting fundies are ones that are not as popular as JRod and Lori but that doesn’t make them less appalling or shocking. For a long time, I and a handful of other posters were the main ones posting in Gwen Shamblin’s threads (end of 1 and 2) but the visibility of her threads caught others who decided to investigate her ministry as well. Also, much of the fundie influence is no longer being spread by the likes of Lori & JRod but moreso today by people like Abbie. Abbie has much more of an influence than they do. Abbie’s theology is a great example of what Christian Fundamentalism has come to today: modern, fashionable without the frumpers, hanging out with non-believers rather than “avoiding all appearance of evil”, yet the same ideology attached.

Abbie’s blog, on a personal level, does go beyond fundamentalism. Similar to YTMamaDrama and GuruGossip its part of demystifying the facade certain mommy bloggers/vloggers put out and analyzing that as well. 

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I agree with you. I get bored with Lori. She spews the same stuff all the time.

On a somewhat related tangent we are over in the Duggar/Bates threads talking about how there are no babies *gasp* and no weddings *gasp* and none of them has even done anything really horrible lately. So “oh no!” what will the masses do? Here’s a radical idea. Go learn about other fundies.

There’s a neverending supply of nutjobs to peruse.

Thanks for listening. Kailash is good people. I know she didn’t mean to offend you. It was just a check in. You’ve showed us a lot.

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I agree that when ONE person seems to be dominating someone’s threads with lengthy posts each time, it comes off as overwhelming. However, as you probably know, many of the fundies threads on FJ have started out that way. One poster or a couple of them will provide commentary on their blog/ Instagram posts until it becomes more visible to the rest of FJ. I used to follow FJ by perusing the Duggar & Bates thread and posting in one of them randomly but ever since I ventured out to learn, in more detail about other fundies such as JRod, Lori, Gwen Shamblin, etc. I focus following & providing commentary on one or two at a time as of late. I’ve been a member of FJ since the yuku days and I still never really spent much time on the craziness of the Naughler and Zsusanna threads as all of the frequent posters and multiple threads to pour through seemed daunting to me at the time but once Lori & JRod started to get talked about even in Jill Duggar’s threads, I took the plunge to find out about other fundies.

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On 11/11/2018 at 8:06 AM, luv2laugh said:

We definitely needed your insight here. Thank you. I have to say, out of all of the fundies, Braggie Abbie is the most fascinating to psychoanalyze, with Gwen Shamblin being a close second. I appreciate your insights on the Lori Alexander thread.

What? I missed that! please, could you tell me where can I read Lori's psychoanalysis? thank you!!!

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5 minutes ago, Melissa1977 said:

What? I missed that! please, could you tell me where can I read Lori's psychoanalysis? thank you!!!

A few days ago she wrote a post comparing Lori to a kid that’s mad that she’s not the popular one (or something) breaking all of the crayons and it was SPOT ON. It was just a great analysis into how Lori, likely, thinks and why she acts the way she does.

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It’s good. it keeps her alive, I need to back and find my crazy appalachian trail crawfords from this summer and get their thread rolling agai

In fact I am inspired to do some vlogging now.

Thanks @luv2laugh. a little crazy before bed.

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Personally I can only say that I find armchair fundie "psychoanalysis" disgusting. Same goes for vicious and unjustified BEC comments. This is not what makes FJ worth reading, just my opinion of course.

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@laPapessaGiovanna But she has a point that what she does is not really worse than what they to Lori or Jill daily. So I don’t think she should be hung out to dry on it.

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I mean, quite honestly it happens in other threads all the time here, especially in the JRod and Lori threads but they just have more of a frequent following of commentators. 

I’m pretty “stick a fork in it & done” at this point with the Braggie Rabbit Hole and trying to find a newer one to investigate, like the New Zealand Doomsday Cult Vegan vloggers that are supposedly blanket training. 

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9 hours ago, AliceInFundyland said:

@laPapessaGiovanna But she has a point that what she does is not really worse than what they to Lori or Jill daily. So I don’t think she should be hung out to dry on it.

I'm not saying those threads are better. I'm just saying that sometimes we slip into the BEC trap and forget we are talking about people (well, I don't know about Lori, she might be a robot after all). To be fair it's easier to fell for it when fundies keep showing us Pinteresty perfect pictures and pretend to live in fundie perfect paradise. But seriously, sometimes we go a bit overboard with the BEC snark. I mean what's the problem if the kids get a one night a week sleepover at grandma's? What's wrong if the parents have a date night once a week? I know that context matters and that overall she's not a great parent, but what's wrong with admitting that she does one normal thing too, in addition to the many awful other things?

I don't know why with some fundie we are so busy squeeing over their cute kids that we nearly forget their awful beliefs. With others we are so busy criticising them that we can't notice anything good about them. Sometimes with reason (I mean who if not a monster would tell a battered wife to go back to submit to her husband?), sometimes with no good reason.

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1 hour ago, laPapessaGiovanna said:

don't know why with some fundie we are so busy squeezing over their cute kids that we nearly forget their awful beliefs. With others we are so busy criticising them that we can't notice anything good about them. Sometimes with reason (I mean who if not a monster would tell a battered wife to go back to submit to her husband?), sometimes with no good reason.

For me it’s because some are worse than others. Zoo knowinglay starved her child and let her scream all night long before finally getting it fixed. So I do have some BEC for Zoo. I think it’s actually pretty unlikely that some other fundies that we talk about on FJ would actually do that (Jinger for example). People react differently to each fundie because not all of these fundies are the same. 

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I've been following along on this thread and wanted to chime in. I am probably Abbie's target audience and used to love her blog (back when it was 5 Ways/5 days). I have 8 kids, am the same age as her, teach fitness classes, and homeschool. I just felt worse and worse about myself as time went on and I read her blog. I had to stop teaching at our gym because I have 2 kids with special needs and I couldn't take a couple mornings a week away from school for therapies and specialist appointments and justify another morning away to teach my class. I couldn't figure out what was wrong with me that I couldn't even manage ONE class a week, never mind run a business, single parent while my husband is out of town for business, keep the house spotless, and decorate.  And I was on bedrest for 2 of my pregnancies, while she manages to casually mention how she is doing push ups at 32 weeks pregnant, and still doing tuck jumps no problem. I felt like the worst failure ever, in every single part of my life.

You have to read her blog long enough to start seeing the little hints or small comments and put them together into a bigger picture. And then last year (I think?) she posted about how she homeschools and laid it all out. Girlfriend literally parents one day a week. Co-op on Mondays, Grandma homeschools the kids 2 days a week, and then Grandma takes them all (except whoever the youngest child is at the time) overnight and for the whole next day. This year's "How I Homeschool 7 Kids" post wasn't as forthright about all the help she gets, but it was this MASSIVE relief for me to find out she isn't doing it all. Not at all. 
 

I could be the best dressed, cutest, most organized mom, too, if I only had to actually take care of my kids on my own one day a week, had a weekly date night with my husband, and a twice (or four times?) a year get away to a hotel with a girlfriend. I personally wouldn't want the entire week away from my kids, I enjoy being with them, but I don't begrudge her any of that. Good for her that she is living a pampered life! But it is so dishonest, and counter to the faith she (and I) live to boast in everything that you do, even if you couch it in false modesty. And it's just plain lying to not come right out and say how much help you get from others when people ask how you do it all. 

(Not related to the above- even when I enjoyed her blog, I would cringe at her child training techniques. They seem so harsh for any child, but especially infants and toddlers. If a baby is crying, it's because they need you, not because they need to learn self control. I wanted to cry at the thought of these little kids being treated so unfeelingly.
She also had a post about their church hosting a choir of children from Africa, or fundraising for clean water for Africa, I can't remember exactly now, but the tone was abrasive to me. 5 of my kids are adopted from Africa and she came across as very condescending to Africans and using orphans to build herself up. I'm admittedly really sensitive to that and maybe I was reading it too cynically).

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I marked certain sentences of your post for emphasis as I provide some commentary below: 

13 hours ago, Off the Rails said:

You have to read her blog long enough to start seeing the little hints or small comments and put them together into a bigger picture. And then last year (I think?) she posted about how she homeschools and laid it all out. Girlfriend literally parents one day a week. Co-op on Mondays, Grandma homeschools the kids 2 days a week, and then Grandma takes them all (except whoever the youngest child is at the time) overnight and for the whole next day. 

Yes, I agree that to get the "whole picture" one has to start from the beginning or so and " have read her blog long enough to start seeing the little hints or small comments and put them together into a bigger picture". Once you do that, the "whole picture" is quite dreadful. Basically, you have to fall down into the entire rabbit hole and set aside time for that by taking a break from people like Lori, JRod, and Gwen. Warning, if you do, rescue ferrets will be needed.

13 hours ago, Off the Rails said:

I am probably Abbie's target audience and used to love her blog (back when it was 5 Ways/5 days). I have 8 kids, am the same age as her, teach fitness classes, and homeschool. I just felt worse and worse about myself as time went on and I read her blog. I had to stop teaching at our gym because I have 2 kids with special needs and I couldn't take a couple mornings a week away from school for therapies and specialist appointments and justify another morning away to teach my class. 

13 hours ago, Off the Rails said:

I couldn't figure out what was wrong with me that I couldn't even manage ONE class a week, never mind run a business, single parent while my husband is out of town for business, keep the house spotless, and decorate.  And I was on bedrest for 2 of my pregnancies, while she manages to casually mention how she is doing push ups at 32 weeks pregnant, and still doing tuck jumps no problem. I felt like the worst failure ever, in every single part of my life.

"I just felt worse and worse about myself..."
 "I couldn't figure out what was wrong with me..." 

Yes, you aren't the only reader that has felt that way and that is the goal for people like Abbie.  Unfortunately, some people feed on knocking others down in this manner, and go to extensive lengths in devoting the time to do so, as it gives them energy and makes them feel more important. Sometimes, posters on forums like GOMI & YTMamaDrama focus on calling out the fellow braggadocious bloggers (that aren't necessarily fundie) and the phonies who put on facades in an effort to make other moms NOT "feel bad" for knowing not all is what it seems.

13 hours ago, Off the Rails said:

I could be the best dressed, cutest, most organized mom, too, if I only had to actually take care of my kids on my own one day a week, had a weekly date night with my husband, and a twice (or four times?) a year get away to a hotel with a girlfriend.... But it is so dishonest, and counter to the faith she (and I) live to boast in everything that you do, even if you couch it in false modesty. And it's just plain lying to not come right out and say how much help you get from others when people ask how you do it all. 

13 hours ago, Off the Rails said:

I would cringe at her child training techniques. They seem so harsh for any child, but especially infants and toddlers. If a baby is crying, it's because they need you, not because they need to learn self control. I wanted to cry at the thought of these little kids being treated so unfeelingly.

She also had a post about their church hosting a choir of children from Africa, or fundraising for clean water for Africa, I can't remember exactly now, but the tone was abrasive to me. 5 of my kids are adopted from Africa and she came across as very condescending to Africans and using orphans to build herself up. 

Also, yes, it is personal to other moms like you who look at her blog and see how she has a condescending attitude, constantly boasts, is not sympathetic to her children, brags about certain discipline tactics and tells readers to PM her for more detail on her disciplinary methods, omits the truth, spends hours editing her photos to conceal the reality of what being a mom of 8 entails, and yes, is ultimately downright dishonest, as you mentioned.

In addition, Abbie represents what the new fundamentalism looks like. People are not paying attention to Lori & JRod these days as much as they are to fundies like Abbie, who wield more influence. Apparently, the new "hip" fundamentalism is all about concealing the ugly truth, ditching the frumpers for pants, hanging around unbelievers instead of avoiding the appearance of evil, yet the same fundamentalist ideology remains.

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I personally enjoy the hell out of reading luv2laugh's commentary. And seeing Priscilla's wide eyed countenance always cracks me up. It's a hard job snarking on fundies but somebody has to do it! ?

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@Off the Rails - welcome, and thanks for sharing your perspective.

Had there been social media when I was a young wife & mom, I hate to think how someone like Abbie (or Freckled Fox or any number of other young mothers on IG) would have made me feel about, well, everything -- be it appearance, infant care, or interior decorating. It would be very hard to withstand feelings of inferiority.

 

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6 hours ago, hoipolloi said:

@Off the Rails - welcome, and thanks for sharing your perspective.

Had there been social media when I was a young wife & mom, I hate to think how someone like Abbie (or Freckled Fox or any number of other young mothers on IG) would have made me feel about, well, everything -- be it appearance, infant care, or interior decorating. It would be very hard to withstand feelings of inferiority.

 

To be fair, I followed Freckled Fox awhile back (after her husband died and when she remarried a few months later) and while she can be odd, she does not brag like Braggie does. I haven’t come across anyone that, not only brags like Braggie but is also a fundamentalist. Braggie is unique in her own right and not in a good way but more like a “Lori Alexander way”. It’s entirely different than a simple case of bemoaning glossy pictures over here. 

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6 hours ago, luv2laugh said:

To be fair, I followed Freckled Fox awhile back (after her husband died and when she remarried a few months later) and while she can be odd, she does not brag like Braggie does. I haven’t come across anyone that, not only brags like Braggie but is also a fundamentalist. Braggie is unique in her own right and not in a good way but more like a “Lori Alexander way”. It’s entirely different than a simple case of bemoaning glossy pictures over here. 

I follow freckled fox on insta I find her much more relatable than Braggie. Yet I still have a feeling that there is something "off" with her 2nd husband and it's not only the "I accidentally shot my wife while I was cleaning my gun in a house full of children" - nightmare.

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@ophelia I thought the same thing. Definitely “off” and he gives me the creeps. I haven’t followed them in awhile since that incident so I wonder what’s up lately with them.

 

What a rude response on her latest Instagram post. How bizarre. 

DBCB009E-4F38-4F9D-A83F-1E6A64423AA6.thumb.jpeg.8e1247fa0afffc4a8abddae1085aba3f.jpeg

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Today Abbie uses the word "rage" when talking about her child's lack of instant piano mastery:

Spoiler

Remember my piano practice rage? I snapped this picture a few minutes after I collapsed into a chair, exhausted from the effort of helping a twin plink out Away in a Manger. 
Without being asked, Simon picked up where I left off and proceeded to cheerfully and lovingly help Evy go from struggling through a few notes to confidently playing the whole thing. 
He high-fived her! He put his arm around her shoulder! He cheered when she got a note right!

After her "rage" she "collapses" into a chair. While the accompanying picture is pretty as usual, what did the scene look like before it was snapped and mommy was "raging"? Evy was able to play the piece once Simon took over and mama was removed from the equation. Those kids must constantly feel on edge and not even know it. It's nothing to brag about when you can't handle a simple teaching moment and your child does a better job than you. 

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9 minutes ago, SuperNova said:

Today Abbie uses the word "rage" when talking about her child's lack of instant piano mastery:

  Hide contents

Remember my piano practice rage? I snapped this picture a few minutes after I collapsed into a chair, exhausted from the effort of helping a twin plink out Away in a Manger. 
Without being asked, Simon picked up where I left off and proceeded to cheerfully and lovingly help Evy go from struggling through a few notes to confidently playing the whole thing. 
He high-fived her! He put his arm around her shoulder! He cheered when she got a note right!

After her "rage" she "collapses" into a chair. While the accompanying picture is pretty as usual, what did the scene look like before it was snapped and mommy was "raging"? Evy was able to play the piece once Simon took over and mama was removed from the equation. Those kids must constantly feel on edge and not even know it. It's nothing to brag about when you can't handle a simple teaching moment and your child does a better job than you. 

We said earlier in the thread that every piano teacher will tell you to never be your own child’s teacher. She just wants to be a martyr. 

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2 hours ago, SuperNova said:

Today Abbie uses the word "rage" when talking about her child's lack of instant piano mastery:

  Hide contents

Remember my piano practice rage? I snapped this picture a few minutes after I collapsed into a chair, exhausted from the effort of helping a twin plink out Away in a Manger. 
Without being asked, Simon picked up where I left off and proceeded to cheerfully and lovingly help Evy go from struggling through a few notes to confidently playing the whole thing. 
 He high-fived her! He put his arm around her shoulder! He cheered when she got a note right!

After her "rage" she "collapses" into a chair. While the accompanying picture is pretty as usual, what did the scene look like before it was snapped and mommy was "raging"? Evy was able to play the piece once Simon took over and mama was removed from the equation. Those kids must constantly feel on edge and not even know it. It's nothing to brag about when you can't handle a simple teaching moment and your child does a better job than you. 

Along with "rage", she mentions she was so exhausted that she "collapsed into a chair, exhausted from the effort of helping a twin plink out Away in a Manger". If you rage and develop a collapsing exhaustion from merely helping your (6 year old?) child with piano, you need help.

 

Apparently, she was so distraught that the eldest child, Simon, came to the rescue:

Quote

"Without being asked, Simon picked up where I left off..." 

Yeah, seems like that happens on the daily..

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I'm just so put off by how she constantly negs her kids and writes about basic, bare-minimum parenting like she's reporting from the frontline in Raqqa. If you hate the basic responsibilities of parenting so much, why keep pumping them out? 

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